Las Vegas with kids? How to turn a visit to Sin City into a family hit

Las Vegas is generally seen as an adult playground, but step beyond the casino resorts and showgirls, and Nevada’s city of excess can be a hit for children, too. There’s no shortage of things to keep them occupied.

More than just casinos.Credit: Greg Straight

A spate of recent openings cleverly blend art, technology and interactivity. The ARTE Museum allows youngsters to play among supersized projections, Area 15 has a wealth of virtual reality headset adventures and the brilliant Electric Playhouse makes your body the controller in highly active, high-tech games. The Museum of Illusions, meanwhile, is a little more old school with its photo-friendly optical illusions.

For thrill-seeking older kids, the Big Apple Coaster loops around New York-New York, the Adventuredome indoor theme park at Circus Circus has short but loop-crammed rollercoasters and the Slotzilla zipline whizzes under the giant LED roof over Fremont Street.

For evening entertainment, dodge the US-centric comedy shows and plump for a spectacle. Of the five magic-sprinkled, astonishingly acrobatic Cirque du Soleil shows, water-based O and classic all-rounder Mystere will inspire most wonder. Other kid-friendly options include the playful percussion and physical comedy of the Blue Man Group and the hokey jousting antics at the Excalibur’s Tournament of Kings.

The Big Apple Coaster loops around New York-New York hotel.Credit: Getty Images

For accommodation, almost all the giant resorts offer rooms with two queen beds, or interconnecting rooms, and prices can be pleasantly cheap. If staying on the Strip, aim for resorts with big pool complexes such as the Fontainebleau or Mandalay Bay. The latter is also home to the impressive Shark Reef Aquarium, a hit with kids who like walking through tunnels with dozens of sharks swimming overhead.

If staying in the Strip resorts, be aware that children need adult accompaniment on the usually unavoidable walk across the casino floor. They can’t roam semi-free like they might at a beachy all-inclusive.

There’s better value, however, in staying off-Strip in suites with a full kitchen, such as those at the Desert Rose Resort. A kitchen comes in handy because food and drink prices at the Strip resorts can be eye-watering. Food courts such as the Proper Eats Food Hall in the Aria work out cheaper than the in-resort restaurants. You’ll save money walking the kids across the road to much cheaper taco joints, diners and convenience stores, or Downtown, where you’ll find a better collection of affordable, independent restaurants.

The Bellagio’s famed dancing fountains don’t cost a thing.Credit: Getty Images

Downtown is also more fun for kids to walk around, with plenty of street art, the bright lights and live music acts on Fremont Street plus a giant fire-breathing mechanical mantis outside the shops and treat stores of the Downtown Container Park.

These are all free to enjoy and a godsend in a city that doesn’t have the things – parks and playgrounds – that usually keep children reliably occupied without opening the wallet. Other solid freebies include the dancing fountains show and the flower-deluged Conservatory at the Bellagio, plus the roving circus acts at Circus Circus.

The intensity of Las Vegas means it’s wise to get out every couple of days, before stimulus overload leads to meltdowns. For wholesome hiking trails with plenty of dramatic desert eye candy, Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area (blm.com) and Valley of Fire State Park are a short drive away.

The writer was a guest of Travel Nevada and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. See travelnevada.com; visitlasvegas.com