Recently a business expo brought hubby and I to Downtown Las Vegas and since our daughter’s district had the week off for Fall Break we added 3 nights on the trip for her to have her first Las Vegas experience. I was excited to book pools Cassidy will enjoy, shows that will capture her attention, restaurants to expand her pallet and experiences she’ll remember for a lifetime. Hopefully all the gambling, drinking and questionable outfits will blend into the background. Las Vegas is an adults paradise and not a comfortable place for truly conservative families. Cassidy is a bit older and has been to Europe and walked through the Red Light District so we figured Vegas couldn’t be worse… not so sure after an hour on Fremont Street.
Hotels
Since we were traveling with Cassidy I booked a timeshare property that is also a hotel, for the 1 and 2 bedroom suites and kitchen. The resort pool, with water lounge chairs, a sandy beach entrance in addition to hot tubs and an entire lazy river complex with bars and floats was fantastic! Unfortunately, this property has only updated their pool and common areas and the rooms and buildings are dated and worn. I’ve seen the plans for the update and it’s honestly not impressive. The worst aspect of this property was the terrible attitudes of the employees. This must be a terrible workplace environment by the looks of the faces on the staff. I’d like to say maybe try it again after the upgrade, but just skip this property. The fantastic pool isn’t worth the location and rest of the property.
Other options are renting a VRBO/airBnB or rental home/condo using another platform. A word of warning, airBnB has had a lot of issues with canceling on travelers last minute. I’ve heard about it over the recent years in Europe and it just happened to my brother-in-law this past month, in Las Vegas. It is a terrible feeling to be flying to a city without a reservation when you arrive, it is happening more often lately. Remember, renting a property off the strip will also involve renting a car and paying for parking at most of the hotels, casinos and malls. Other off-strip options include Hyatt Place, Residence Inn and the Silverton Casino with aquarium & mermaid shows.
On the strip, my favorite luxury hotel that is child friendly is Mandalay Bay, for more than just the 11- acre, family-friendly pool and shark reef aquarium. The pool is a tropical oasis with zero entry, beachy area and wave pool. There are lots of great restaurants both in the hotel and the shops between Mandalay Bay and Luxor next door. The show Michael Jackson One at Mandalay Bay and Blue Man Group at Luxor are both family friendly, plus there is a Titanic attraction, Princess Diana display and King Tut exhibit all in Luxor, with an indoor entrance. The shops and food court at Luxor is a great option for kids too, but I don’t suggest staying there due to it needing a refresh. Flanker Kitchen & Sports Bar and Ri Ra Irish Pub are both great restaurants to enjoy a great meal with the family in Mandalay Bay.
New York New York Resort and Casino is a few hotels south of where I recommend for adults to stay, but this is a great spot to stay with the family. New York New York is easily recognized on the skyline with its skyscraper buildings, Statue of Liberty and Brooklyn Bridge replicas. From Mandalay Bay north to New York, New York there are tons of things to do with children between entertainment, shows and shopping and lots of less expensive food and snack options. The Big Apple coaster can be seen (and heard) coming out of the New York New York Resort and Casino and lure thrill seeking kids and adolescents of all ages. It does ride over the pool which is loud and not impressive compared to many of the amazing pools in Vegas. The rooms at this hotel are decent and the suites are affordable, but not opulent. This is the hotel closest to the T-Mobile Arena, so if you have tickets to a show or game it is easy to walk from this resort.
The other area that will be visited the most with children on the east side of the strip would be from Planet Hollywood up to the Linq Promenade. Staying at less expensive Caesars hotels like Planet Hollywood, Horseshoe or Flamingo are great options and extremely reasonable during the week, the weekend gets more expensive everywhere in Vegas. Horseshoe is the hotel that sits just north of Paris and shares an inside walkway and parking garage. Keep walking past the garage through the shops and more restaurants into the Horseshoe’s casino. Horseshoe has been undergoing a full renovation from its original Bally’s. A renovation and rebranding toward the growing tourist who love country music. With many artists like Carrie Underwood, Shania Twain and Garth Brooks all having residencies in Las Vegas, the crowds are loving staying at Horseshoe. There is no lack of inexpensive food and shopping stalls out front of the hotel in a Bazaar area that hasn’t made the full rebranding transition yet. There is also a mall in the basement level with activities like virtual reality, an arcade and a Dino experience great for kids and adults. There is a food court with quick and cheap options down there as well. The Potted Potter show is attracting Harry Potter fans to Horseshoe too, with this 70 minute shortened version of the 7 books and 8 movies has had rave reviews in both England and now Las Vegas and on our bucket list for next trip. There are afternoon and evening shows many days a week and a great family-friendly activity in this sea of drinking and gambling.
