Las Vegas

[athomeontheprairie]

Is Vegas a place that is kid friendly?

I remember going as a fifth trade-off was so fun.

Is it still that way, or is an adult only destination?

[sassenach]

Not in my opinion.

[LarlaB]

We've gone with kids 5 times on camping trips to/from CA and also once as a cheap getaway to hotel with water park and day trip to Hoover Dam. BUT kids are older now and much more aware so I don't think we will go back. 😜

 

There are a few family friendly ways to go about it...fountains at Bellagio, magic show, pet show, Buddy's (from Cake Boss) restaurant and bakery, stayed at a hotel off strip with lazy river etc. Also in close proximity to Hoover dam which is SO awesome.

 

Cheap hotel rooms with really nice pools and on site dining was our plan. Stratosphere, South Fork and Tahiti Village were all enjoyable and affordable stays for us, but I've heard CircusCircus and MGM are great as well given in site options.

 

But walking on the strip-no way. No.Way. Especially after about 5pm we would stay inside. Way too many lewd billboards, naked gaming cards and stuff we don't want to see. Gambling, excessive alcohol and nudity are not great combinations for family vacation. BUT that's not all Vegas is about.

[Guest]

I don't think it is particularly family friendly but the arcade level of Excalibur is super fun!

[Anne in CA]

We have family there so we find family oriented things to do there. We go to the Circus Circus amusement park. Very fun! Buffets are always fun! Mandalay Bay has the cool shark aquarium. MGM Grand has the Rain Forest Cafe, ect. There are lots of fun family things to do if you look a little bit.

[SKL]

I found it kid-friendly.  I took my kids there when they were 8.  We drove from there to the Grand Canyon one day, and to Universal Studios another day.

Edited April 3, 2017 by SKL

[CAMom]

Not anywhere near the strip!

 

I have been there too many times to count. I have actually been there twice this year already. It's gotten worse. 

 

There are women dressed as showgirls on every corner trying to get you to stop and pay for a photo with them. Some are dressed as traditional show girls, many are dressed as cops in very scanty uniforms. Some are completely topless other than pasties. In front of Harrah's, there were a couple of plus sized gals playing on the trend. They were wearing tutus and were topless except for duct tape right over the important parts.

 

There are also still older men and women all up and down the streets handing out materials on strip clubs, women directly to your room, etc. The men have on t-shirts that say, "Get girls directly to your room." The women have on t-shirts that say, "Orgasm Clinic."

 

On a recent visit, we saw a guy walking down the strip in nothing but a skimpy g-string with a red heart right on the front. 

 

Dh and I were there in February for his 50th birthday to see Elton John in concert. I would in no way feel comfortable walking the strip with my 11 year old at this point. 

[DawnM]

We used to go every year.  DH's parents would come to Vegas from MI to escape the winter for a week and we lived in LA and would dive over for a few days.  I honestly always hated it.  It is smokey and loud and dirty.

 

Dh's brother would drop their kid off at a random back alley 24 hour drop in day care and go gamble and get mad at us because we didn't do the same.

 

Ah, fun times.  (NOT!)

 

I wouldn't choose to go there if I didn't have to.

 

I also had to go for some work seminars.  I hated that too.

[SKL]

Hmm, I didn't see those things on the strip 1.5 years ago ... not sure why, maybe it was the time of day or week or year ....  We went around Thanksgiving.

[Lanny]

I have been going there since it was a very small city (50,000 population approximately).  One of my childhood friends moved there when we were about 12. He told me or wrote me, a few months ago that he hates to go there now. He lives in S.W. Utah now. They go there for the airport and to visit family. He remembers the Las Vegas he grew up in as a small town and it is a very large city now.   That said, there is probably a book, maybe an Underground book, about Las Vegas with Kids.  They must NEVER be in casino areas of hotels.  When DD was a baby we were there. One day my wife had DD in her arms and I went with the Stroller, to see which numbers in Keno had come up, or something like that. I was approached by Security...  There are things like Mt. Charleston, where one can Snow Ski in Winter, Hoover/Boulder Dam, which is something I will never forget touring and looking up from the bottom, at all that concrete. Probably a lot of Coasters and Zip Lines that are pretty awesome (on rooftops of hotels).  Las Vegas is a large city now with a huge population in the Metro area. People who live there have always gone to Church or Synagogue and to the supermarket, just as people living anywhere else do.  It is and can be "Sin City" and is primarily a vacation destination for Adults, but there are lots of things for kids to do.  Again, Nevada is *extremely* strict about kids in Casinos, Driving While Intoxicated, and other things. I lived in Reno and that might be another place to consider, with Lake Tahoe, Carson City, Virginia City, etc., nearby.  Las Vegas is close to Grand Canyon National Park and to the National Parks in S.W. Utah.  Research this thoroughly and enjoy whatever you decide to do.

[CAMom]

Hmm, I didn't see those things on the strip 1.5 years ago ... not sure why, maybe it was the time of day or week or year ....  We went around Thanksgiving.

 

This year was the first time I've seen all of that! They've always had the people handing out materials.

 

I was there on a Tuesday in January this year. I got stuck there on the way back from Tampa to Portland due to an ice-storm. 

 

I was there on a Tuesday - Friday in February. 

 

A couple of the scantily dressed "cops" were in front of the Bellagio fountains. Directly across the sidewalk from the girls were a couple of scantily dressed male "cops" for the ladies in the crowd. ;)

 

I have been to Vegas at least 40 times. I had family there for years.

Edited April 3, 2017 by CAMom

[J-rap]

I would have rather gone to a lot of other places before Las Vegas with young children, but if you need to go there anyway, I think it could be done as long as you avoid the strip.  There are some really fun casino hotels, almost like Disneyland!   And of course places like Hoover Dam.

 

We did go there once for a wedding, with our college-aged daughter.  We weren't looking forward to it at all, but ended up having a blast!  Of course you have to kind of suspend your normal judgments...

 

 

[Lanny]

I'm not sure what the population of Metro Las Vegas is now. Possibly 2 million?  Some of the residents there are children. I'm sure there are a lot of things for them to spend money on in Las Vegas. However, for tourists, Las Vegas is like Walt Disney World for Adults.  When we were there, we were planning to make a detour to S.W. Utah for several days (National Parks), but at the last minute I received a letter (that tells you how far back this was, we had Internet, but I don't think the other party did at that time) and we ended up going to So CA for several nights on the side trip, to visit family.