Death Valley National Park. All photography is ours.
Home/Destinations/United States/Nevada
Nevada with Kids
If you’re in Las Vegas with kids and want to get out of town, try a national park site. Lake Mead is forty-five minutes away, and Tule Springs Fossil Beds is thirty. Most visitors to Vegas never bother with either one. We’ve now visited every NPS site in Nevada, and we’ve loved them all.
The one worth a real drive is Great Basin. It’s four hours north of Vegas in the middle of nowhere, and the drive is lovely in it’s own quiet, secluded way. Home to bristlecone pine trees – some of the oldest living things on the planet – Great Basin is full of surprises.
The other national park here – Death Valley – shares a border with California. We happened to catch it after some heavy rains which filled the valley and led to some great photos. Avoid summer, though, unless you just absolutely want bragging rights with a photo next to the temperature gauge. The heat is deadly if you have a breakdown out here.
Destination guide · Updated November 2026 · Last visited June 2026
Best months
April–May, Sept–Oct
National parks
1 + 6 NPS sites
Fly into
LAS · RNO
How long
3 days, 5 with Great Basin
Book ahead
Lehman Caves tours · Valley of Fire camping · Tahoe summer lodging
Great Basin came at the end of our Utah spring break road trip, in March, with the Wheeler Peak road still closed and the cave tours running. We had the place almost to ourselves. Lake Mead and Tule Springs came on a January trip through Las Vegas, which is the right month for the desert. Death Valley’s Nevada side rounded out the set.
We’ve always thought of Las Vegas as meh, but use it as a base for visiting the incredible Hoover Dam and Lake Mead.
Your Nevada guide
Enjoy exploring Nevada with kids!
Keep scrolling for the essentials, three road trips, and where to stay.
Essential Nevada
Why we love Nevada
We think you’ll love it too.
Nevada is where we’d send a family that knows what happens in Vegas is only half the trip. Great Basin, Death Valley, Lake Mead, and Tule Springs are all places we’ve visited and really enjoyed. Reno, Tahoe, and Valley of Fire are the ones we haven’t gotten to yet. Scroll down for our essential Nevada list for more ideas.
Great Basin National Park Guide
We made a short visit in March at the end of our Utah road trip, and we were glad we made the drive. There’s much more here than we expected.
Lehman Caves Guide
Lehman Caves tours run all year, which is how we saw the park in winter with the high road closed. Book ahead in summer.
Lake Mead National Recreation Area Guide
Lake Mead was America’s first national recreation area, just below Hoover Dam. We visited in January, and the cool weather made it the perfect month to go.
Tule Springs Fossil Beds Guide
Tule Springs protects ice age fossils on the northern edge of Las Vegas. It’s one of the newest parks in the system and an easy drive from the Strip.
And the rest we’d cross the state for
Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive Guide
The scenic drive climbs twelve miles up to 10,000 feet and the bristlecone pine groves. It wasn’t close to open in March, so plan on summer for this one.
Death Valley from the east AftT Visit
The Nevada side of Death Valley is two hours from Vegas, with Dante’s View and Zabriskie Point right off the road. Plan this one for the cooler months, like most desert national parks. Are you looking for more national park sites? See our guide to Nevada national parks.
Hoover Dam AftT Visit
You can walk across the top of Hoover Dam for free, or take the powerplant tour for the elevator ride down into the dam. It’s right next to Lake Mead.
Valley of Fire State Park
Valley of Fire has red sandstone, petroglyphs, and slot canyons an hour northeast of Vegas. Go early in the day, and it’s on our list.
Red Rock Canyon
Red Rock Canyon’s thirteen-mile scenic loop is twenty minutes west of the Strip. You’ll need a timed entry reservation in the busy season.
Las Vegas with kids AftT Visit
Vegas with kids means the Discovery Children’s Museum, the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay, the Bellagio fountains, and plenty of pool time. It’s more family friendly than you might think.
Lake Tahoe
The Nevada side of Lake Tahoe has Sand Harbor, with the clearest water on the lake. Book summer parking and lodging early.
Reno
Reno has The Discovery science museum and the Truckee River whitewater park downtown. It’s a good base for Tahoe.
Browse
Find your next adventure in Nevada
Tell us what you’re planning and we’ll match it up with some great trip ideas.
AftT #ParkPics: Lake Mead National Recreation Area
Lake Mead National Recreation Area in Pictures Lake Mead National Recreation Area has the distinction of being America’s first designated…
AftT #ParkPics: Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument
Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument in Pictures Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument is located just outside of Las…
Things to do in Great Basin National Park
One of the things our family loves about visiting America’s National Parks is the sense of wonder we feel from…
Routes
Three Nevada road trip itineraries
One state gives you three very different trips. Choose the parks around Las Vegas, the long road north to Great Basin, or Reno and Tahoe. See all the best stops on a map.
