1. Make sure you have the right kid or the right parent for the trip.
Leah is super high energy. The number one thing people said to me while we were wandering through casinos was, "Wow, I wish I had energy like that!" (I seriously lost count of the number of times people said to that to me every single day.) Some children are super high energy or have a decent amount of energy. My niece and nephew, as much as I adore them, are Leah's polar opposite--they're far quieter, more sedate children, and I'm not sure Las Vegas would be their thing. I can see them at the beach, hanging out and relaxing, enjoying a pool somewhere, but I don't really envision them running all over a city.
That said, your child doesn't need to be super high energy to enjoy all the things we did. You can certainly have your child in a stroller and wheel them around. Las Vegas has plenty of calm things--gardens, animal sanctuaries, animatronic shows, and the like that will keep a more passive kid entertained.
Also, I am not a party type, nor am I gambler. You must be 21 or older to enter the gaming sections of the casinos, and there are special pathways in the carpets in the casinos that kids have to stay on to navigate through. For us, no big deal. I didn't so much as breathe on a slot machine while we were there, but if you want to gamble, go to a club, see a late show, etc., you should either bring back up childcare or consider a service while you are there. There are no babysitting/nanny services formally connected to the casinos, but certainly you can hire them from reputable companies who do advertise while you are there. If I had wanted to go out clubbing and gambling, I'd have been pretty unhappy stuck in my hotel room. But I didn't and I was perfectly happy to stay in during the evenings and regain some quiet and inner peace.
2. There are lots of bargains
When you arrive in Las Vegas, there is no shortage of coupon books available for free. They give you great discounts on area attractions, restaurants, and shows. In fact, I would not recommend bothering to buy tickets to anything until you get out there. Unless it is a show you are absolutely dying to see and there is a danger it will be sold out while you are there, wait until you're there to purchase tickets to attractions or shows. There are always discounts to be had. There is even a place called Half Price Tix that has booths all over the city where you can go and get recommendations and cheap tickets for same day entertainment.
And that does not mean you have to talk to the people who are shilling 'free' shows and hotel rooms and the like at every corner. Ignore those people and keep walking. There are ALWAYS strings attached.We had some people offer us 3 nights free at the Luxor. We just had to give them a $175 deposit first, which we were promised would be refunded when we booked our trip. That's not free.
Secondly, children 4 and under are usually free to the attractions. Leah got in free to the Eiffel Tower, Shark Reef, Titanic. She ate free at the buffets we went to. She got discounted tickets to Madame Tussauds, the gondola ride, and Siegfried and Roy.
There are in-state resident discounts, military discounts, student discounts, senior discounts and more. Always ask. I nearly paid full price for the Titanic exhibit, but the cashier offered me a discount with a student ID. It made me wonder what else I had missed out on getting cheaper.
There are also packages and bundles. For instance, I could have bundled the Shark Reef, Titanic, and Siegfried and Roy for significant savings; I just didn't honestly think we'd get to all of them.
3. There is lots of cheap and free transportation.
I really like the Las Vegas Monorail--it is a cheap and quick way to go north and south on the strip. You can buy up to a 3 day unlimited ride pass for $28, but grab the Monorail magazine in the station, and there's a coupon for a discount. Children under 5 ride free, so we didn't pay for Leah at all. That made it extremely cost effective--particularly in comparison to cabs or renting a car. There is also a bus that goes up and down the strip that has a similar deal. The advantage of the bus is no running back and forth through huge casinos to catch it!
Additionally, the hotels sometimes have their own transportation services. For instance, our hotel, Excalibur, had a free tram between it, the Luxor and Mandalay Bay. You can get a free shuttle bus to Rio (which is off the strip) from Bally's. There is also a tram from the Mirage to Treasure Island (FREE) and from the Bellagio to City Center to Monte Carlo (FREE). Get the picture? It's so easy to get places and not pay a dime to do it.
4. There is porn and there are lots of barely dressed women around.
We went out one evening and there were men handing out business cards with naked women on them. Leah and I quickly developed a code where I told her to "look at the sky" as we passed the areas where people threw those cards on the ground in heaps. Prostitution is NOT legal in Las Vegas, contrary to popular belief, but there are plenty of strip shows and seedy bars and things that cater to individuals looking for that. Additionally, when we walked into the Monte Carlo, right smack dab in the front as we walked in was an exotic dancer. Granted, she was wearing some sort of Ugg-like boots to protect the modesty of her calves, but her ass was hanging out and her chest was barely hanging on to a small bikini.
