Family Friendly Pools & Parks in Las Vegas

Written by Tiffany Milligan – A Vegas Local

Booze, boobies, and brazen drunks. That’s what Vegas is all about, right? Well, to many that’s accurate – it’s not called Sin City for nothing! To other’s it’s a place to bring your family for that nice, much needed vacation! Las Vegas is more than meets the eye. Family friendly pools and parks in Las Vegas DO EXIST! You come to Vegas to have fun, cool off and relax. Here’s some places to check out while you’re here!

Mandalay Beach is by far the best pool in Las Vegas for families…if you don’t mind a crowd. This place has a couple lagoons that aren’t too busy and a giant wave pool that gets packed. I’m not talking “wow, there are a lot of people here,” I’m talking, “HOLY CRAP, this wave pool should be maximum capacity times two”!  There’s also a lazy river that you can enjoy without bumping into another patron every few minutes. Music is blasting, the cabanas are rocking and people of all ages are having the time of their life. This pool/beach is big and it’s easy to get lost so keep little ones in sight!

Rio Pool is infiltrated with families - they have a separate area for those over 21. The pools have caves and waterfalls that the kids enjoy. There are plenty of lounges, a sandy beach, and different areas to check out. Locals get into this pool FREE! I’m not sure how many know this as I never see too many locals there…so shhhhhhhhh! Family friendly pools and parks in Las Vegas should be kept on the down low ;) The pool and its surroundings are very well kept and clean, a mandatory trait for me and my family!

M Resort Pool is one of our family friendly pools and parks in Las Vegas. 100,000 square feet of pool is just enough pool to have a good time with your family. Located at the south end of Las Vegas Blvd., this Resort has two pools and a unique placement of their cabanas down the center of the pool. This isn’t a “party pool” – it’s very down to earth. 400 lounge chairs go fast, so get to the pool early! A great sound system and a flowing bar keep your energy up while the kids wear you down ;)

Sunset Park is centrally located on Eastern and Sunset near the airport. Not even on the hottest day will you find it empty. There is a recently constructed paved path that goes for miles on the south side that provides a nice walk or run through the manicured desertscape (cyclist are welcome too)! All ages will enjoy the 14 acre pond, complete with island, which is home to fish, ducks, swans and other creatures – a perfect spot to teach your little one to fish! When your family is done exploring the wildlife they can grab a picnic spot under some shade and enjoy lunch. There are volleyball courts and basketball courts for the athletic and the nonathletic alike ;) Playgrounds galore adorn Sunset Park making it one of the most family friendly pools and parks in Las Vegas. While there is no actual pool at this location the splash pad is AWESOME! They’ve spared no expense on the play areas for the kids. They even have a 27 hole Frisbee/disc golf course!

Exploration Park and Exploration Peak are located on Blue Diamond and S. Buffalo in the southwest part of Las Vegas. 80 acres of park is a whole lot of park especially when there is SO MUCH GRASS! OK, so to those of you that don’t live in the dry, brown desert, grass isn’t a big deal. To us locals GRASS and TREES are not plentiful so when you can indulge, you do! This park has hills and even a 2,846 foot tall mountain. YES, a mountain with a path that you can ascend – at the top, a view worth making the climb. There’s a decent size play area for the kids with climbing toys and swings and a waterplay area – pretty standard. What sets this park apart is the grassy fields that are well kept. A great place to play ball or run around. A great place to throw down a blanket and relax with a book.

Call a friendly local at Vegas Daze at 1.855.895.3293 or 702.851.3293 to book some family friendly activities such as horseback riding or a dune buggy tour!

Adult Time Needed

Written by Tiffany Milligan – A Vegas Local

Photo Courtesy of Martin Cathrae

There’s nothing better than adult fun in Las Vegas. C’mon now. Who really comes here vying for Circus Circus’ loud, child-filled areas or wanting to shop their ENTIRE vacation?! There might be a few of you out there but even you can’t ignore the draw of an adult play date. Vegas is all about adults doing wild and crazy things!

Ever been to a topless pool? Maybe the time is now! Adult fun in Las Vegas MUST include releasing your “girls” and letting them catch a few rays! Bare Pool at Mirage is your one stop shop for boobies of all shapes and sizes! Going topless is liberating and way of life for many people – experience it firsthand to see for yourself. The see through infinity pool is the main attraction at Bare, putting all on display like fish in a prized salt water aquarium. You’ll stare at first…but you’ll soon get used to all the boobies and your eyes will wander back to the person’s face of whom you are conversing with.

Strip clubs in Las Vegas are another great play date for adults. Yes, you can find the seedy, shady, drug infested kind if that’s your thing. If it’s not, I suggest the Spearmint Rhino. Why? First of all, they have bottle service starting at $250 which is WAY cheap in las Vegas. Adult fun in Las Vegas will come in the form of Mephis, Rae, and Mi Mi…yes, yes, these are the names of the adult entertainers at Spearmint. Three stages, open seating, decent food, and fantastic drinks…oh and the HOT WOMEN make this classy strip club a must-do on your Vegas list.