The Flamingo Hotel has an Old Las Vegas feel to their lobby, casino and restaurants and a flamingo conservatory and great pools outside. There is a family-friendly pool and adults only party pool at the Flamingo that anyone staying at a Caesars property to use. The Linq promenade is a strip of stores, restaurants and treats that lead to the Highroller. My favorite spot was Gordan Ramsey’s fish & chips and is a great spot for a lunch or quick dinner. This is not a full service restaurant, no reservations will be given, just pop in line and follow the ordering guide. Cassidy thought she had filled up on sweets at the candy shop and was finishing a cup of cookie dough from a food truck, but the smell of fries was overpowering and we enjoyed a fish & chips and shrimp. Other great options are Maxie’s at the Linq and Buddy V’s Jersey Shore.
We also had some fun at the selfie museum, which was just a spur of the moment activity my daughter asked to do. She’s been shy about having her photo taken lately, so when she agreed to be in and take photos I jumped on the chance. It was a weird time (between 5-7) and most people were probably getting ready for dinner, but we were the only ones in the whole place! There are a bunch of stations where you can dress up, use optical illusions and fancy camera tricks to get the perfect pics, but we just had fun. We took turns in a tub filled with gold, in first class on a plane and in front of angel wings. There was even an employee that would help you craft and take great pics. I can see this as a great spot to take teens or even let your teens loose while you enjoy a meal or some gambling. The promenade ends with the visitors center for the high roller, an eye like experience that takes 30 minutes to complete the full rotation. The views of the mountains and strip are incredible and you can see the full expansion of the Las Vegas area. I was worried about going on this since I don’t like heights and have struggled with ferris wheels and gondolas in recent years, but I loved this and was not nervous at all! You walk into a large pod while it is moving, there are some seats on benches in the middle, but most of the time we all stood up looking out the large windows. If you are doing the High Roller with children be sure to get there for their day ticket, the night ticket includes a 30 minute happy hour.
Entertainment & Experiences
Las Vegas is known for its free shows too and there are some that are inexpensive experiences as well, just to add a little balance to the pricey shows and concerts. Be sure to check out times for the following:
- Bellagio Fountain Show & Conservatory Gardens
- Wynn Carousel of Flowers & Lake of Dreams show
- Circus Acts at Circus Circus
- Fall of Atlantis and aquarium at Caesars
- Pinball Hall of Fame
- Welcome to Las Vegas sign & Welcome to Downtown Las Vegas sign
- Ethel M Chocolate Factory
- Hershey’s Chocolate World
- M&M’s World
- Selfie Museum
- Paradox Museum
- Museum of Illusions
- Top Golf, Atomic Golf, KISS: by Monster mini golf, Twilight Zone mini golf and Popstroke (designed by Tiger Woods)
Las Vegas is the city of entertainment, concerts and shows and that has continued to expand to family friendly shows too. Cirque du Soleil and now some similarly choreographed shows have taken over Las Vegas and most of the big hotels have a headlining show. On our most recent trip, we saw the show Michael Jackson One at Mandalay Bay, since my daughter has loved songs like Beat It, Bad and Smooth Criminal in the past couple of years. This show was a tribute to Michael’s contribution to music and a testament to the music spanning generations since hubby and I both loved this show too. The production value of this show has really increased from the last Cirque show I saw. The addition of drones, dancing on the walls and an electric guitarist to the traditional French acrobatic performance held my daughter’s attention for the full 90 minutes and had us all wanting more! Before this, the show, ‘O’ at the Bellagio had always held my top choice of shows in the amazing aqua theater previously and I plan to take Cassidy to see that show in the future too. She’s also requested going back to Michael Jackson One as well. Mystere at Treasure Island, KA at MGM Grand and the newer show Mad Apple at New York, New York are all good options too.
There are additional shows that are less expensive than Cirque, it’s always an expensive ticket although older shows are less pricey. Additional child-friendly shows include:
- Tournament of Kings at Excalibur (dinner and a show)
- Battle bots (located behind behind Horseshoe)
- Jabbawockeez at MGM Grand
- V-Ultimate Variety Show at Planet Hollywood
- Popovich Comedy Pet theater at Planet Hollywood
- Blue Man Group at Luxor
- Illuminate at Strat
- Mat Franco Magician at Linq Hotel
Las Vegas is full of experiences like nowhere else and some of them cost more money unfortunately. Some of the best to spend your money on are a helicopter or limo ride of the strip (especially at night). If getting in a helicopter makes you nervous, try Flyover in Las Vegas instead. It is a “ride” that is more of an experience and gaining traction through the world’s tourist locations. Going to the Sphere experience or a concert in the new venue is also a popular activity in the northern part of the Strip and located behind the Venetian. The Venetian is one of my favorite hotels in Vegas and has the most amazing mall area called the Grand Canal Shoppes, built to look like an Italian piazza. The Gondola Ride on the canal inside the shopping area with blue painted skies and singing gondoliers can only compare to actually experiencing it in Venice!
