We like our Vegas all kinds of ways including a little risky, a lot naughty, way too tipsy and taking place well into the wee hours of the night. The one thing we don’t ever want to do in Sin City, however, is sweat, but that’s exactly what’s bound to happen when you book a Vegas getaway during the summer where temps regularly soar into the low 100s. Call it a dry heat if you like, it can still be miserable. Fear not. Here are 7 perfect ways to stay cool in sizzling hot Las Vegas this summer.
Also: 8 reasons to love downtown Las Vegas
Ride high on the High Roller | Photo courtesy of Denise Truscello
High Roller at the LINQ Promenade
Heat may rise, but not even the tiniest amount will finds its way into any one of the 28 futuristic looking (and air-conditioned capsules) that soar above the city as part of the High Roller, a mid-Strip observation wheel and currently the highest in the world. The High Roller allows up to 40 passengers per capsule escape the sweltering summer heat with cocktail in hand for a 30-minute ride. We happen to think the best time to enjoy the ride is at night, but regardless of when you go see if you can squeeze yourself into the Happy Half Hour cabin where the bar is open and all yours for the entire ride at a cost of $33 per person.
One lemon floaty please | Photo courtesy of Downtown Grand
Citrus at Downtown Grand
Dipping your toes into the cool waters of a Las Vegas swimming pool while scantily-clad millennials swirl around you and a DJ drills relentless beats into your body is a Sin City summer ritual. Now, there’s a swell alternative. The newest comer to the scene is Citrus at the Grand Pool Deck, an expansive rooftop stunner that debuted in March and is bursting with mod colors, neatly cut ornamental hedges and expansive city views including zip liners from nearby Slotzilla soaring through the air like daredevils shot from a cannon. Citrus is laid-back, unpretentious and full of homegrown artists and hipsters who come to swill booze, catch a few rays and enjoy downtown’s dynamic comeback.
I’ll have the Fat Boy Milkshake, please | Photo courtesy of Holsteins
Bam-boozled shakes at Holsteins Shakes and Buns
This city does booze like it’s nobody’s business, but our version of keeping cool isn’t toting around one of those monstrous frozen slushies doled out at places like Fat Tuesday. Instead, we head to burger haven Holsteins Shakes and Buns at super sexy resort the Cosmopolitan and allow ourselves to be knocked out by one of roughly a dozen spiked ice cream cream concoctions known as “Bam-Boozled” shakes. The Red Velvet with vodka, redvelvet cake, cream cheese mousse and a perfectly perched mini whoopee pie on top is like the pretty girl at the ball while the Myer’s Dark Rum gives the Bananas Foster shake plenty of kick. But our favorites were the Vegan Coconut Raspberry (better than it sounds), the outrageous Fat Boy and the perfectly reasonable breakfast substitute the Coffee & Donuts. As for the burgers, well, they’re among the best in town if you ask us.
There’s more than what meets the eye inside | Flickr CC: kennejima
“Akhob” at the Louis Vuitton store at Crystals Center
It’s a little known fact that every flagship Louis Vuitton store worldwide must include at least four works of art and the crown jewel at the Vegas flagship location in the heart of the Strip includes an off-the-radar-stunner that will make your jaw drop while also providing a burst of air-conditioned relief from summer’s oppressive grip. We don’t want to give away too much, but this large-scale installation from California artist James Turrell is a fully immersive experience that completely erodes a viewer’s sense of time and place while bathing them in a soft light that shifts frequently and almost imperceptibly. Free and by appointment only, you’ll just have to see it to believe it. It’s practically life changing.
Ahhh, relaxation | Photo courtesy of Qua Baths and Spa
Qua Baths and Spa at Caesars Palace
We fully expected a resort named Ceasars Palace to have a grand, Romanesque bathhouse fit for kings and queens and Qua does not disappoint. Numerous accolades and awards have been heaped upon this day spa which offers a plethora of treatment options including a range of facials, massages and rejuvenating experiences for both individuals and couples, but do yourself a favor on a hot Vegas day and purchase a day pass to its luxurious bathhouse. The gender segregated (and clothing optional) facilities include roomy changing areas, a lounge, bathroom and shower facilities and knock out wet and dry areas (including two cold plunges!), but the real treat during the dog days of summer is to stand in the center of the first of its kind Arctic Ice Room and cool down via the gentle fall of snow upon your body.
The chillest bar around | Photo courtesy of the Monte Carlo
Minus 5 Bar at Monte Carlo and the Shoppes at Mandalay Bay
Do yourself a favor when entering this frozen cocktail lounge crafted entirely of ice and set to a permanent temperature of -5 degrees Celsius (23 degrees Farenheit) and eschew the parkas available in favor of either a black or white faux fur coat upgrade. Photo ops inside this icy cave, adorned with finely cut ice sculptures are numerous, and the fake furs offer just the right amount of visual drama. Next, sidle up to the bar and order a cocktail poured in a glass made entirely of ice and recline upon a fur pelt while trying not to freeze your buns off—which you will do. Sufficed to say, you won’t last very long at Minus 5, but where else in Vegas can you ditch the heat and literally experience a temperature drop of 80 degrees in a matter of seconds?
Get a sense of nature here | Photo courtesy of New York New York
The Park at New York New York
We’ve long griped that the Strip needed a green space and that giving an empty lot or two back to nature would do it wonders. Enter the Park, a spindly strip of land neatly sandwiched between New York New York and Monte Carlo that provides tree-lined shelter and misters to weary revelers while giving the Strip a much needed dose of oxygen. We love the towering sculptures that provide shade and also the abundance of desert foliage. The centerpiece to the park is Bliss Dance, a 40-foot tall woman who lived previously at Burning Man, but now stands guard in front ofnearby T-Mobile Arena. Do this:Hit up Beerhaus, a Vegas spin on a German beer hall which spills seamlessly into the Park and offers fancy brats, pretzels and cheese, a zillion beers on tap and a heaping slab of vanilla ice cream sandwiched between two sugar cookies and goes by the cheeky name Bye Felicia.
