@TiggerDad Sounds like your kids would fit in with mine. We’ve gone to Disney a handful of times, but once we started traveling more mine openly wondered why anyone would choose to go to Disney when there are so many other terrific places to visit, esp for the same amount of money. Their age range then would have been around 10-14.
We have used Vegas as an airport for a couple trips to Zion and the Grand Canyon. Each time one night there.
My boys never spoke of either Las Vegas or Disneyland ever since and we’ve never gone back there. We did, on the other hand, revisited San Diego beaches on multiple trips since.
I flew into Vegas a few years back on the way to a marathon, and went to the Hoover Dam vs the strip. I would not mind going once for real, but my H does not want to go. Fine by me.
I guess I’m the odd one here that loves Vegas. I’m from a part of the country without many shows or dining options, so those activities are usually pretty high on our list. Also the people watching is fascinating there.
One of the reasons we go as often as we do is that it is cheap and quick to get to for us. That makes a 3-4 day getaway feasible, which is all we seem to have time for anymore. I don’t know that I could spend a whole week there though. It is kind of a quick in and out destination for me. Also not a great destination for kids in my opinion. I was there with my 18 year old with a day to kill last month. One day with anyone <21 is enough. Too many places they can’t go, even if they aren’t trying to drink or gamble.
It can be ridiculously expensive, but it doesn’t have to be. I would say we usually spend less there than on a normal vacation.
I gamble some, although it depends on the trip. It isn’t the primary motive for the trip though.
@dadof4kids I agree that it is a fascinating place and bigger than life. I have enjoyed most of my trips there and appreciate everything there is to do. Remember- this is CC and I’m sure most view Vegas as a place for the riff-raff.
I’ve been pleasantly surprised now that I’ve spent significant time there for my husband’s tournaments. We don’t gamble, drink, or shop, so I had no clue what we would do besides work in the hotel room. But there are a lot of outdoors things to enjoy, and when it’s 110 degrees, you can drive up to Mt. Charleston in under an hour and find beautiful mountain hikes where it’s 30+ degrees cooler. I love the Pinball Hall of Fame on a hot day, too. We’ve found lots of nice ethnic restaurants in neighborhoods. Away from the strip, it’s largely indistinguishable from suburban Phoenix, for good or for ill. It is less segregated than a lot of cities.
I have two good friends raising kids in Vegas after being offered good jobs there. One, married to a musician, has found an amazing arts community there with countless other families who wanted to continue careers as performers without a touring lifestyle. She’s surrounded by the kind of musician/actor moms she’d be friends with in New York; they just have backyards with pools.
Related to the arts-community thing: I love to do karaoke, and anywhere you go, even deep in the suburbs, the singers are outstanding. You hear one great voice after another.
I forgot about Mt. Charleston! That was just bizarre the time I went there. We left hot Las Vegas, drove 45 minutes and we were in a ski area with snow! It was gorgeous and felt like we had been transported to Colorado.
Lol @MomofWildChild! If that’s the case then I guess I’m among the riff-raff since I’ve lived in Las Vegas for 24 years.
It sounds like many people have not enjoyed a visit to the Strip resort area. Of course, that’s just a small slice of the city that contains the vast majority of the hotel rooms, so that’s all many visitors experience.
Yes, it’s in the desert. Yes, it’s hot in the summer. But we’re a city of around two million people, so there are lots of things to do beyond what’s found on the Strip. If you’re forced to come here some day, I promise you can find something enjoyable to do!
I LOVE it! The glitz, the cool beautiful bars, the fantastic shows! My DH and I have a fabulous time dressing up, going to a cool bar and flirting! (With each other of course)! I like the slots and he helps me on blackjack. The hotels are so beautiful, too.
Hate it but loved our day trips - visiting Hoover Dam, flying to the Grand Canyon, and hiking at Red Rock Canyon.
I was totally turned off by those “playing cards” too, the gambling, and drunken people on the streets at all hours. My friend’s purse was also stolen from right next to her.