Bars are the perfect place for adult fun in Las Vegas. They’re safe - they don’t make you squirm in discomfort like some strip bars do. Get wild, get crazy, and get out there and grab a drink or a whole bucket of beer…whatever suits your fancy! MiX would be my choice in an adult meetup session. This bar has fantastic views of the Strip with its floor to ceiling windows, seating is plentiful AND standing area is even more plentiful. These are all very important things when you get out to mingle with all the beautiful people ;)

Perhaps a show is more your speed. I’m going to recommend

Photo Courtesy of Quinn Dombrowski

Absinthe. I recommend it to everyone because it’s such a small venue, it’s a little bit “dirty” and a lot of fun! It’s “comedy” material is definitely geared towards adults. Get seats in the front and you or one of your friends is likely to get pulled up on stage…maybe to do a lap dance for another patron…who knows! You can have fun and embarrass your friends all at the same time!

Vegas Daze is your one stop shop for everything fun in Las Vegas. Call 1.855.895.3293 or 702.851.3293 and one of the great Vegas gurus there will help you pick out and book the perfect show!

Ten Things We are Thankful for in Las Vegas – A Local’s Perspective

Written by Tiffany Milligan – A Vegas Local

Vegas’ 10 best things? ONLY ten? Nearly an impossible task to whittle it down that far but I guess I have to! As locals we are thankful for so many things in Vegas…which is probably why we live here ;) Sure it gets a bit hot and the electric bill MIGHT exceed $500 on occasion but that’s the price we pay for living in such a diverse community with so much to do!

Photo Courtesy of That Dam Kat

#1 Sunshine

Did I mention it’s sunny here? Well, it is. Almost constantly. Yippppeee if you like sunshine! Here’s a fun fact: On average there are 210 days of completely blissful sun and another 82 days of partial sun!  That’s a whole lot of sun. We might have an annual sunblock budget that is a smidge higher than our friends in Washington State ;) It’s nearly impossible to be pale and/or have insufficient vitamin D here in Las Vegas which is why it has made the list of 10 best things to do in Las Vegas!

#2 The Strip
It’s true that locals don’t hit the Strip as often as people would think. HOWEVER, just knowing that all that sin and debauchery is at our fingertips is enough! The lights, the casinos, the sounds and smells – they all create an experience that keep you going back for more. Can’t sleep? Hit the Strip! Oh and people watching is beyond PHENOMENAL there! 

#3 Nightclubs

Who can forget nightclubs! It’s a hodgepodge of people from all walks of life trying to experience the bar scene! Why do locals go to places like XS, Tao, and Pure? To watch you hopeless tourists getting your drink on and put your best drunken foot forward while on “hootchie patrol”. It’s great. You have no idea how ridiculous you all look trying to dance the dance. The best part – watching the super cocky get shot down ;)

Photo Courtesy of Mispahn

#4 Lake Mead

This 247 square miles of gorgeous lake, ties into the Colorado River just 24 miles from the Las Vegas Strip and is one of the 10 best things to do in Las Vegas. With so much to do, multiple return trips are inevitable and never mean anything but fun and tranquility! Locals enjoy boating and drinking and hiking and even the occasional Hoover Dam experience!

#5 Red Rock

Red Rock is just minutes west of Las Vegas and is a nature lover’s dream. This conservation area is home to multiple dirt trails that provide to be a challenge for even the best of hikers. Your average trail becomes a whole lot more intense when you suck every last bit of moisture out of the air and have a giant, inescapable heat lamp blaring down on you. Sometimes all you can do is wish you were skinny enough that the scraggly cactus would provide even the tiniest bit of shade!

#6 Plethora of Activities

Yes, this is pretty general BUT it’s so accurate I couldn’t leave it out. Activities are endless in Las Vegas and could fill up days upon weeks upon months of any local’s times. You can go see the Blue Man Group, go to comedy clubs, take helicopter tours of the city, go horseback riding, go on a dune buggy tour…there are ghost tours and drinking tours and gambling and strip bars and bunny ranches…

#7 Food Variety/Quality

A Foodie will not go hungry in our city – well, I’m guessing it’s highly unlikely a Foodie will go hungry anywhere! FOOD is definitely one of Vegas’ 10 best things! I know a few locals that live here soley for the variety of food in Sin City. From Steak Houses to Cantinas, from pizza joints to French food, we have it all. Every celebrity chef who is anyone has a restaurant in this city! Nom nom!

Photo Courtesy of Jeff Sandquist

#8 Pools

With the sun and heat come pools. SOOOO many pools and you can buy a pass even if you aren’t staying at one of the hotels. Yes, that’s right, when you’re rushing down to the pool to save your lounge at the crack of dawn, some of those greedy critters are locals. It somehow seems unfair that we should be afforded the same luxuries as someone visiting but I ASSURE YOU, they make us pay a pretty penny to access the pool and cool down. Hard Rock has my favorite pool – mainly because you can drink and gamble while in the pool!

#9 Downtown Fremont Street

It’s really fun to head down to Fremont Street for some cheap thrills. It’s a whole lot less costly than the Strip so your dime goes a lot further (is that saying outdated or what?)! You can find $3 tables during the day and even at night on occasion! They have food specials galore, a zip line, and stages with live entertainment. Leave your Miu Miu heels in the room, grab those flip-flops, and stagger around the area for a while – act like a local!

#10 Family Activities

With all of the adult activities in Las Vegas there are an equal amount of family friendly activities. 10 best things to do in Las Vegas DO include family activities. Aquariums, Wet ‘N’ Wild Water Park, children’s museums, parks, lakes, pools… as locals, our kids are spoiled. They have no idea what it’s like to have to tip cows for fun!

The talented locals at Vegas Daze can arrange the perfect activities to suit your vacation. Call them at 1.855.895.3293 or 702.851.3293 and get ready for the time of your life!