Las Vegas isn’t just for grown-ups anymore! The city is becoming increasingly family friendly and you can take advantage of the typically low-priced rates for a great family Vegas vacation.
It’s no longer considered “Sin City” when you see the various kid-friendly attractions like the roller coaster atop New York, New York, or the theme park inside Circus Circus. There are arcades just about everywhere and special shows geared toward the family audience.
The best part is that many of the attractions that kids love are free! You can see the Pirate show outside Treasure Island, view the amazing light show on Fremont Street, or watch the volcano “explode” outside the Mirage at sundown.
Meals are cheap everywhere in Vegas. We once had a complete prime rib dinner including potato, vegetable, and salad bar for a mere $2.99 at a small casino across from the Stardust. It was delicious and filling. The various buffets have anything and everything you could ever want to satisfy a picky eater – all at a low price anyone can afford.
Vegas is designed to be inexpensive in the hopes that tourists will spend most of their money in the casinos. This is where you can splurge a little and hold back when you’re getting a little short on funds. After all, you’re in Vegas – you have to pull at least one slot machine’s arm.
Depending on when you book, you can get an air/hotel package for as little as $200 per person round trip! In many places, kids get a discounted room rate, and if you want your older children to have their own room, many hotels will let you have that at half price.
Once in Vegas, consider renting a car and going on an exploration of the area. You can take in The Hoover Dam, check out the Grand Canyon or take in the Richard Petty ride-along racing experience. There’s so much to do in and around Vegas, you’ll never be bored!
How about some less-traditional vacation spots?
HISTORY TOUR
While your kids might roll their eyes at the suggestion of a family trip based on history, they might be surprised once you get there. They’re probably thinking they’ll be tested at the end of the vacation, but we’re betting that what they learn will stay with them for a very long time!
Most of the initial settlements for our country are on the East Coast. Head east and learn more about America than you ever knew you could!
Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown are absorbing year-round, as historic interpreters dressed in period costumes help thoroughly modern families appreciate what life was life without TVs, computers, or indoor plumbing. In eighteenth-century Williamsburg, you'll find the largest outdoor living history museum.
The kids can help weed the garden in spring, make bricks in summer, or attend a slave couple's wedding in winter. Visit in summer and you can also go to Busch Gardens Williamsburg and Water Country USA.
A trip to Washington, DC, will give you The Smithsonian Institute which is interesting for all ages. Plus, you can see the White House, Congress, and so much more!
One of our favorite historical places to visit is Boston, Massachusetts. This beautiful city is absolutely filled with historical significance. When you take the blue trolley tour, you learn so much about the city and everything that occurred there in the history of America.
You can see the grave of Mother Goose and stand in front of the North church where Paul Revere saw the lanterns signaling the coming of the British. John F. Kennedy’s first apartment is along the tour as is the “Cheers” bar that spawned the award-winning TV series.
Boston Common offers tourists the opportunity to ride the lake in their famous swan boats, and Faneuil Hall Market Place is a spectacular place offering not only great food and shopping, but entertaining street performers and musicians.
One of our most respected presidents was Abraham Lincoln. Springfield, Illinois, offers the most comprehensive and interesting museum based on his life and historical significance.
Visitors can tour his home, visit his tomb, and learn everything you never knew about this amazing man.
Just 30 miles down the road near Petersburg, Illinois, is New Salem – an early settlement where Lincoln lived and worked. There is one cabin that has been there since the 1800’s and has been carefully preserved to give visitors a taste of what life was like in the early years of America.
These are only a few places where you can go to find interesting, historic exhibits that your whole family can enjoy.