Things to Do in North Las Vegas

Just inside Kids' Club Las Vegas' play area, little ones board a train and ride the pintsize locomotive around a play structure towering with yellow and green tubes, slides, and lookouts. Within the space, kids 18 months to 8 years old expend energy and let their imaginations spill into reality as they crawl through the equipment's twists and turns and soar down its slides. The staff harnesses this imaginative sprit during educational and developmental classes such as Tiny Tumblers, a session for toddlers that helps them learn to identify vibrant colors and the feel of soft, rough, and misunderstood blocks.

Behind glass walls, parents are encouraged to keep an eye on kids as they play. The facility's emphasis on security extends beyond the translucent barriers, as the staff outfits each child and parent with a photo ID, which they must use in tandem to enter and exit, and acquires a list of all imaginary friends' known aliases. All these efforts help grant peace of mind so moms and dads can also use the center's free WiFi and socialize at appropriate moments within the Sandwich Club Café, which envelops its visitors in the aromas of fresh fruit and gourmet coffee.

With gourmet dining, apartment-style suites, and a 100,000 square-foot casino, guests of The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas 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.

Madame Tussaud began crafting wax likenesses in 1770s Paris, and a sense of history clings to her wax museums around the globe today—according to the Travel Channel’s Ghost Adventurers, the location is haunted by unsettled spirits. By day, the collection of wax sculptures fills the serene exhibits with characters ranging from daredevil Evel Knievel (complete with his original Harley Davidson and good-luck teddy bear) to Lady Gaga and Whoopi Goldberg. A Hugh Hefner figure, wearing the Playboy magnate’s signature smoking jacket, reclines on a bed, and a nightclub-themed section of the museum honors Las Vegas’s entertainment history with a waxen Elvis and Wayne Newton.

Velvet ropes no longer cordon figures off from the public, granting guests up-close-and-personal photo ops. Madame Tussauds Las Vegas honors its spooky roots with special late-night Scream events, a shriek-inducing tour through a maximum-security prison set interspersed with ghoulish wax figures and live actors.

The finale of Campus MovieFest features screenings of more than 250 student films; industry workshops; guest appearances by directors, actors, and screenwriters such as Mark Boal and John Ortiz; and the national grand finale of the College Battle of the Bands. All student movies were made in just one week and span the entire country, drawing around 75,000 participants. Bus explosions and spontaneous implosions are left for hubris-heaped Hollywood as these low-to-no-budget films explore the full spectrum of film, from comedy to drama to llama. The $29 ticket avails you of the final 16 films, beginning at 8 p.m. on Saturday, featuring door prizes, guest presenters, and awards for the winners.

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.