Women who go to Las Vegas also don't seem to wear much. We sat in a restaurant at one point and two women walked in. Leah asked me quite loudly, "Mama, why doesn't that lady have any pants on?" Damned if I know, kid! Guys are wandering around in shorts and t-shirts, just looking normal, but women are dressed in as little as possible. I used a lot of distraction on Leah when we encountered that type of thing.
There are cartoon characters, showgirls, male strippers, superheros and more crowding the streets of Las Vegas. They lure young children in, ask the children if they want a picture, and then tell Mom and Dad, "Sorry, no can do without a tip." We did it once because Leah was utterly bedazzled by a couple of pink showgirls, but after that I was out of cash, and I resolved not to use an ATM while we were there. Easy access to cash seemed dangerous!!! After that, I allowed her to go say hi, high five, or hug whatever characters or people she met on the street, but we had a strict no pictures policy.
Additionally, as I mentioned before, there are always people telling you they have something free to give you if you'll just step inside for a minute. They literally will not take "no thank you" for an answer. I eventually found it was best to just keep walking as if I hadn't heard them or didn't realize they were talking to me. They can get quite aggressive, and unless you want to be berated, harrassed, or yelled at, it's better to just keep going. And no, your child is not a shield from them. We were bugged for helicopter tours, Grand Canyon adventures, free stays, free money, free limo service, free shows, and more. It's never free and it's not worth being polite. Leah was actually scared by one guy who was yelling at us. Not worth it!
Additionally, we were cautioned by a fellow passenger on the airplane that cabbies often take tourists onto the Freeway to get to their hotels on the Strip. This allows them to jack up the meter and often tourists don't know any better. It is patently illegal, and you can let them know that you know as much, and call in their badge number if they don't shut the meter off and get you where you're going.
6. Be prepared to answer the tough questions.
Not only do you have to answer questions about why ladies don't have any clothes on, but Las Vegas is teeming with homeless people panhandling. They usually sit on the pedestrian walkways with signs and hope for change or money. Leah called them "homesick people", which is cute, but we did have a rather somber discussion about why some people don't have food or homes to go to. Your kid might be willing to hear something sugar coated or might be able to ignore the situation, but due to our circumstances, my kid is pretty savvy to the world's tragedies and wants straight answers.
7. There are plenty of cheap places to eat!
Every casino/hotel has its own food court in addition to the more upscale restaurants it has within. Sometimes these are fast food joints like McDonald's and Krispy Kreme, but often you can find good food fast as well. Excalibur has Tropical Smoothie and Baja Fresh, New York New York had a NYC pizza parlor, MGM Grand has an Underground with quick places to grab a cheap bite, Paris has a creperie, etc. It's worth walking out of your way a bit to find and enjoy these places--the food can be really good and really cheap.
8. There are lots of shows that are kid friendly.
I went to Half Price Tix one day to see if we could get cheap tickets to something on Sunday night, as it was the only night I didn't have a special show planned. A man came over and asked if he could help us, I told him I was looking for something kid friendly, he asked how old Leah was, and when I said 4, he said, "Well, that eliminates pretty much everything."
But I don't think that's true. First of all, there are about 6 different Cirque du Soleil shows, any of which would have been appropriate. We saw Blue Man Group, which Leah loved, and David Copperfield, which she also loved. Excalibur has a Medieval Times type dinner theater, the Luxor has a show called Jabbawockeez that looked kid friendly, there are variety shows, concerts, and more. Just because you can't go to a burlesque show doesn't mean all of Las Vegas entertainment is off limits. It just means you can't go to the burlesque shows.
9. Take time to rest.
This is my final tip. Leah and I were really hard charging on this trip, the result of which was that by the end of day 2, we were both sore and by the end of day 3, neither one of us could move very well. We came back to the hotel mid-day each day to rest, but we still really did a LOT and we were exhausted. The climate is radically different there from the East Coast--we were very, very dry and had to make an effort to drink, despite which I still suffered from nosebleeds daily. Make sure you get out of the sun. You can't possibly see all there is to see, so don't try. Take time to relax and enjoy and have a little downtime each day. Bring a stroller--Leah passed out cold on the way home from Blue Man Group. She was just exhausted. Even though she has long outgrown a stroller, having it saved me from having to carry her three casinos' worth back to our room.
Many people have said, "Well, I'm sure you had fun, but what did Leah think?" Well, I'd say this picture says it all:
Las Vegas can be wonderful with children. Just a little bit of pre-planning, and you can have a great family vacation with your kids for pretty inexpensively. Enjoy! Feel free to leave a comment or email me if you want to know more or have any questions. I'll update this post if needed.
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