Our tour of the 50 states continued with a trip to Las Vegas, Nevada. My husband had a work trip at the end of April and asked if we’d like to join him. It had been awhile since we’d traveled out of state, and we were ready for a change of scenery so we jumped at the opportunity.
We arrived on a Sunday and since my husband had the day off work, we made the most of it. After checking into our hotel, we ventured out toward the strip. We were staying a few, short blocks from the strip so we decided to walk and take in the sites. As the hot sun beat down upon us, we quickly realized we should have taken a Lyft to the center of the strip, but we were committed at that point. The painful complaints from the small humans echoed in our ears as we hiked on. Approximately 3 miles later, we arrived at Treasure Island and began seeing some of the renowned hotels and exhibits. We enjoyed the Bellagio fountains and flower gardens, a treat at Sprinkles, and ended the day with a walk through M&M World. The kids logged over 7 miles by the time we made it back to the hotel for some pool time.
The next day, while my husband went off to work, the kids and I ventured out on our own. Having learned our lesson from the day before, we took a Lyft to the MGM Grand, saving our steps and miles for later in the day. It was the best $10 I spent that day. We went to Siegfried and Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat. It was a fun place to spend a morning with children. The dolphins were a highlight and the employees advised us to come back around 2 pm when the tigers and big cats would be moving exhibits and more active. When we had enjoyed our fill, we headed to In-N-Out Burger for lunch, a must visit when you are from Colorado, the land of no In-N-Outs. After lunch we stopped by Caesar’s Palace to watch the “Fall of Atlantis” fountain show. The show was interesting, but we more enjoyed walking through the Forum Shops. Finally, we concluded our day back at S&R Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat. I am so thankful we went back because the big cats were very active and fun to watch. We spent another hour observing them and then took a Lyft back to our hotel for an evening of swimming.
On our last day in Las Vegas, we rented a car and drove to Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam. We set out that morning to rent our car and I decided the kids and I could walk the short mile to the rental car pick up. Within the first few blocks, I realized that I had made a big mistake. The area of town where we were walking didn’t feel safe. There were plenty of motels, pawn shops, and the big tip-off came when a few locals asked if we were lost and basically told us to get off the streets. I guess a mom with three young kids carrying a car seat in her hand and a giant purse across her shoulder was a blaring sign that we were out of place. At one point we followed our GPS through a back alley of a liquor store and a little white wedding chapel. Just as I was starting to panic and asking the kids to “Walk quickly!” and “Stay close!”, my youngest fell and scraped his knees. He was bleeding and crying and I told him to keep walking and that I’d bandage his wounds once we got to a main street where other cars and people were present. As he sat on his booster seat and I bandaged him in front of the pawn shop I thought, “What am I doing? This is nuts!” Eventually, we safely made it to the rental car and I was pleased as punch to drive off into the desert headed toward the Hoover Dam.
The Hoover Dam was certainly something you need to see. Once. However, the kids were less than enthused about a giant slab of concrete in the desert on a hot, spring day. We toured the hands-on exhibit and took in the views. This took all of an hour before they had seen enough and were ready for something more kid-friendly. I was excited to drive them to Container Park in Downtown Las Vegas to get lunch and let them play. We enjoyed Container Park, but as we strolled the Fremont Street Experience in historic downtown, we ran into a group of protesting veterans. I glanced over and saw an 80-year-old man completely naked except for a red, white, and blue striped string banana hammock, which he had paired with his Veteran’s hat. Just then my youngest said, “Mom, look! A sparkly ball!” Sure enough, just behind him was a stand selling disco balls. The sweet child didn’t even notice the man in his attire. I pray the children’s eyes were closed to many of the interesting things we saw on the streets. Stay weird Vegas.
The next day we flew home. Las Vegas was an interesting experience with kids, but I’m thinking our next visit to the great state of Nevada will be Lake Tahoe. In the words of my 10-year-old daughter, “When I think of Vegas, I think of smoking, gambling machines, and inappropriate things.” Yep, she pretty much nailed it.
Our updated states map of the states we have visited so far.
Viva Las Vegas!