Locations with Food & Fun for Kids
There are very specific hotels and areas of the Strip that are hot spots for family fun and family-friendly restaurants. New York New York has the Terry Fator Ventriloquist show called “Who’s the Dummy Now?” is popular with families too. The Big Apple Arcade has activities for all ages and stages with fun activities like skeeball and air-hockey in addition to video games and more. The food throughout the New York New York hotel is said to be “food with a New York accent.” There are a few fine dining options not suitable for children, but also places like Nine Fine Irishmen with its whole facade made in Ireland and shipped over and is family-friendly until 11:00 pm and the best spot on the Strip to celebrate St. Patty’s Day! America is a restaurant where families can eat under the largest physical map in America for a geography lesson that can’t be duplicated in school and has a Ribeye special that can’t be beat. Tom’s Watch Bar is a spot to watch your favorite team and is loud, so noise from kids won’t even be noticed. “The Park” is an outdoor area that is themed like Brookyln with a Shake Shack and Hello Kitty Cafe. I wish I knew about the Hello Kitty Cafe when we were just there, but we missed it!
Planet Hollywood and the Shops at Miracle Mile are also a great spot for food with kids. The hotel has Gordon Ramsey Burger, a restaurant that only takes walkins and is perfect for families that like to eat early. It’s a less expensive and less formal setting to try some of the chef’s famous foods and the burgers don’t disappoint! Cafe Hollywood is a 24/7 diner in the Planet Hollywood hotel too and is great for breakfast, quick meals or milkshakes and desserts. Just around the corner in the Miracle Mile Shops is another great spot for milkshakes at Sugar Factory. There are additional mall food chains and a great option called Lobster Me for Lobster rolls and Cocolini gelato is found all over the strip and must be tried. There is an ABC store for inexpensive snacks and drinks or gift store items and another store you’ll find all over Vegas, the Welcome to Las Vegas Gift Shop for inexpensive souvenirs and good places for kids to shop with spending money. If you are looking for normal mall shops, shoe stores and youthful shopping this is the place to go. My daughter had her first experience buying makeup at Sephora at these shops and was shocked she was the only kid in there! Only in Vegas!
Caesars Palace is another spot on the Strip with great free shoes and food options. The Bacchanal Buffet is at the top of our list (with Wynn and Bellagio’s Buffets) of must try buffets, which has a huge variety and super fresh foods and seafood. Carmine’s Restaurant is another great traditional dining experience at Caesars and our personal next restaurant experience at Hell’s Kitchen. We’ve been watching the show as a family for years and now Cassidy really wants to go there and will be disappointed if Gordon isn’t there himself, yelling at the sous chefs! Check out the shopping, the free show called Fall of Atlantis and the aquarium wall at the Shops at Caesars.
The Venetian is my favorite of all the hotels, even with the new ones opening I still love the Venetian and the Grand Canal Shoppes. This is another great location to feel like you are in Italy, Venice this time, eating a gelato in Saint Mark’s Square. Splurge on the gondola ride, especially if you are with your love, but choose the one inside and at night when it is far less crowded. Then reserve a table at Buddy V’s Ristorante, an Italian restaurant down a hall in the shops with the Cake Boss bakery for take out and the family restaurant for dinner. This is not an inexpensive meal, but it is more affordable than many of the fancy Italian restaurants with the same delicious level of food and service. If you want to kick the experience up a notch try Matteo’s Ristorante Italiano for a fine dining experience or Black Taps for burgers and elaborate milkshakes your family will love.
Circus Circus is the most northern area on the strip you’d want to go with kids, but I don’t ever recommend staying at this hotel! They have very low advertised rates, especially for their motor lodge (an old motel they bought out for added space) and RV park. The casino and west towers are rooms inside the resort, but are badly dated. Even with the ability to book Circus Circus rooms with Choice points, I would still skip staying here, but check it out for a day or evening of kid approved food and fun. The Adventuredome is a 5-acre indoor amusement park with classic carnival games, an arcade, rock climbing wall, miniature golf and rides like roller coasters, ferris wheel and bumper cars. In the middle of the midway, find the stage where circus acts are held in the world’s largest permanent circus. These amazing free carnival performances are held after 1:30 pm on Monday and Thursday and starting at 11:30 am Friday- Sunday (dark Tues & Wed), check out the circus schedule online for specific performance times. There is a great steak house restaurant at the resort that adults and kids (especially those carnivore kids like mine) love. It is also at a price point that parents don’t mind spending on a steak for a 9 year old. There is also the Blue Iguana Mexican, Pizzeria and Big Top Eats with typical American and TexMex dishes. Finally, you can find lots of quick service eats like Starbucks, Krispy Kreme and Dairy Queen to refuel between activities.