Home base
Las Vegas
Fly into LAS and stay somewhere with a pool. Tule Springs is thirty minutes north and takes about an hour.
Then head to
Hoover Dam & Lake Mead
It’s forty-five minutes southeast. Visit the dam in the morning, then Lake Mead. We did it in January and the weather was perfect.
Add on
Death Valley
Death Valley is two hours west. See Dante’s View and Zabriskie Point from the Nevada side. Plan it for winter only.
Start
From Utah or Las Vegas
We came from the Utah parks. From Vegas it’s four hours north on US-93 through Ely. Cathedral Gorge State Park is a good leg-stretch on the way.
Then head to
Ely
Ely is the base for Great Basin, an hour from the park. The Nevada Northern Railway runs steam trains from downtown.
Finish
Great Basin National Park
Book the Lehman Caves tour before you leave home. In summer drive the Wheeler Peak road and hike to the bristlecones. Stay for the stars.
Home base
Reno
Fly into RNO. See the Discovery museum and the river walk downtown, then Tahoe forty-five minutes up the hill.
Then head to
Sand Harbor
Sand Harbor is the best beach on Lake Tahoe, on the Nevada side. Reserve parking in summer.
Add on
Virginia City
Virginia City is forty minutes from Reno. It’s a mining boomtown with wooden sidewalks and a steam train.
When to go
Time your visits with the weather and the region
We’ve done southern Nevada in January and Great Basin in March, and both were the right call. Las Vegas tops 100 degrees from June through September and the parks around it are dangerous in the afternoon heat. Great Basin and Tahoe are the reverse, with snow closing the high roads until June.
Swipe the chart sideways to see the full year.
April – May
Valley of Fire and Red Rock are comfortable for hiking with kids, and Lake Mead is warming up. The Wheeler Peak road at Great Basin starts to open in late May.
June – September
It’s too hot for the desert parks after ten in the morning. This is Great Basin’s and Tahoe’s season. The high road is open and the lake is swimmable by July.
September – October
Vegas cools off, the crowds thin at Tahoe, and Great Basin’s aspens turn gold before the road closes.
November – March
This is our pick for the south. We did Lake Mead and Tule Springs in January and Great Basin in March. The cave tours run all winter even when the road above is closed.
Where to stay
Pick a good base to start your Nevada adventure
Nevada is easier when you pick one region. Here’s where we’d stay for each.
Las Vegas trips
Off-Strip or family-friendly Strip
Vegas has more hotel rooms than anywhere in the country and midweek rates are cheap. Points work well at the big chains. Pick one with a good pool and skip the resort fee if you can.
- Henderson or Summerlin for a quieter base
- Mandalay Bay or the Hilton properties for points
- Watch resort fees. They add up fast
Great Basin trips
Ely & Baker
Baker sits at the park entrance with a handful of motel rooms and a campground. Ely is an hour away and has the chains, the historic railway, and a grocery store.
- Places to stay near Great Basin
- Baker for stargazing without the drive
- Ely chains on points
Tahoe trips
Incline Village & Stateline
The Nevada shore has Incline Village in the north and the Stateline casinos in the south. Summer books early. Reno is a cheaper base forty-five minutes away.
- Hyatt Regency Incline Village on points
- Stateline for the south shore and Heavenly
- Reno for a budget base
Good to know
Questions families ask us about Nevada
Yes, it is. It’s one of the quietest national parks in the country, and the Lehman Caves tour is a real adventure for kids. There were hardly any people there during our March visit, and we felt like we had the place to ourselves. The Wheeler Peak road wasn’t close to open that early, so go in summer if you want to see the bristlecone pines. Our guide covers how we did it in a short visit.
Tule Springs Fossil Beds is thirty minutes north of the Strip and Lake Mead is forty-five minutes southeast, next to Hoover Dam. Death Valley’s Nevada side is two hours west. We’ve done all three from Vegas in winter, and that’s the season to do it.
Yes, it’s okay with a plan. The pools, the Shark Reef, the Bellagio fountains, and the children’s museum fill two days easily. The parks around the city are the reason to stay a week. The Strip at night isn’t all it’s cracked up to be honestly, and we would recommend avoiding it.
Fly into LAS for everything in the south and for Great Basin. Use RNO for Tahoe and Reno. Las Vegas has huge award availability on every airline and cheap rental cars.
Yes, you do. None of the parks are reachable without one, and even Hoover Dam is easier by car than by tour bus.
Las Vegas averages over 100 degrees from June through August and Valley of Fire is hotter. The desert parks are not safe for kids in summer afternoons. We’ve stuck to January and March in Nevada and would do it again.
Map
Essential Nevada, mapped
Keep exploring
Where to go next
California with Kids
Death Valley and the Sierra are right over the line, with the coast beyond.
Utah with Kids
Zion is two and a half hours from the Strip, and the other four parks follow.
