Family Vegas trip

justjeepin86

justjeepin86

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 9, 2005
Location
Winston-Salem, NC
So, for some reason, my wife wants to take the kids to Vegas over Christmas break. We went one time for free for the Sprint Cup championship and that was enough for me. I know there are some cool things to see and do, but I think I would rather go elsewhere. That being said, I'm pretty sure she is set on it. That brings me to my question....

Has anyone take kids out there with personal experience? Mine are 11 and 8. I have read some blogs, but would like more on tips and things to do from one of you guys. Any input would be appreciated.
 
I have not taken my kids out there, but my wife and I have been talking about it since we went this summer. I think it would be a great place to spend a night or two in the course of a family vacation. If your family enjoys science at all, the National Atomic Testing Museum is awesome. I spent 4 hours there and could have spent 4 more, but my wife was done.

I really enjoyed Las Vegas as a cheap place to ply to so we could do other things. When we went we spent more time outside Vegas driving to various places than we did down on the strip. We spent a day at the Hoover Dam and exploring Boulder City. We spent a day driving over to Death Valley and caught Red rock Canyon on the way back. The longest day was driving down to the Grand Canyon and back, but it was worth it to me. Those places are where I want to take my kids back to. I am 40 this year and it was my first trip out West and I don't want my children to have to wait so long to see that area.

I saw a lot of stuff that I wouldn't want to have to explain to my kids yet while we walked around the strip and Freemont street. There were also some incredible street magicians performing. The amount of pot smoke was ridiculous. I don't care if you toke up or not, but walking through clouds of it everywhere we went finally started to piss me off. I don't think you are legally allowed to smoke in public, but it didn't seem to stop anybody.

If you do go I would appreciate you posting about it and how you thought it was as a family destination.
 
Hoover Dam is a must.

Also, I find the new bridge there just as impressive as the dam itself.
 
thecj3man said:
I have not taken my kids out there, but my wife and I have been talking about it since we went this summer. I think it would be a great place to spend a night or two in the course of a family vacation. If your family enjoys science at all, the National Atomic Testing Museum is awesome. I spent 4 hours there and could have spent 4 more, but my wife was done.

I really enjoyed Las Vegas as a cheap place to ply to so we could do other things. When we went we spent more time outside Vegas driving to various places than we did down on the strip. We spent a day at the Hoover Dam and exploring Boulder City. We spent a day driving over to Death Valley and caught Red rock Canyon on the way back. The longest day was driving down to the Grand Canyon and back, but it was worth it to me. Those places are where I want to take my kids back to. I am 40 this year and it was my first trip out West and I don't want my children to have to wait so long to see that area.

I saw a lot of stuff that I wouldn't want to have to explain to my kids yet while we walked around the strip and Freemont street. There were also some incredible street magicians performing. The amount of pot smoke was ridiculous. I don't care if you toke up or not, but walking through clouds of it everywhere we went finally started to piss me off. I don't think you are legally allowed to smoke in public, but it didn't seem to stop anybody.

If you do go I would appreciate you posting about it and how you thought it was as a family destination.
Click to expand...

One place I would love to go see is the Grand Canyon and my wife mentioned that. I know it would be worth it, but i can't see driving 4 hours one way and then back on vacation. I may change my mind though.


77GreenMachine said:
Hoover Dam is a must.

Also, I find the new bridge there just as impressive as the dam itself.
Click to expand...

The dam was pretty cool, but I question the kids interest in it. But, I know that is something we will definitely do while we are there.
 
Depends on your kids interest. You watch about a 10 minute video in a theatre, then go down like 550’ and start there. I would say most would find it interesting. To me it’s mind blowing, they give lots of facts to help you understand how huge it is.

Like there’s enough concrete in it to build a 4 lane highway from New York to Los Angelos, or a 3’ sidewalk all the way around the equator.

I’m a bit more conservative than most, so I would not consider taking my kids to Fremont St. I was there for 5 minutes and felt I had no business there. The main strip is very cool though. I did witness 2 people get mugged on the main drag though. Just be vigilant 100% of the time.
 
Go on a dam tour and take all the dam picture you want!

Get out of vegas, go drive to the grand canyon or something worthwhile. We did the trip when I was around 10 or so, we only stayed in vegas for a night before we went to see the national parks.

I can't imagine Vegas for a week, without spending a shit ton of money to entertain the kids without being bored.
 