Las Vegas is famous for its celebrity chefs like Gordon Ramsey and Bobby Flay and fine dining experiences. Some kids might be foodies and prefer trying Michelin star restaurants, but not my chicken finger crew! I was that way as a kid, I never ate fast food and preferred a shrimp cocktail and caesar salad to a burger & fries, but not my kids. Another notorious restaurant option in Las Vegas are the buffets. There are not as many options as in the past and only a few are open for dinner. Both brunch and dinner seafood buffets are lavish experiences and expensive. However, it is a great way for kids to try new foods that you’d never know they enjoy eating. Another benefit is they get to eat right away, kids skip the “waiting” portion or have it transferred to the end of the meal while the rest of the family goes back for seconds and thirds. There are buffets that are less expensive at Luxor and Excalibur or off-strip, but you will also not be getting the same high quality of food.
Downtown Las Vegas
When going on a Las Vegas trip with kids, honestly I’d skip Downtown Las Vegas completely if you can. This is the seediest part of Las Vegas and not worth the extra 3 miles. If your itinerary must include it (like ours did for a work conference) there is really only 1 hotel I recommend with kids is the Golden Nugget. They have an amazing pool with a shark tank that has a waterslide right through it! “The Tank” swimming experience can be purchased as a day pass and was supposed to be our plan for our last day in Vegas, but the temp dropped 50 degrees overnight and a wind advisory was issued and our day and our pool day surrounded by sharks never happened. Another great place to visit with kids is the Tree House & Play Zone at the Container Park located a few blocks from Fremont Street. The restaurants and shops are built in shipping containers, but there is also an interactive play area with towers, slides and games. A 35-foot tall praying mantis sculpture shoots flames from its antennae to welcome visitors from the entrance. However, this park only allows kids until 9:00 pm, after which it is a 21+ bar hopping haven. The Discovery Children Museum is in Downtown and a great spot for young kids to explore and run around. The Neon Museum is another spot that some kids might find interesting, mine quickly vetoed this when she saw the pictures saying, “It’s a museum of old signs?” Touche Cassidy, touche!
Pinkbox Donuts was in the lobby of our hotel, the Plaza, and the perfect spot for me to grab a coffee and bring up a box of fancy donuts for my kiddo and hubby. This would be a great spot to take the kids, so they can see the themed donuts and take pictures with the signs out front. These donuts were elaborate and themed for Halloween. Across the street is the Fremont Street experience, which is a pedestrian mall that occupies the 5 westernmost blocks of Fremont Street in the area known as ‘Glitter Gulch.” Viva Vision is the largest LED canopy screen in the world with 16.4 million pixels over 1,375 feet, suspended over the pedestrian walkway. You will even see people zip-lining down the canopy, which I’m sure is the best view of Fremont Street. During the day it is not as crowded or sinister, but it was pretty crazy by the time we went at 8:00 pm to see the light show that was set to Kate Perry songs. After 4 songs played to the choreographed lights, the street regained its crazy street performers and 4 stages of free live music. Walk 1 block off Fremont Street to Pizza Rock for the best pizza and brewery at great prices. We all enjoyed this spot and it’s got a lot more on the menu than just pizza. It’s pizza from New York, Detroit, Chicago and much more!
Day trips are another popular option for people visiting Las Vegas. It’s surprising to think, when you’re trapped inside casinos and shopping malls on the Strip, that there are two mountain ranges and a number of natural and man-made attractions in the great outdoors. Spring Mountains are located west of the city and include Mount Charleston. Mount Charleson is the only place my husband saw snow as a child living in Florida and an easy day trip to an altitude of snow in just a few hours. The Las Vegas Range is located southeast of the city, the Sheep Range is northwest of the range and the River Mountains are located to the east of the Las Vegas Valley. So grab your hat and sunscreen and get out there to see:
- Grand Canyon
- Hoover Dam
- Red Rock Canyon
- Valley of Fire
- 7 Magic Mountains
- Lake Mead
- Mt. Charleston
- Death Valley
Las Vegas has a reputation for being an adult playground and many areas are 21+ for drinking and gambling reasons. But the city offers fun for all ages between family-friendly shows, amusement park rides, arcades and more. This area can even be used for educational and cultural opportunities as well, even a homeschool family could create a field trip in and around this town. Many of the experiences geared toward kids are free or inexpensive, so it makes the restaurant checks feel a little more balanced… at least I hope it does.
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