Vegas Baby
Today, we decided to hang around Vegas after the really, really long day yesterday at Grand Canyon National Park. We got to Vegas strip around 11:00 and parked at the Venetian Hotel, which is on the far north side of the strip. Every hotel has a parking garage, just pick one where you’d like to start your adventure. First things, first – grab a delicious macaroon from Bouchon Bakery at the Venetian.
There are several souvenir shops right north of the Venetian, and of course, that’s the girls’ favorite thing about any trip – shopping!!! Several items in the store are a dollar, so a good store for the kids to grab a couple souvenirs and not rack up a big bill.
The Strip
So, Vegas Strip is a pretty interesting place and you can make a day of it with little expense, if you choose to. Each hotel offers a little different charm than the one before. Since the casinos are in each hotel, they are used to people strolling through the hotels that are not actually guests. Feel free to walk right in – they’re expecting you to. In fact, most of the shows that you can book are hosted by the hotels, and of course, they want you in there to spend some of your hard earned $$ at their casino. We enjoy just walking around the strip seeing the different architecture of each hotel. Here are some of our favorites:
- Venetian – this place has beautiful murals on the walls/ceilings. There is also a river that runs through it that you can take a romantic gondola ride for a fee.
- Bellagio – this place has a beautiful (free) fountain show, which runs every 1/2 hour starting at 11:00. Later at night, around 7-8pm, it runs every 15 minutes until midnight.
- Mirage – this place has a pretty neat show that happens 2-3 times a night that has fire and erupting volcanos.
- Caesars Palace – this place is cool just to see the architecture and statues. It takes an eternity just to walk past this place. It’s huge.
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Those are just a few of our favorites, but every hotel has something unique and interesting about it. If you have cash to burn, almost every hotel has something entertaining for a fee, such as Eiffel Tower, roller coasters, dolphin/tiger exhibits, etc. We were a little disappointed that the free pirate show at Treasure Island is now shut down. The kids would have enjoyed that show.
Rainforest Cafe
We decided to eat at Rainforest Cafe. It’s a little pricey, but the atmosphere makes it worth it. The kids enjoyed all the animal sounds and we played “I spy with my little eyes” to see if they could find the hidden animals that I found. If you’ve never been, it’s definitely worth trying out for a little different eating experience.
David Goldrake Show
After eating, we headed back out into the heat for a little more exploration before our show started at 8:00. Girls wanted a slushee and chocolate shake, so we ventured into Hershey for a little snack. We booked the David Goldrake magic show which was performed at the Tropicana Theater on the south end of the strip and were not disappointed. Apparently, the show ended in September 2018, but it will be reopening somewhere else on the strip, possibly Caesar’s Palace? The show was incredibly entertaining for both adults and the kids. Most definitely the best illusion/magic show that I’ve seen to date.
Trek Back
After the show, we had to walk to the other end of the strip to return to our car (quite a trek). I can say, by this time, some of the non traditional folk started coming out of the woods. Vegas night life is definitely different than 
the day, so just be prepared for a different audience. On the way back, we were able to watch both the fountain show at the Bellagio and the volcano show at the Mirage.
Conclusion
Overall, this is a great place to visit with kids and you can make it as expensive or budget friendly as you’d like. We spent less than $200, including dinner and show, and is a good place to go if you have a free day to kill. It’s also good exercise, as we probably walked over 5 miles in the summer heat. ☀️ Of course, if gambling is your thing, I think there may be one or two slot machines available as well. 😜
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