I haven't been to Vegas in over a decade, and I probably wouldn't have taken kids there when younger, but mine are pretty much grown now. My mom and dad used to go back in the 70's and 80's 2-3 times a year, much cheaper to get there and food was cheaper back then, they wanted you to spend money on gambling. Now they've figured you will spend it on food shows and a room along with the gambling as any other tourist place.
I've heard it is more kid friendly now but I'm with the others only a few "excursions" nearby and $$$$ while you are in town on food and entertainment.
I do remember being kicked out of a casino when I was about 10, LOL I'm not sure where my parents were at the time but I'm fairly certain they weren't far and weren't gone for long. I probably wanted to go off on my own.
Maybe they have "day cares" like they do in Cherokee where you can dump your kids for a few hours.:eek:

Really depends on your kids and what their interest and tolerance is. my vote is no. (maybe find a weekend you and the wife could go last minute cheap flight and check it out b4)

I loved the documentary from the 90's
 
77GreenMachine said:
Also, I find the new bridge there just as impressive as the dam itself.
Click to expand...

The Pat Tillman bridge was interesting to walk across. I had a hard time not thinking about how strong the concrete wall is constructed. It is a pretty serious wall, but there are semis going 70 mph just on the other side of the wall and nowhere to go if something happens.

justjeepin86 said:
One place I would love to go see is the Grand Canyon and my wife mentioned that. I know it would be worth it, but i can't see driving 4 hours one way and then back on vacation. I may change my mind though
Click to expand...

I did not want to drive to the Grand Canyon. I budgeted and saved money just so I could take the Helicopter tour from the Vegas Airport. My wife had never flown before and after getting to Vegas she said hell no, no way she was getting in a Helicopter. After driving to the Canyon I am glad that we did. The first time we got close enough to see the Canyon through the pine trees it blew my mind. We left the Excalibur Hotel about 6 am to begin the trip. I really enjoyed seeing the changing landscape as we left the desert and headed towards the Canyon. It was very interesting to see how things change as we increased in elevation. At least it was interesting to me. I am a science nerd and I cant turn it off. It took us almost 5 hours to get there and we stayed till about 7 pm. We left and ate at the Mexican Restaurant outside the main gate and then headed back towards Vegas. I will say that driving back through the Desert between Kingman Arizona and Las Vegas on Route 93 felt like the most desolate place on earth in the dark. We would drive miles without seeing another car or even a light.

We lucked up I think in seeing everything that we did. I am used to getting up at 5am to go to work and with the time change I was up everyday real early. We left the Tri-Cities Airport at 5am when we went and it was a long day getting there. We went to bed about 6pm Las Vegas time the first night we were there, so I was up and ready the next day. We were the first people to arrive at the Boulder Dam, we got there just as the sun came up. We spent about two hours looking around before the tour opened.

One thing about the tour I did not realize, it is almost like the TSA checkpoint getting in. No pocket knives, had to take off belts, and send everything through a metal detector. They were deadly serious about it.

This was after going through a checkpoint to get into the area before you get to the damn. When we got to the checkpoint we were the only people there, except the guards. They asked if we had any guns or explosives and if they could search our car. I told them I left all my toys in Tennessee and we had nothing to hide. They had a good laugh and told us to have fun at the dam. When we left that afternoon the line from the checkpoint was probably a mile long, so keep that in mind when making your plans.
 
I forgot to mention, the Valley of Fire State Park. It was a fantastic half day trip. It was a couple hour drive towards the North, like you would go if heading to Zion I think. It was a fantastic State Park. There are a lot of Petroglyphs to see if you are willing to walk a little ways. Be sure to take a wide brimmed hat and a lot of water.
 
I’m in Vegas a couple times a year and last fall I brought my 7 year old and wife with me. It was awesome!

We did the Marvel Super Hero museum and experience.

We toured the outdoor Military Vehicle museum which has tons of tanks and jeeps and stuff.

We went indoor skydiving.

But truth be told I think my son remembers the crazy food buffets more than anything else.

I would do it again for sure.
 
My family went out there when I was 10 and my brother was 7. All I remember was the McDonalds we ate at and being rushed in and out of the hotel we stayed at because my brother and I were underage. Now that I am of age, I would LOVE to go back and experience Vegas for what it is.
 
Well, we got here. Managed the 35th floor.
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