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Soaring above Las Vegas as a family

The High Roller at night, summer 2014.

The High Roller at night, summer 2014.

Most of the time, my two main beats as a journalist—family travel and Vegas—exist in separate spheres.

Sometimes, however, the two come together in odd and wonderful ways. Such as the latest news about the High Roller, which, at 550 feet tall is the world’s largest observation wheel.

Late last month, the folks from Caesars Entertainment (which owns the wheel and the surrounding open-air mall, The LINQ) announced that the High Roller will open for 90 minutes one day a week exclusively for families with young children.

Dubbed the Family Hour Package, the program will allow riders with kids 12 and under to ride the wheel between 10-11:30 a.m. every Saturday in a family setting free of other (read: potentially wasted) customers. The package is priced at $49.95 and is available every week. According to a press release, it includes:

  • Two adult tickets
  • Three children tickets
  • Three High Roller binoculars for guests to keep
  • Three Juice drinks from the Sky Lounge

Having been up in the High Roller a handful of times since it opened in late 2013, I can say this: The package is a super deal. Juice drinks alone probably retail for $18 during regular business hours, which makes the ticket prices of approximately $32 for five people a steal.

The folks at Caesars told me families also can use their ticket stubs from Family Hour Package to receive discounts for a show at The Quad (a hotel that is set to change its name to The LINQ later this year).

My advice? Do the wheel, then wander west up the LINQ toward the Strip, stopping at Sprinkles cupcakes for a morning jolt or Hash House a Go Go (inside The Quad) for heaping portions of eggs and potatoes for brunch. On your way, stop in at the Polaroid Fotobar and print out some of the pictures you took up on the wheel. Even in Vegas, there’s nothing like a souvenir you can touch and hold.