Things To Do In Spring Valley

Performers feed off the energy of their audience, and when there is no audience, there is no energy. To stop this problem before it starts, venues turn to Fill A Seat Phoenix, a business that supplies its members with tickets to events that still have seats to fill. Members enjoy a year of entry to popular shows, sporting events, and concerts, bulking up the audience more suitably than a litter of chihuahuas dressed in tuxedoes. Upon joining Fill A Seat Phoenix, members receive access to a list of upcoming events, which range from large-scale productions to local restaurants, golf courses, and coffee houses.

Strap on your unthinking cap and let loose on Primm Valley Casino Resorts' family-friendly attractions, ranging from thrilling coasters to the gentle, youngster-bouncing Frog Hopper. Riders taller than 4 feet can take the plunge on the Turbo Drop, which boasts a 170-foot vertical free fall at 45 mph, or The Desperado, a twisting coaster with more banks than a financial district and more giggle-induced glee than insider trading. The Adventure Canyon Log Flume refreshes riders with water while stimulating their trigger fingers with laser-light target shooting in splashy surroundings. If brick-and-mortar amusement doesn't crank your cerebral cortex, take a ride in the Maxflight Cyber Coaster, which virtually simulates an authentic rollercoaster down to the last detail.

Golf Summerlin operates a triumvirate of courses that roam the desert tundra just east of Red Rock Canyon and showcase the fairway-carving vision of renowned course architects Billy Casper and Greg Nash. All three courses—Palm Valley, Highland Falls, and Eagle Crest—present their own brand of tee-to-green challenges as golfers aim for fairways framed by sandstone-hued peaks.

Palm Valley Golf Course spans 6,849 yards of undulating fairways and bent grass greens. Relatively generous fairways entice aggressive tee shots throughout the course, but particularly ill-struck drives are likely to find the shadows of encroaching pine trees or the grizzly sands of 68 bunkers peppered throughout the course. Nine ponds also populate the course, occasionally forcing golfers into tricky course-management decisions and granting golf balls a chance to pursue their lifelong dream of becoming dinner for fat fish.

Highland Falls Golf Course measures a modest 6,512 yards, yet manages to present a gauntlet of treacherous greenery. Throughout the course, golfers may notice that their drives carry a few extra yards, a product of the dry, thin air—the course perches at an elevation of 3,000 feet—and golf balls galvanized by the electric lure of the Las Vegas Strip, visible from certain vantages across the layout. Careful club selection and a keen eye for distance are critical throughout the round, as dramatic elevation changes complicate basic readings of yardage and legions of sand traps await to ensnare misplayed shots.

The shortest of the three courses, Eagle Crest Golf Course cozies up to the amber mountainside with an 18-hole, 4,067-yard executive layout. The par 60 layout features 12 par-threes—where golfers can zero in with pin-high iron shots—and six par-fours, where players can unleash aggression with flush drives. Rounds conclude at the straightaway, 370-yard, par 4 18th hole, where the fairway plummets 40 feet into a large, bunker-fortified green that lets you punch it if it flinches in anticipation of a craterous ball mark.

Sister courses Siena Golf Club and Arroyo Golf Club are challenging, but at the same time, approachable for beginners and beautiful destinations for golfers of any level. Recognized for its serenity, Siena frames rounds with views of the Spring Mountains and the Las Vegas skyline. The course presents holes that vary in both routing and pacing. Hole five poses a particularly stiff test, since water surrounds its green on three sides, making it tough for golf balls or misplaced skydivers to land on.

Arroyo Golf Club, meanwhile, sets itself apart in one major way: it was designed by golf legend Arnold Palmer. Like a mailman who wears slippers on his route, the course weaves quietly through the community of Summerlin, and alongside Red Rock Canyon. Amidst these favorable views, golfers take on the course’s challenges, including at the 400-plus yard tenth hole—the first of three holes on the backside that calls for players to launch shots over water right off the tee.

Siena Golf Club Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par 72 course
• Total length of 6,843 yards from the back tees
• Course rating of 71.7 from the back tees
• Course slope of 131 from the back tees
• Five sets of tees per hole
• Scorecard

Arroyo Golf Club Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par 72 course
• Total length of 6,883 yards from the back tees
• Course rating of 71.9 from the back tees
• Course slope of 124 from the back tees
• Five sets of tees per hole
• Scorecard

Playing in Las Vegas’ backyards can be hard since the temperature often surpasses 100 degrees. That’s why Childs' Play Las Vegas created an indoor space away from the dessert sun’s sweltering rays, allowing kids to safely expend their energy on a sprawling, state-of-the-art play structure from Backyard Adventures. Designed for the climbing and sliding needs of kids eight and under, the giant play set includes rock-climbing walls, a spiral slide, several rocket slides, and roomy forts. The space’s other activities range from Apple computers loaded with educational games to a mini-basketball court. Over in the toddler area, building blocks and games entrance children too young to play with the big kids but too old to spent hours wondering if their foot is an actual part of their body.

At Childs’ Play Las Vegas’ southwest location, playtime is a free treat for kids who patiently sit through portraiture sessions at the facility’s photography studio. More treats, such as Hello Kitty dolls, stock either location’s toy boutiques, while optional add-ons, such as visits from Elmo, enliven weekend birthday parties. Along with open-play sessions, weekdays at Childs’ Play include classes in subjects such as tumbling, karate, and music. As kids play and learn, parents can relax with complementary cups of coffee, free Wi-Fi, and a big screen television in an area designed just for grown-ups.

European Formula EK20 karts whiz by on Pole Position Raceway’s quarter-mile track, cruising at speeds of up to 45 miles per hour. Spectators crank their heads to keep up. There’s no wind to battle against, no sun blinding the drivers’ eyes, and no birds rigging the race by dropping smoke bombs because all of Pole Position Raceway’s competitions happen inside. This is thanks to a fleet of electric-powered karts, which accelerate more quickly and hug curves more smoothly than gas-powered karts without dumping out clouds of exhaust.

To sate speed cravings, drivers simply arrive and drive—show up and nab one of 13 spots in the next race. Then with a DOT-approved racing helmet, they push the pedal to the floor for roughly 10 minutes, drafting their opponents to fly past them near the finish line. At the end of each race, drivers receive a SpeedSheet that displays their race results, fastest lap time, and the likelihood of getting their own action-movie franchise. For those seeking to dive deep into the world of racing, Pole Position Raceway offers driving clinics and youth racing camps, where younger racers pilot EK10 karts that peak at 20 mph.