dwoodliff

What would be the very best places to go/stay/visit in Las Vegas for a serious art student and a dedicated lover of rock music? I'm planning on suggesting a trip to Las Vegas next summer for my 2 younger kids, who will -- at the time -- be a college student and a recent high-school graduate. I think it would be more fun for both of them to go before either is old enough to gamble. (They've already been to Seattle, SF, Cancun and NYC.) Are there any art or rock music lovers out there who can recommend places to go in Las Vegas? (Or is there some other place that both would enjoy equally?)

Donna

Scarlett

I would think the Hard Rock Hotel.
But if they cannot gamble/are under age, there is SO much they cannot do on their own.
Las Vegas is still basically an adult playground.
And in the summer the temps are in the 100s, they will find that a pool is not even comfortable for very long.
Send them to NYC..
Nothing but great music venues and museums.
What a nice mama you are for doing this

GoTravel

Your college student and recent high school grad will not be 18 years old?

Agree with Scarlett, another venue may be better. Seattle and the music experience is a good one.

Ryan

Vegas isn't a great place to visit for the younger child, unless their love of art is going to steer them towards a career as an architect.

Going somewhere like NYC where they can experience numerous venues for both might be a better suggestion at this point.

That said, certainly the Hard Rock will be fun. But, forget about them going through many of the casinos.

dwoodliff

I appreciate your responses. The HS grad will be 18, and the college student will be 20. Maybe I gave the impression I was going to let them go somewhere on their own, but I don't think we are quite ready for that yet, so I would be tagging along. (Scarlett -- Our yearly "big" family trip is as much fun for me as for them, if not more.)

I've read that there are some great art exhibits in LV, but if we wait another year to go, my daughter will be old enough to gamble, and my son will not. (If they want to gamble, there are casinos closer to home where gambling is legal at 18.) Also, I have a couple of great day trips in mind outside the city, in addition to the shows in LV.

I'm not sure we can top this year's trip to Seattle, which was the perfect place for an art lover and a music lover.

Our trip to NYC was 9 years ago, so that is a possibility, but I want to make sure we include a couple of exciting outdoorsy activities, too.

Please keep the suggestions coming.

Donna

HowardR

I don't mean to sound rude, but of all the wonderful destinations in this country with great museums and/or rock music opportunities, why would you be looking into Las Vegas? That city would be far dowm on the list for both!
Could the reality of the situation be that it's where you want to go?

Scarlett

OOhhhh, that makes more sense
I still think LV would not be that fun for them. Hot hot hot and unless you see shows every night, they will be bored.
Steve Wynn has a very nice art collection, but that will occupy one afternoon.
There are vegas websites that tell the schedules for entertainment, check those and see if there is anything that would appeal to the kids..but I still think LV will be kinda boring for them.

GoTravel

I thought the legal gambling age in Nevada was 18 years of age. Is it different? I thought that was federally mandated?

rjw_lgb_ca

How about southern CA? There are some very cool venues for rock music performance between Santa Barbara and the Mexico border, and you can get the whole spectrum of the arts, high- and lowbrow, in all the museums and galleries in the area. And the Festival of the Arts in Laguna Beach (and the associated Pageant of the Masters) is something to be seen too (for PotM, you will have to get tickets months in advance). Good outdoor activities as well....

Scarlett

GoTravel,
you have to be 21 to gamble in Las Vegas.

dwoodliff

rjw_lgb_ca: Hmmm ... southern California is an idea. Without looking at a map, I'm not sure where Santa Barbara is, but I bet they would like San Diego. When are the music festivals you mentioned, and what's the weather like there in the summer?

HowardR: Other than the places we've already been, where would you recommend for a "rock music" experience? (It has to be somewhere where you don't have to be 21 to get in.) Most, if not all, of the major summer rock music tours come through Texas, so we can do all of that within 200 miles of home.

P.S. -- I'm going to LV in a couple of months, so I don't "need" to go there again with the family. I just started thinking of all the resorts and things LV has that they can't see anywhere else, and thought we could make a week of it. Maybe we will -- maybe we won't. It depends on whether THEY decide on something else or not. Right now, I'm just looking for ideas.

Donna

rjw_lgb_ca

Gosh, Donna, I'm not 100% sure when and where the music festivals take place in this area. There's a pretty elaborate blues festival near my home in Long Beach, and there are clubs and bars with live music everywhere. A couple of websites to check out:

www.laweekly.com
www.whatsonwhen.com

Santa Barbara is a beautiful coastal city about two hours north of LA. Since there is a University of California campus up there, I'd assume they have some stuff up there to keep the kids entertained. San Diego is a cool town, and I think you could look for other ideas at www.signonsandiego.com (the website for the "San Diego Union-Tribune").

HowardR

Common sense dictates that any major city in this country would offer rock music possibilities.....certainly the Southern California area and Chicago for starters.
And as far as serious art, you can't be serious in considering Las Vegas as a destination for that when there are mnay, many great art centers in this country.