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A few years back Las Vegas was attempting to re-vamp its image as a “sin city” destination to more of a Disneyland type vacation destination for families. Is that still the case? No, it’s not. Is Las Vegas a good place for families? The answer to that question is yes and no.

We had a wonderful time in Las Vegas with our teenage son. I cannot fathom however bringing anyone younger than 13 to Las Vegas for a family trip. Why? I’m glad you asked!

-It’s too smoky (in spite of state of the art air filtration and nice scents pumped into most hotels and casinos, it’s still pretty smoky)

-It’s LOUD! (I don’t mean a little noisy, I mean 24-7 LOUD!)

-It’s packed (TONS of people, no matter when you go)

-Adult entertainment (even if you keep to family friendly activities, you still pass MANY adult targeted things. From strip club cards littering the street like confetti, complete with pictures, to statues of giant mameries, it’s a place for mature teens or adults)

-The cost (take your kids to Disneyland, it’s cheaper! You can’t find a bottle of water for less that $3-$9 or a simple meal for 3 for less than $60)

That said, I’m glad we went and we had a great time. We stayed at the Mirage, which turned out to be good and bad. Good in that it’s a smaller hotel and easy to navigate. It wasn’t too smoky or crowded. The tropical pool was wonderful and relaxing. Bad in that they are currently undergoing a major renovation. No volcano and tons of construction noise. Our first morning there we were woken up to the sound of hammers at 7:00AM!! (Just what you want on your vacation.) They were great about it however. They moved us to the top floor, and credited us $50 for the early wake up. I would happily stay there again (once they finish the renovation).

Some of our trip highlights were, our Easter dinner at the restaurant Picassos at the Bellagio hotel. There’s a picture of us on our patio with the beautiful fountains dancing. It couldn’t have been lovelier. Seeing Spamalot at the Wynn. We laughed till our cheeks hurt. A MUST DO for any Monty Python fan, and what drew us to Las Vegas in the first place, we weren’t disappointed. The pool at the Mirage, the best pool in town (even with the $17 Pina Colada). The shopping there is divine (and I’m not a big shopper). Just getting to see things in-person you never would see anywhere else is so fun! Jimmy Chu shoes, Harry Winston jewelry, Prada bags… I could go on, but my wallet hurts just thinking about it.

Ok, back from shopping land (my cheeks flush just thinking of it all!). We definitely walked too much. I don’t know what we were thinking. My feet were fat and puffy every night from all the walking. It was nuts (but we did save money on cabs). Rule #1 in Vegas, it’s always MUCH MUCH MUCH farther than it looks.

I was disappointed to not find any showgirls, or people dressed in costumes welcoming guests anymore. Instead the strip is trying to appeal to the young college crowd. I’m not really sure why, as this group doesn’t seem to have much money. My favorite spots were places like Paris, The Wynn, Bellagio and the Venetian who still seem to realize that. Skip places like TI (as they are now called, or Treasure Island as you may remember them), Harrahs, Hard Rock, Planet Hollywood and MGM. Some we didn’t even get to, or want to get to (like Hooters Hotel. No joke… they have a hotel!) Ceasers was my son’s favorite (I think because of all the booby statues), the Wynn was ours (because of the lack of booby statues).

I pitied the families with young kids in tow that I saw vacationing there. I’m really not sure what they did, or how they made it work. My husband thought they either dumped them in the arcade with a day pass there, or had the older ones watch the younger ones up in the room while the adults gambled.

After four days and three nights, it felt great to come home. I was done with the noise, bright lights and action. And no, we didn’t win anything, but I’m ok with that. I’m feeling relaxed and appreciating my smoke-free house and quiet town.