Things to Do in North Las Vegas

With gourmet dining, apartment-style suites, and a 100,000 square-foot casino, guests of The Cosmopolitan rarely need to venture far to experience the essence of Las Vegas. Glittering city views adorning the private terraces ring the luxury resort, beckoning guests downstairs to enjoy the nightlife and world-renowned restaurants within the resort walls. There, visitors soak in the lucky energy of the casino floor, sip Bond-style cocktails at Vesper Bar, or undergo a desert-inspired transformation at Sahara Spa & Hammam. Three swimming pools with distinct deck and cabana experiences also ensure plenty of opportunities for lounging by the lapping azure waters.

The 8,000-square-foot National Atomic Testing Museum, located just off the Strip, unveils the fascinating history of the famed Nevada test site. An affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, the museum has a growing collection of permanent and special exhibitions. Boots quake as visitors experience a simulated atomic blast, and another exhibit details the Manhattan Project, the U.S.’s massive undertaking to create the first atomic bomb. Firsthand accounts of nuclear tests put museum-goers in the shoes of blast eyewitnesses; there’s also a poignant exhibit that includes a 6-foot I-beam from the wreckage of the World Trade Center. The museum volunteer tour guides act as exhibit interpreters, encouraging hands-on exploration and teaching how to divide atoms using nothing more than a good set of kitchen cutlery.

At one lab station, an interim investigator carefully examines bullet casings. At another, single strands of hair deliver the DNA samples necessary to send a suspect to imaginary prison for a long, long time. Around every shadowy corner of CSI: The Experience, the latest recruits in forensic science slide into the latex gloves or behind the majestic mustaches of popular TV characters to solve crimes through interactive detective work.

A total of 15 lab stations harbor the evidence of three murders, each of which throws multiple suspects into the mix to trip up investigations. Videos featuring cast members and real-life scientists provide guidance throughout analyses, and afterward, newly established sleuths receive certification by prying an official CSI: The Experience diploma from the cold, lifeless hands of their email inbox.

Kids careen over springy walls or safely tumble down inflatable slides at BounceU's supervised and climate-controlled pliant playground. Along with bouncing, kids can shoot hoops at pop-a-shot-style goals or don oversize boxing gloves and helmets to duke it out for pudding-cup pink slips. During open bounce hours, families can pop in unannounced for as much inflatable fun as the day allows. Alternatively, regularly scheduled day camps whisk kids along a six-hour structured day of exercise, crafts, and snacks. Birthday packages outfit parents and kids with a variety of options for making a party unforgettable without having to worry about cleaning up the mess from a rented shark tank.

Arthur Murray has been a leading name in franchise dance since 1912, when the entrepreneur began selling mail-order dance lessons. Expanding his reach, he enlisted teachers to spread his signature dance lessons on first-class steamships and skyrocketed to fame in the '30s after introducing the public to such dances as the Lambeth Walk and The Big Apple. By the 1950s, Arthur and his wife, Kathryn, were hosting their own highly popular TV show on ABC, The Arthur Murray Dance Party, which ran for 12 years. Today, Arthur Murray's team prepares students for rug cutting at special events and weekend nightclub jaunts. Throughout lessons, instructors teach the foundations of two to four dances from a long list of styles that range from Latin to country-western, helping students to learn basic step patterns and timing, then progressing to more complicated patterns.

Though their professional dancing careers began in Las Vegas, Debbie Carroll and Shelley Locklier's skillful steps led them to a globe-trotting stint as principal dancers for Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance. After returning to Las Vegas, Carroll and Locklier combined their expertise—and their names—to form Carrolier Academy of Irish Dance, where toe-tapping apprentices learn Irish-dance fundamentals to build their core strength, improve their performance skills, and boost their self-confidence. Furnished with a hi-tech sound system, a mirrored wall, and sprung flooring to absorb the shock of shoes and falling feathers, the studio hosts classes for all ages and experience levels, enhancing each pupil's abilities while emphasizing team-building skills and proper nutrition.