I'm considering various family vacations options and would like to know from those who have been there--Is Las Vegas really a good place to take a family?

Thanks in advance for replies.

Jeff

As with all things, it seems, the answer is, "it depends".
LV has made a well publicized effort to create a family friendly image the past 3-4 years. On the plus side: there are lots of things to do for kids, including a decent amusement park at the MGM, roller coasters there at Stratosphere and at NY NY, great pools at several of the Strip hotels, esp Mandalay Bay/Mirage, many arcade type venues including a Gameworks center on the south strip, lots of easy food options which are kid friendly. Just seeing all the free theme areas at the new hotels is a great diversion (volcano at Mirage, Pirate and ship battle at Treasure Island, watershow at Bellagio, canals at Venetian, Eiffel Tower, Villages at NY NY, Luxor sites, and on and on).
On the negative side, there is, of course, gambling everywhere and kids are not allowed in these areas. They're often very close to the restaurants, etc. There's a TON of smoking in LV which drives me absolutely crazy. It's busy and may be easy to lose track of active 6-9 year olds, and if the parents want to gamble you have to find a way to safely occupy them.
So, the answer is, it depends on what you want out of the trip, the ages and personalities of your kids, and what your values are. Specific questions? Write back.

I would not want to take young children there. You are limiting your personal ability to enjoy Vegas. We have taken our teens twice and they love it. It's a place like no other. We have always felt very safe. The Monte Carlo is a great place for families. The central location across from GAMEWORKS is nice for kids. There are many shows that are a once in a lifetime. email for specifics. There is plenty of free to inexpensive stuff for teens. We are not big gamblers, so spent time together as a family just exploring Las Vegas. It's as fascinating as they say.

I will post this reply again. Having been to many places in the US, Las Vegas is the last place I would take my childern to. There is nothing for them to do! Las Vegas is for adults who want to gamble and see the sights. The powers to be figure if they tell you it is now a family resort you will not feel guilty leaving the kids at the pool, when your gambling. You know where the family vacation locations are, Las Vegas is not one of them.

What are the ages of the kids? We have gone there twice with our kids, and the last time as a family trip with 7 grandkids ages 7-17 as a surprise for our parents, who love Las Vegas, for their 50th anniversary. The kids had a four day weekend off school, so it worked. There are lots of things for them to do and it was a real experience for them.

If you are, however, a gambler, you are restricted as mentioned previously, because kids are not even allowed to stop walking as they traverse the casino.

We saw Cirque du Soleil "O" - unbelievable!

They enjoyed the Dinner show at Caesar's Magical Emporium, the Forum shops with the "living" statue shows (free), the fountain show at Bellagio (free), the Pirate Show at Treasure Island (free), the Volcano and White Tiger exhibit at Mirage (free). The Treasure Island is great for families and has just been totally renovated. They have a really nice carnival arcade - not to be confused with a video arecade that our kids really liked.

We drove out to Hoover Dam and took the tour - the kids really found it interesting - just the dam itself is probably the largest structure they've ever encountered, and you get to see the topography of Arizona outside the city.

Three or four days is definitely enough, though. Be aware that in the winter months, it will be too cold to swim, and that the MGM amusement park is seasonally closed. We went in February and that was not problem for us.

When I was in Vegas a few years ago, people frequently shoved flyers for prostitutes at us. Although there were no children with us at the time. I don't know if they would refrain from handing the flyers to a family. It certainly didn't deter them that I was with my boyfriend.

We took our kids ages 10,13, and 15 last year and I'd never do it again. I've been there at least 20 times and I never realized how different it would be with the kids. My 2 boys found new and creative ways to hide the "callgirl" newspapers they collected on the strip. I was still finding them 2 weeks later at home. It was 110 degrees which meant no walking, the Hoover dam trip was "boring" to them, and Red Rock Canyon was good for only a few hours. But if I ask them, it was the best vacation ever !Take them someplace else. Face it, the whole town runs on sex, smoking, drinking, and gambling. San Diego is a much better choice.

Have you really been EVERYWHERE else in the U.S.? Las Vegas is the last place in the U.S. I would consider for a family vacation. There are many, many, great places to visit with kids. Try Boston, Washington, D.C., Williamsburg, Virginia, Lancaster, Pennsylvannia, just to name a few, but in my opinion, not Las Vegas.

NO, despite all the propaganda from the Vegas convention and visitors bureau, Vegas is not a family destination. Vegas sells based on gambling, drinking, adult oriented casino shows all with a general overtone of sex. It's a great escape for a few days for adults but it's not any kind of place for children or a family vacation.

I am not a big fan of children in Las Vegas. I like to consider it to be an adult playground. However, in all fairness it all depends on you. There is as much or more for kids to do in Las Vegas then most places. It is true that they will probably be exposed to some undesirable things that cannot be avoided. Yes, the sex literature advertising sex for sale is still being handed out on the streets.

