I think you guys have it pretty much spot on. I have grown up on both lakes..

Havasu= short boating, great party/ladies, good drinks/food, and night life.
Mead=awesome long distance boating, great scenery, relaxed and quiet atmosphere. and only 45 min away from Vegas!

Havasu pretty much dies out after Labor Day weekend, just the snowbirds and locals after that. Let me know when you're coming out and I can give you any local advice/help you need. Could do a day on the lake myself if I'm not scheduled to work.

Thank you Red Dog and everyone else for your comments. I will relay this info to the other parties involved and see in which direction they want to go. At this point,it looks like Mead may be the way to go. I assume there are some restaurants on the water still open this time of year in Mead?

Um lake mead is boring too say the least....havasu is a better choice.

Havasu is worth it... The water is nicer, the area is better... Only downside is that Havasu might be slightly hotter, but nothing you're not going to notice anyways!!!

love them both. mead is like a lake in a desert a half hour or so from vegas. That is pretty much it... But if you like 40 miles from the launch ramp and no other people or buildings ... Rent a house boat?.. Havi is
a lake in the middle of the desert with a city built on it..... Both.cities have clubs to party at...

There are low-end restaurants in the floating marinas at Lake Mead I think are year-round. Burgers/sandwich/beer-type places. Boating out here is different than anywhere else ... take your party, beverages, and food/snacks with you. Find a private beach/cove or hit Wishing Well or Little Sandy beach if you want to party with other boats. All usually laid-back very friendly people at Mead.

Hard to build nice establishments on the water when the level changes by up to 100'. The restaurant/bar at Temple AZ is about a mile hike (or golf cart ride if you're lucky) from the docks at low water levels.

Only to Havasu once by boat and a few times by Harley after season. Running up the river to Pirate's Cove at Havasu is great if you have someone along who knows the water but challenging if you don't know the channel and like your outdrive/props intact.