| Berkeley Parents Network |
| Home | Members | Post a Msg | Reviews | Advice | Subscribe | Help/FAQ | What's New |
We are looking for a hotel that has a good pool (or pools) for our 2- and 4-year olds. We're thinking Vegas just because it seems to have everything but are open to other places. We want a good pool for them to play in, maybe some water slides, with either warm winter weather or an indoor pool. We probably only want to stay a few days. The only place I know that fits the bill is in Hawaii which seems a little far to go for such a short time. Ideas about a hotel that would fit the bill?
My family will be going to Vegas in September. I am especially interested in a hotel with a great pool, with lots of variety, appropriate for an 11-year-old. I prefer the hotel to be on or near the strip, but the pool is as important as the location. Thanks. Amy
We are going to Vegas for a conference at the end of March and need to find a babysitter for our 14mo son while we are there. The hotel service is $35 an hour! I'm looking for someone so that we can work during the day and won't feel that it's prohibitively expensive to go out at night. Thanks Kelly
Since you have a 14 month old and will be working at a conference all day and want to go out ''child free'' in the evening, I would suggest you turn your working trip to Las Vegas into a vacation for the parents. What about leaving your baby at home with a pair of grandparents,two grandmothers, or the regular babysitter? Then your child is at home in comfortable surroundings with people that love him/her. There is nothing worse than being cooped up in a Las Vegas hotel room with kids. There is nothing on TV for kids as hotel owners don't want you in your hotel room. They want you in their casino gambling.
What about bringing some grandparents or your regular babysitter with you and paying for another hotel room? Then they can take your child out during the day. We usually stay at Mandalay Bay or the Hard Rock. Both have excellent pools for the kids. Mandalay Bay is probably better for a smaller child. The Hard Rock has a great water slide at their pool. The Hard Rock is also a smaller hotel that you can actually enter and get to your room without walking through a casino.
Walking through casinos is a big issue for my family since both of my children have asthma and there is a tremendous amount of smoking in Las Vegas. Sabrina
hi
my sister and her family are coming in april from england and
after 4 days in the bay area we plan to do a roadtrip that will
also take us to las Vegas.....we will be 4 grown-ups,2 teenage
girls(12 and 14)and a toddler (21mo)...i have been looking
online at all the diffrent hotels and my english brother-in-law
definetely wants a hotel right on the strip...now i want to know
what would be a good choice for our diffrent ages??
i,ve been to Las vegas once but stayed at a motel that time
thankful for any response
liissa
I would like to know recommendations for the best places to stay
in Las Vegas with two 9 year olds. Any thing that stands out as
fun or places nearby to visit that you liked.
What you liked or disliked about your visit. Thank you!
Nancy
Treasure Island stages pirate battles every evening in front of the casino. I think they are every 1.5 hr, at 7, 8:30, and 10:00, but the schedule is posted in front of the casino, and you should probably check rather than rely on my memory. Free.
The Mirage has a fountain in front that turns into a volcano every fifteen minutes after dark. It's really pretty cool. Free.
The Belagio has a huge lake in front with fountains that are synchronized to music. I'm not sure how often they go--maybe once every half hour. They change the music each time. Free.
New York, NY has a Coney Island midway with a roller coaster. The roller coaster goes outside around the casino, and it's probably the fastest roller coaster I've been on. It's an expensive roller coaster--$10 or more for a 3 minute ride.
The Hilton has a Star Trek ride that is definitely worth it if you have any Trekkie bones in your body. Part live action/special effects, part motion simulator, you get to really feel like you're in a Star Trek episode. It also has a nice Star Trek museum (memorobilia, timelines, and movie clips) on your way in. I think it's about $15. Coming out of the ride you come to the Promenade, a theme shopping area with a restaurant called Quark's that I highly recommend. You can schmooze with Klingons and Ferengi while you dine (really--they have Klingons and Ferengi there during lunch and dinner hours). The food is pretty good, too.
