Las Vegas with kids: what a family day really costs
Updated September 11, 2026 · 6 min read
Las Vegas runs on the fact that every hour costs something. For a couple that’s a matter of taste; for a family with two children it’s an exercise in arithmetic: every ticket comes four times over, and the city offers little you can simply do for free. Working it out in advance makes for a more deliberate choice – and often shows that half a day built around one good activity delivers more than three back-to-back.
The prices below come from today’s listings on GetYourGuide and are starting prices per person in euros. The calculation always uses four full-price tickets. Where an operator has children’s prices, it works out cheaper; where not, the sum stands exactly as shown. Which activities suit which ages is covered in the overview Las Vegas with kids.
Day 1: indoors, when it’s too hot outside
Three classics, all air-conditioned and all on or near the Strip:
| Activity | from, per person | four people |
|---|---|---|
| High Roller observation wheel on the LINQ Promenade | €18.43 | €73.72 |
| Shark Reef Aquarium at Mandalay Bay | €25.62 | €102.48 |
| Flyover flight theatre, around 30 minutes | €24.98 | €99.92 |
| total | €276.12 |
That’s a full day, and honestly, too full. The observation wheel sits in the middle of the Strip, the aquarium at the southern end. Anyone wanting both in one afternoon spends a good part of it travelling between them. For children under ten, two of the three are usually enough. On the High Roller, children up to three years old ride free; at the aquarium the youngest also get in free, though the age limit varies depending on which ticket outlet you ask.
For those who’d rather go higher: the observation deck of the STRAT tower costs from €23.21, and the one at the Eiffel Tower at Paris Las Vegas from €25.54. Both are at their best in the evening, and both tend to replace the observation wheel rather than add to it.
Day 2: an evening with a show
This is where the bill jumps, and quickly:
| Show | from, per person | four people | for children |
|---|---|---|---|
| “Tournament of Kings” at Excalibur, with dinner | €61.88 | €247.52 | any age, free up to 3 years old on a lap |
| “O” by Cirque du Soleil at Bellagio | €98.57 | €394.28 | from age 5 only |
| “The Wizard of Oz” at Sphere | €106.79 | €427.16 | every age needs a ticket, recommended from age 6 |
The knights’ tournament is the cheapest of the three evenings, and the meal is already included in the price. With “O” and Sphere, dinner is an extra cost on top. And a starting price buys a seat somewhere in the venue. Anyone wanting four seats together in a particular row usually pays more, and on popular dates the cheapest seats sell out first. All the shows compared side by side are at Shows and tickets in Las Vegas.
Day 3: the big excursion
For four people, the difference between bus and helicopter is no longer just a price difference – it’s a different trip altogether:
| Excursion | Duration | from, per person | four people |
|---|---|---|---|
| Valley of Fire, small group up to 13 people, with lunch | 6 hours | €85.26 | €341.04 |
| Grand Canyon West and Hoover Dam by bus, breakfast and lunch included | 10 hours | €85.26 | €341.04 |
| Helicopter with landing in the Grand Canyon, with hotel transfer | 4.5 hours | €421.14 | €1,684.56 |
On the two cheaper tours, food is included, so the daily price is fairly complete. The Skywalk over the canyon is bookable only as an option on the bus tour and costs extra. How long children of which ages can cope with such days is covered in Grand Canyon with kids. All the tours to the canyon are at Grand Canyon tours from Las Vegas, and the shorter desert destinations at Desert and national park tours.
Anyone with a hire car gets to Hoover Dam considerably more cheaply. The powerplant tour costs US$25 for adults at the ticket window and US$15 for children aged four to 16, with younger children free. With two school-age children that’s US$80, plus US$10 for the car park on the Nevada side. Everything else about the dam is in Hoover Dam with kids.
Day 4: almost free
Las Vegas doesn’t quite work entirely without money, but this comes close. The fountains in front of Bellagio and the hotel’s conservatory cost nothing. Downtown, the Viva Vision light show runs each evening over the covered shopping street above Fremont Street, also free. Then there’s the “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign at the southern end of the Strip, where many families take their photo.
The only thing that costs money on a day like this is getting around. And that’s exactly where this article’s biggest money-saving tip lies.
Bus or monorail: the difference for families
The Deuce, the RTC transit authority’s bus running along the Strip to Downtown, costs US$6 for two hours, US$8 for 24 hours and US$20 for three days. According to RTC, children up to and including age five travel free when accompanied by an adult. So with one preschooler and one school-age child, you pay US$8 three times over for the whole day.
The monorail runs behind the hotels on the east side of the Strip and is faster because it isn’t stuck in traffic. A single ride costs US$5.50 online or US$6 at the ticket machine, and a day pass US$13.45 online or US$15 at the machine. The operator’s price page doesn’t say whether, or up to what age, children ride free. Ask before buying four day passes. For four paying people, the monorail costs a good US$50 for one day, the bus US$32.
What isn’t on the price tag
Tax at the till. In Clark County, which Las Vegas belongs to, sales tax is 8.375%. In shops and restaurants in the US, it’s usually not shown on the price tag but added only at the till.
Hotel tax and resort fee. At hotels, the mark-up is bigger: for hotels in the central casino district, which includes the Strip, room tax is 13.38%. On top of that, many resorts charge a mandatory nightly charge, the resort fee. Since 12 May 2025, US hotels have had to include such mandatory fees in the first total price shown, under a rule from the FTC trade authority. So always compare the final price, never the room rate.
Tips. In table-service restaurants in the US, a tip is expected. Many bills already show the usual percentages as a suggestion.
The child seat. Anyone hiring a car needs a child seat in Nevada for children under six weighing no more than 60 pounds, around 27 kg. The rental company charges extra for one per day. Over a week’s hire, it can work out cheaper to bring your own.
Is an attraction pass worth it?
The Go City Pass for Las Vegas costs from €145.55 and promises entry to more than 45 attractions, including a night-time helicopter flight or a Cirque du Soleil show, the Mob Museum and Madame Tussauds. The provider advertises savings of up to 50%.
Do the sums with your own children, not with the marketing promise. The saving only materialises if you fit in a lot of expensive attractions in a short time. With a child who’s had enough after two attractions, the pass costs more than individual tickets. The children’s price and the list of included attractions are on the pass’s booking page. Compare them with what you actually plan to do, and with individual tickets at Things to do in Las Vegas.
When Las Vegas is too expensive for families
If your children mainly need time in the water, free play and space, Las Vegas gives you little for your money there. What’s free is limited to fountains, light shows and shop windows; everything else is a ticket.
It gets genuinely expensive when a day consists of three activities plus dinner at the resort. Cheaper, and more enjoyable for most children, is a different rhythm: an excursion or something free in the morning, a paid indoor activity in the afternoon, a walk to the fountains in the evening. What children aged six to twelve can do along the way is covered in Las Vegas with kids aged 6 to 12, and for the youngest in Las Vegas with a baby or toddler.