The family friendly image is NOT something that started 3-4 years ago. It started about 7-8 years ago in response to the drop in business caused by the severe recession in Southern California. Now the trend is reversing when they discovered that families do not spend money gaming. Gaming is the lifeblood of Las Vegas and they cannot afford to fill hotels with non players. Steve Wynn admitted last year that catering to the families was the stupidest thing that they had ever done. Now the move is away from the families with the Bellagio ( Steve Wynn ) property being a prime example.

There are still family friendly properties such as Circus Circus and the Excaliber ( another Circus Circus property ). Younger children would probably love the circus acts at the Circus Circus.

In any event, if you do go, please realize that you will have to watch your children pretty closely. Las Vegas is normally very crowded and there are a lot of distractions.

No, absolutely not! We were there in July and took our 14 year old daughter. She was "bored" the whole time. We ate in excellent restaurants, stayed at the Venetian, saw "O" at the Bellagio, etc., and she still did not enjoy the trip. It's not a place for a family trip unless you have a babysitter. Also, the cigarette smoke is awful, which bothers a lot of kids. They are not allowed to go in the casinos. There was a really good band in the hotel that my daughter wanted to listen to but could not because it was considered in the casino. I think the only part she enjoyed was shopping at Caesar's Forum.

ABSOLUTELY NOT. Just returned from a trip with our 2.5 year old. As others have said, there is little for little ones to do. To check your kid at the arcade is ridiculous and frightening. AND, if you want to partake of the many great restaurants in LV, forget it. Few , beside the coffee shops, allow children under 5. This was both disappointing and aggravating. Our toddler happens to be well-behaved. We couldn't even get the restaurants in our hotel, Treasure Island, to yield. Our young one was sound asleep on my shoulder as we returned to the hotel from a walk. My wife stopped to feed the slots. I was aware of the prohibition of children in casinos, so I made sure to remain on the marble walk at the periphery. I was still told to keep moving and told that my son couldn't be there. He wasn't doing anything except sleeping. I know there are good reasons for the rules, but I was stunned at how nasty the enforcers can be. Something else occurred to me: there are so many machines geared directly at children. There were South Park slots. At LV Hilton, there was a great farmyard slot area just outside the buffet, complete with animatronic animals. We stopped briefly to allow my son to see a pig pop out of a stump. Yep, we were told to move along. Sorry for carrying on. THE ANSWER IS A DEFINITE NO.

SCOTT

Have also been there with small ones - 3 1/2 & 1 (against my wishes we went for a family wedding gathering.) I saw no reason to return in the future even when they are older. It may be a personal preference (or lack there of for LV)that influences my response, but I too feel that there are much better family vacation spots than there. Many of the reasons have been listed above as to why I wouldn't go again with children - smoke permeates everything everywhere, children are sneared at and pushed through the casinos - understandable, but in many of the hotels it's necessary to walk through them to get through the hotel -, gambling, drinking, etc. If they are old enough to go to and enjoy the shows it might be fun. Be informed that it's just a little too cool to swim comfortably at the pools in winter (I'm not familiar with the newer hotels which may have heated &/or indoor pools.)

Jeff,

We read a lot of ads touting it as a great family spot. We went, and quickly tired of the gambling joints all-you-could-stomach cheap roast beef buffets. If you walk the strip in the morning the stench of rotted food and cig smoke will stop you in your tracks. Red Rock Canyon, The Star-Trek adventure, Circus acts and other limited diversions were OK. I had enough when we found ourselves at the Liberace Museum. That's when we made a great discovery that made our trip to Vegas memorable. We were at an excellent kick-off spot to the Grand Canyon. We cancelled all but our last night at the ($39 off-rate) Luxor, and headed out for the South Rim of the canyon. It is several easy hours drive through interesting scenery. We stayed at interesting B&Bs along the way, then returned to Vegas the last night before our returning flight home. There are better places,I'm
sure to reach the canyon from, but the cost of airfare to Vegas is cheap from most cities, and depending on dates, nice hotels can be a bargain.

It depends on the ages of your children. My family and I have vacationed 3 times to Las Vegas and plan on going again in August 2000. Las Vegas has changed alot to attract families with the really neat theme resorts. They still have people handing out smut on the Strip but just walk by and they won't bother you. There are police on bikes watching out for everybody. I wouldn't stay at Circus Circus or that area of the Strip because there are alot of prostitutes. As for the bored girl on the post, we ran out of time to do all we wanted all 3 times. On one trip we went to Zion National Park in Utah, and on another we went to the Grand Canyon and California. There is ALOT of fun stuff to in Las Vegas, if your children are under age 10 I would vaction elsewhere.