Caesar's Palace has the Forum, which is worth seeing even if you don't want to shop because of its trompe l'oeil ceiling and outdoor ambiance. It also has an animatronic display of the fall of Atlantis. Free. There's also a motion simulator ride, the Race for Atlantis. I found it quite stomach-churning, but I have trouble with motion simulator rides generally, and this one is pretty long.
The Stratosphere (looks like the Space Needle) might be worth a visit. I think it cost $5 for the elevator ride up. The views were great. There are 2 rides on top--a roller coaster and another ride that I don't think I will even try to explain.
The Venetian has a Grand Canal with gondola rides.
Circus Circus has an amusement park.
As for where to stay, Circus Circus is pretty affordable and seems like it would appeal to kids. Treasure Island or New York New York might also be a good choice. Carrie
My brother has proposed that we take my dad to Las Vegas
for his 80th birthday in May. I am the only one of my siblings
with kids, ages 1 and 3. Leaving my children at home for
the weekend is not an option. I haven't been to Las Vegas
in 3 years and I feel like with the casinos, the money and all
the smoke, it isn't a great place for young kids. As I recall,
you can't walk through a hotel in Vegas without going
through the casino. Has that changed? Or is there
somewhere to go in Las Vegas that doesn't revolve around
the casino culture? Thanks so much for your suggestions.
Not a High Roller
This summer we stayed at the Westin, which is just off the strip. It had a casino, but it was not huge and you could skirt around it to get to the elevators. The rooms were pretty big, and the staff was relatively kid friendly. A few years ago we stayed at the Hyatt Regency Lake Las Vegas. Lake Las Vegas is a new resort development about 20 minutes outside Vegas. The Hyatt's casino was in a room off the lobby, so it was easily avoidable. The Hyatt also had a great pool set up. There are also a few 'suite' hotels in Vegas including an Embassy Suites that I haven't stayed at, but think would be good places to stay with kids.
EVERYONE in Vegas smokes, so you're not going to avoid the smoke issue. (Coming from California it's always so shocking to see people smoking where people are eating! yuck!) But, it's not so bad in the kid-friendly places. I have found Vegas to be turning away from the family focus and back to their hedonistic focus, but there are still some fun things to do with kids. My kids love the shark exhibit at the Bellagio (?) and Siegfried and Roy's garden (at the Monte Carlo?). Both are really expensive, IMHO. They also could spend hours staring at the fish tank in the lobby of the Monte Carlo. CircusCircus, of course, is geared for kids with an arcade (games for kids of all ages) and a mini-amusement park.
Getting around Vegas can be a pain. The hotels are all too far from each other to really be within walking distance (especially if it's hot) and traffic is usually a nightmare. But parking is free and plentiful.
I have a conference in Las Vegas in mid-March and would like to spend an extra day in the region exploring the nearby desert. Does anyone have info. on places to go and stay in the desert and how long it takes to get there by car from LV? Ideally we'd like to do some hiking and check out the wildflowers. monika
I am taking my husband on a surprise bday trip to Vegas next month. I haven't been in a few years and I know much has changed. Anyone have any feelings about the Palms Hotel or the Venetian accomodations (booked both right now)? Would like to maybe see a show. Heard great things about both Cirque du Soleil shows, O & Mystere. Anyone seen either? Restaurant picks? Going for 1 1/2 days & 2 nights. Any info appreciated! nicole
My impression is that The Palms is trendy, full of twenty- somethings (it happens to be the location for MTV's Real World Las Vegas, which is a show about vapid 19-22 year old's living together for four months). The bars at The Palms (Ghost Bar and Skin) are described in the magazine as ''space-age, hedonistic.
The Venetian bar (V Bar) is described in the magazine as ''a refuge, a place where you can actually have a conversation.''
I personally love the restaurant called Picasso at The Bellagio. It is beautiful, and the food is superb. However, it is expensive. The magazine describes Light, Bellagio's bar/dance club, as having ''dark wood, candles and red velvet.''
If I were going to Vegas I would make reservations at Whiskey Sky, which is described as ''off The Strip, an elegant bar with an adjacent pooside lounge that overlooks the city.'' It is at The Green Valley Ranch and the phone number is 702-617-7777.
