In the briny deep at the Shark Reef Aquarium’s 360-degree shark tank
Childs’ Play
The spacious indoor play area features backyard-style jungle gyms, slides, forts, and climbing walls, all atop a soft padded floor. The facility offers play spaces for age groups from 10 months to eight years, including a mini basketball court for older children and a foam animal center for tiny tots. Grown-up perks: free coffee and WiFi. “We constructed the space with adults in mind, too,” says owner Jeremy Childs. 7260 S. Cimarron Road, 702- 722-6041; 7060 N. Durango Dr., 702-834-5500; childsplaylv.com
Kids’ Club
This brand-new children’s playhouse, opened by a group of local moms, offers creative classes and open play spaces designed for children from 18 months to eight years old. Summer Camp dates are June 4 to August 24 and incorporate activities that are both fun and educational in an active environment. To keep children safe, Kids’ Club uses advanced security technology, including child-parent ID cards and passcodes necessary for entry. 5831 W. Craig Road, 702- 332-3228
Las Vegas Mini Gran Prix
You’d be hard-pressed to find a kid in Las Vegas who has never hit up the Mini Gran Prix for a birthday party. Featuring four racing tracks—Go Karts, Sprint Kart Speedway, Adult Gran Prix Cars, and Kiddie Karts—the center ensures kids of all ages are able to buckle up and enjoy the racing adventure. Less adventurous tots can stick to the indoor arcade’s games like Skee-Ball and ice hockey. 1401 N. Rainbow Blvd., 702-259-7000
Lied Discovery Children’s Museum
The only children’s museum in Southern Nevada, Lied Discovery emphasizes the importance of fun while learning, offering more than 100 interactive exhibits spanning subjects such as science, arts, and culture. “Two of our most popular exhibits are The Green Village, an exciting mini city with lessons about sustainability and conservation, and It’s Your Choice, which teaches all about making healthy choices with what we eat and the science behind our food,” says museum deputy director Tifferney White. 833 N. Las Vegas Blvd., 702-382-5437
Shark Reef Aquarium
More than 2,000 extraordinary and menacing aquatic animals entice at the Shark Reef’s 14 exhibits. The lush amphibian zoo boasts rare Komodo dragons, piranhas, endangered sea turtles, and golden crocodiles, and more than 15 shark species swim the 360-degree shark tank. The hands-on Touch Pool encourages budding aquatic enthusiasts to pet more tame creatures such as horseshoe crabs and stingrays. Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, 702-632-4555
Siegfried and Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat
This sprawling wildlife space features large-scale tropical exhibits and is home to a fantasy world of rare and majestic animals, including white lions, leopards, and panthers. Don’t blame us if your pint-size companions leave vowing to become animal trainers—the small zoo’s professionals work inside the cages, exercising and feeding the baby white tigers that break hearts with their piercing blue eyes. An Atlantic bottlenose dolphin family dives and plays in the 2.5-million-gallon Dolphin Habitat. The Mirage Hotel & Casino, 702-791-7188; miragehabitat.com
Springs Preserve
Sign your kids up for summer adventure camps or attend classes and events at this desert canyon themed-playground. Replete with massive models of both animals and skeleton structures, including a sidewinder snake, a peregrine falcon and its baby, and a woolly mammoth, Springs Preserve is most famous for its bird shows that send rare birds soaring over the audience. The small zoo includes an all-too-cuddly-seeming little gray fox, as well as lizards and snakes. 333 S. Valley View Blvd., 702- 822-7700
