Tina and Mark Prawel from Buffalo, N.Y., sit at a fountain outside the Forum Shops at Caesars. Photos by Ralph Fountain. Tourists at the entrance to the Forum Shops at Caesars, from left, Karen Roberts, Dick Powell, Vince Myers, Kathy Myers and Phyllis Powell discuss the high temperatures.

Logic dictates that summers in the desert are going to be hot.

Las Vegas locals know it and they've developed ways of living with 100-plus-degree days for at least two months out of the year.

But what about tourists who come here for honeymoons, long vacations or quick getaways? Do they know exactly what they're in for when it hits 115 degrees on the Strip?

An informal survey of tourists walking the Strip at 3 p.m. on a recent Friday shows that tourists expect it to be hot here. Just not this hot.

That's what New Yorkers Tina and Mark Prawel say as they sit in the shade next to a fountain outside the Forum Shops at Caesars. They chose to visit Las Vegas for the first time during July because it fit both of their schedules, Mark says.

The 100-plus-degree temperatures mean they have to plan their days around the weather.

"We've been everywhere but we head out early in the morning to beat the heat," Mark says.

Mark sips on a Corona as the couple rests and plans their next move. They walked from their hotel, Treasure Island, to Excalibur and are headed back. The heat is getting to them; they wonder if there is a way to get to their hotel by walking through other hotels.

The heat, combined with alcoholic beverages and people who aren't acclimated to the weather, can be a dangerous mix, resort officials say.

"Yesterday, I was feeling pretty sick," says Vince Myer, an Oregon native. He and his family walked outside for much of that day and he didn't drink a lot of water. "I realized staying indoors made me feel better. The heat wiped me out. I've been buying water and drinking it but I'm getting pretty (angry) paying $5 a bottle. I asked one guy to point me in the direction of the nearest water fountain and he looked at me like I was crazy. He said they don't have those here."

Sometimes, tourists misjudge the distance between casinos, says Michael Gilmartin, spokesman for the Stratosphere. They don't take water with them and end up walking much farther than expected.

The resort's first-aid responders (mostly security guards) are trained to recognize the signs of heat exhaustion or heat stroke, says Tony Catletti, the Stratosphere's safety manager. They routinely remind guests to stay hydrated, cut down on alcohol and eat. On very hot days, employees give out bottles of water to Stratosphere guests who are visiting the tower.

"In this city people don't feel the heat because it's dry so they don't think they're perspiring and losing body fluids. Especially the adventurous types, they're walking from property to property and by the time they get (here), they've lost a lot of body fluids," Catletti says.

Every year, Bellagio employees who work outside undergo a heat stress training course, which teaches them how to identify the signs of heat-related ailments in themselves or others, says Yvette Monet, spokeswoman for MGM-Mirage.

Employees at other MGM properties are also prepared for the hot weather.

"Our security staff is very alert on a year-round basis looking out for any guest who might require medical assistance, and it is the ongoing priority of our security officers and other frontline resort staff to assist guests who become ill while visiting our hotels," Monet says. "During the hotter months, we are especially vigilant in our efforts to find children or pets that are left in parked cars. While this is a fairly infrequent occurrence in our parking areas, we do take extra-special care to identify and assist in those situations."

While tourists don't let the heat deter them from enjoying the Strip, the hot weather brings out entrepreneurs, too. A man did a brisk business on a Strip walkway on a recent Friday, selling bottled water for $1 each.

"He might be a millionaire by the end of the day," Myer quips.

One nice thing about the Strip, he adds: "Since it's so hot, it's nice you can walk and drink. You can't do that in every city."