Hope you have fun! Alison
Can't give any advice on accomodations. Couple other good attractions to kill time...The Libirace Museum is pretty amazing (really! it doesn't get any tackier) and also enjoyed the Coca Cola museum even though it's a sad state of our world. Also, if the nights aren't too cold you have to see the Bellagio fountains show or two from the outside. Every half hour, they have lots of different songs. This is the best free show in Vegas for sure. The Bellagio also has lots of good and pricey restaurants.
Have fun! Jonathan
I'm looking for suggestions for places to stay this Friday night in Las Vegas with my wife and two toddlers. It is a one-night stopover - but at a reasonable cost, we would not mind exploring some of the fun for the whole family that is apparently
Las Vegas with kids. We did it when our kids were about 12 and 14 and they had a blast. We stayed at the Pyramid (Luxor) but most of the major hotels are connected so you can walk from one to another. The kids went to almost every arcade and they liked the Excaliber best. It was just such a kick to see the huge and varied hotels, each with a specific theme. We went to MGM Grand which is like a small version of Great America. The Stratosphere is very interesting and you can see for miles in all directions. The hotel pools are generally as theatrical as the rest of the settings. It is fun to view the volcano outside the Mirage and the pirates battle (Can't remember which one that was!) Prepare to do a LOT of walking. Have fun!
I went to Las Vegas in October for my brother's wedding with my three children - Arianna 8 yrs., Kyle 11 yrs. and Nick 16 yrs. It is VERY expensive with kids but lots to do. My kids loved the arcades in the Major hotels (MGM, New York New York, Excalibur, New Orleans) especially Circus Circus which has circus acts every 15- 30 mins. Games are from .50 to $3.00 per chance. They spent more on arcades than we lost gambling. Circus Circus also has an indoor amusement park that they enjoyed. We bought the all day passes and did everything over and over. My daughter rode her first roller coaster there and went on it at least 4 times, because they had no lines. We also rented a car and drove to Hoover Dam. They really liked our docent who showed my 11 year old how to make an electric water powered lamp science project after the tour. If you go to the Arizona side there is a snack shop down some stairs that sells stale popcorn to feed the fish. The fish were at least 2 feet long and they were very impressed (not my 16yr old, but the younger ones). We also hit the big roller coasters at New York New York $8 per person and the stratosphere had two rides(approx. $9-$13), a small coaster (not worth the $) and a drop zone type ride (very fun if you like that sort of thing, only my 11yr old was brave enough to ride it). The free shows like the pirate show at Treasure Island and the water show at Bellagio were also big hits. Bellagio had just opened that weekend and had a fabulous (better than Disneyland) fireworks show. I'm not sure if that is a reoccurring thing or was only for the opening. The highlight of the trip was going to the Hilton and watching Penn and Teller filming for their FX show(they film for 1 week a month.) They have comedians come out in between takes to entertain you. They did recommend it for 13 years and over because sometimes is can have sexual content and bad language. We weren't concerned because we knew the guests were the Smothers Brothers, the Enigma and the guy from the show "The Nanny" and had only 1 mild cuss word. My husband and I were even filmed and shown on TV. This is also free.
Because of the timing of out trip, the MGM amusement park was not open and I don't think they open until spring. There was so much other stuff to do that we couldn't have stood another amusement type park anyway.
My Cousin took her 9 year old daughter to a show that had imitation Spice girls, Elvis, etc. at the Stratosphere and she really enjoyed that. Again, it was at least $20 per person. It was also very windy and cold so the kids didn't get much pool time. My best advice: Hit all the free shows and bring lots of Money.
We went to Las Vegas last August with our 4 years old son. We stayed in Circus Circus and there were a lot of kids fun. There was a free Circus show every 30 minutes. There is a play facility called "Grand Canyon" in the hotel and many rides and games there. Every ride and game cost money, so you can buy the one day pass which gives you unlimited rides. That is what we did. I forgot the price for one day pass. There is also a facility in MGM which is more suitable for bigger children. I think you also can buy one day pass. Have wonderful time in Las Vegas.
| Home | Post a Message | Subscribe | Help | Search | Contact Us |