I spent four awesome days in Las Vegas. I road dune buggies, tried my hand at some blackjack (killed it), and walked The Strip, taking it all in. I saw quite a few things that shocked me, but it was the number of children in Las Vegas that surprised me the most.
I saw kids, young kids, walking around the Vegas Strip at midnight almost every night I was there. I saw tired kids being dragged behind parents, or asleep in strollers. Kids most definitely under 21, which is basically the age you need to be to do anything in Las Vegas. These kids aren’t allowed into casinos, therefore, their parents really couldn’t go. Or, they could leave their kid alone in a hotel room, which I hope they wouldn’t. Vegas just doesn’t seem like a kid friendly town.
Of course, there are certainly other activities besides drinking and gambling. You can go see shows, ride dune buggies, shop, swim, walk, etc. But there is only so much swimming and walking around that will keep people occupied. It’s an adult Disneyland, it's not geared towards children. Keeping these kids up until midnight just seemed mean. By midnight most nights, I was exhausted; it was three a.m. back in NY, of course I was tired and grumpy!
I just don’t understand the reasoning behind bringing people under 21 to Las Vegas. I don’t see how its fun for those who go. It seems unfair to everyone involved. The people under 21 are highly limited in what they can do because casinos are super serious about ID checks; I got my ID checked plenty of times - even when I was just watching people gamble. So kids can’t even really stand by and watch their parents gamble.
Another facet that struck me was the vast number of kids in strollers. Not only should children who belong in strollers probably not be in Las Vegas, but I almost got mowed down by parents pushing their kids!
I’m not saying that people under 21 shouldn’t be allowed in Las Vegas, but I simply wonder why they would want to go? In a town that requires you to have a valid ID saying your 21, what would entice you to bring a family there? My own family had a layover in Las Vegas for a day and it was fine. We walked and shopped for about 10 hours. We moved quickly through casinos and with a limited time to really spend there, we had enough to do. And we were much older than a lot of the kids I saw; we could keep up with my parents and were entertained instead of being dragged behind them.
I had an awesome time in Las Vegas. It was a great experience and I’m glad I was old enough to appreciate it.