@momofsenior1 Are you talking about Las Vegas or San Francisco? 
We really enjoy Las Vegas. At first, it was a place to go that was completely adult - we never took the girls. We don’t really gamble - maybe $100/trip, but we enjoy good food and a good show. Now we get offers for 2-4 nights free lodging, so airfare and food are our expenses.
Having a drink or two by a pool and doing some people watching can be a lot of fun.
Not a fan of LV. I’d rather go pretty much anywhere else but there.
We visited once for a day on the way elsewhere and stayed in a Marriott Vacation Club property just off the main drag. Glad we did not stay anywhere central to the craziness. The strip was rather interesting, to say the least, and one walk down it was plenty. We don’t gamble or bar hop, so we walked to the revolving restaurant (3 miles or so) and had a great dinner with a great view! Saw a couple of dudes jumping off the tower. 
Thank goodness there are signs on the walls warning that there might be jumpers. We decided that we might want to visit another time to watch a show or two. The food was good. Shopping… I think we bought a tie for Mr.
@MomofWildChild and I attended an online running group get-together in Las Vegas in 2010. They closed the strip down for a half marathon and marathon. At mile three, some of the runners got married. It was fun seeing the strip without cars on it! A nice flat race, too.
@VaBluebird I had the Exact Same experience as you did in Vegas. No I do not like Vegas.
We used to go about once a year. Dh enjoys gambling and it was “his” vacation. We get free lodging and live an easy, quick and inexpensive southwest flight away so 2 nights was a nice getaway. There used to be a great outlet mall that had shops I didn’t otherwise have access to so during our one full day there I’d rent a car and spend a day on my own which was delightful. At night we’d regroup, have a nice dinner and see a show. A nice combination of together and alone time. The mall has gone downhill and, since we’ve been so many times, I’m less interested so we haven’t been in awhile.
I have to say that wandering the strip, people watching and seeing the free entertainment offered by each resort is something that we’ve enjoyed as a once in a while experience.
We like Las Vegas, but not for much of what it’s known for. We hiked a lot, and used it as a jumping point for visiting Zion Nat’l Park. It’s also pretty close to The Grand Canyon. We liked seeing a show, checking out the dam, and people watching. We aren’t into gambling and the “adult” scene.
Pros: I was given a ticket to see Elton John. Turned out to be front row.
My total earnings in gambling has been a huge return. I placed a $1 bill in a slot machine and won $10. I walked away a winner and have never gambled since.
The fountain light show in front of the Bellagio is awesome. Someday George Clooney WILL walk out of the front of that hotel and THEN I will be really impressed.
The people who live in Vegas tend to be very interesting. They all have a story. Cab rides can be intriguing.
The Mob museum in downtown Vegas is a highlight. But downtown Vegas is NOT a highlight.
There is something special about standing at one end of the Strip and looking down at all of the lights. No place else like it.
There is no menu item you can’t find in that city. None. Food is amazing.
You spend a lot of time contemplating things like: ‘why was this place chosen for this city?’ This. Is. The. Desert. And, how much water do they have to pump here because there sure isn’t any already here.
Cons: I have to go there a couple of times a year to give talks at conventions. I always manage to be given the hotel room at the farthest possible point from my meeting space. Those hotels are HUGE and God forbid I forget something and have to return to my room to retrieve it. Takes forever.
I am a runner and it is nearly impossible to run on the Strip. But because I am a runner I should not have the aforementioned complaint.
The taxi line at the airport can be epic.
Vegas in the summer heat is surely one of the levels of hell. This is especially true while in an epic taxi line.
I see many fashion choices by young women that I just can’t support. And some women just should not wear 5” heels. It has to do with center of gravity or something like that. Just say no to those 5” heels. I make it a personal policy and it works well for me.
I really hate the ding ding ding sounds in the casinos. I can’t say why. I just hate those sounds.
I have never bumped into George Clooney in Vegas. But I continue to hope.