March 19, 2019
Our family LOVES Vegas!! We recently took our girls on their 2nd trip to Vegas after they fell in love with the city last year when we took them over their spring break. They have been counting down the days until they could go back!
Before our recent trip, we let the girls research fun things to do in Vegas so they could help us plan the trip (trying to use all that screen time for something good!). They found things that interested them and created an entire schedule for our days!
From the best places on the strip to venturing out and about, these are our top family friendly things to do in Vegas!
1. Tour of Hotels
We start every Vegas trip by going on our tour of hotels. Vegas is known for the beautiful, sprawling, themed hotels and our girls loved just walking around and discovering all of them. Start with the blue skies and gondolas at the Venetian and work your way down the Strip stopping at The Mirage, Caesar’s Palace, The Bellagio, New York New York, and finally MGM.
2. The Bellagio Gardens and Fountain Show
The Bellagio Fountain show is the most iconic part of the Las Vegas Strip to me and just makes me so happy (I’ve even been known to cry here and there when watching it)! It is absolutely mesmerizing to watch the fountains dance to the music. For the best outside view, grab a spot on the street right in front of the Bellagio or as you’re walking up the walkway to the hotel. The shows are every 30 minutes most days and go to every 15 minutes in the evenings. For an even better view, book a fountain view room in the Bellagio. A tv channel is dedicated to playing the music for every fountain show so you won’t miss a single one!
While you are at the Bellagio, take the family inside to see the gorgeous Bellagio Gardens. It really is spectacular to see the amazing gardens they create and change every few months. We’ve been lucky enough to see quite a few including the Chinese New Year theme and, my favorite, the Holiday themed garden. And after you’re finished walking through the gardens, there is a great chocolate and ice cream store right next door!
3. Take a drive to the Mountains
Being from Georgia, we don’t get the chance to see a lot of snow each year and our girls LOVE any opportunity to see some and play in it! Since we’ve had an even warmer winter in GA this year, we decided to drive up to the mountains and take them to a ski resort where they could sled, tube, and play in the snow. However, we were in Vegas during the one time in the last 10 years when it actually snowed and our rented Nissan Sentra did not have the capability to get us all the way up to the ski mountain. So we stopped at the bottom at the Mt. Charleston Lodge, had hot chocolate, and let the girls get their snow fix! If you are in Vegas in the winter months and want a fun ski adventure, Lee Canyon was highly recommended…..just make sure to rent the appropriate car and have tire chains available. It was a beautiful drive from the Strip and the girls loved seeing the desert. (Side note – I was pretty confused when they said chains on your tires was a requirement to go any further up the mountain. As a born and bred Georgia girl, I wouldn’t have a CLUE where to even start on figuring that one out!!)
4. Sugar Factory
I don’t know how we’ve missed this place in all of our trips to Vegas but I know we will never go back again without making a stop here! The fish-bowl “Goblets” are an incredible sight to see and the milkshakes are bigger than your head. And, if you’ve had a great gambling night, you can even splurge for the $1,000 Chocolate Gold Fondue that comes with a bottle of Dom Perignon, cognac, and gift bags for everyone! The desserts and drinks are the clear star of the show here but the food is also pretty great! Check out the sliders the girls ordered and their HUGE milkshakes!!
5. Siegfried & Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat at The Mirage
I’ve mentioned this stop in a past post but its worth mentioning again. Our oldest daughter has always loved dolphins and this is the BEST and most up close and personal experience she has ever had! You can walk right up to the edge of the pools and watch the dolphins play and swim. There is also a show with the dolphin trainers multiple times a day. Plus, you can sign up to BE a dolphin trainer for a day, have VIP access, or paint or do yoga with the dolphins!! You definitely won’t feel like you are in Vegas during this experience.
Although we spent most of our time in the dolphin area, the tigers, lions, leopards are also incredible to watch!
6. The Coca-Cola Store
I have to preface this one by saying we are from Atlanta and we often forget that not everyone is surrounded by Coke or has a Coke Museum in their own city!! Our girls have been to the Coca-Cola Museum in Atlanta quite a few times but really wanted to go to the store in Vegas and do the Coke tasting again. If you’ve never done a tasting, it is a MUST!! Its so much fun to try all the different Coke products from around the world – even the disgusting ones. Even though we had done it before in Atlanta, we still had a blast all trying it together! Go for the combo of drinks and floats – they are yummy and it will give your kids a boost of energy to keep walking the rest of the day!!
7. Dinner outside at Spago
Yes, it is a splurge for SURE but trust me when I say you will NOT regret spending a little extra on this fabulous meal and view!! Spago is now located on the lake at the Bellagio and the outside patio sits right in front of the Bellagio fountain show. You really can’t get a closer view than this of the fountains! Our evening there was one of those nights I’ll always remember as a family. The food is fantastic (I had the lamb bolognese and can’t even begin to describe how good it was), the servers are extremely kind to kids, and you get an amazing show at the same time. Make your reservation early and request an outside table!
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