Van Life in Las Vegas With a Toddler: What It's Really Like

We’ve done van life in Las Vegas twice as a family: six days in November 2024, when Spencer was 22 months old, and a few days in March 2025, when he was just over 2. Both times it was the three of us in the van. Our day in Vegas from that first trip is still the most-watched day vlog on our channel.

The short version: the Asian food is some of the best in the country, parking a high-roof van takes some planning, and the Strip itself is a lot of walking with a toddler.

We filmed the day that started it all: What Van Life in Las Vegas Is Really Like.

Quick facts

• When we went: November 2024 (6 days) and March 2025 (4 days), family of three
• Where we slept: an open-air casino parking lot, a membership RV campground about 20 minutes from the Strip, two hotels with high-clearance parking, and quiet streets
• Weather: late November was short-sleeve weather for us; it gets dark around 5:30 pm
• Best thing about it: the Chinese and Hong Kong food
• Hardest thing about it: walking the Strip with a toddler, and finding parking that fits a high-roof van
• Splurge: the buffet at Wynn, $75 a person in November 2024

Why we keep coming back to Vegas

For us it’s the food. In November 2024 I said the Chinese food in Vegas is comparable to LA, San Francisco, Toronto and Vancouver, and we especially love the Hong Kong style barbecue. The next day I went further: some of the best Asian food in the entire country.

On the way out that first time, I talked about why we do van life. Part of it is looking for a city where we might settle one day, and Vegas was on the list: close to California and Utah’s national parks, an international airport, and wonderful weather, even if summer is hotter than we like. The only thing holding us back was its reputation. It’s known as Sin City, and we didn’t want that influence on Spencer growing up. For what it’s worth, we don’t gamble and we don’t drink.

There’s more than the city, too. On the way in, I hiked to a hot spring in a canyon near the Hoover Dam, about an hour from Vegas. People only talk about Vegas, but there’s a lot of beautiful nature outside it.

Where we parked and slept

Parking is the first problem in Vegas with a high-roof Sprinter. Most casino garages are for low-clearance vehicles, under 7 or 8 feet, so we can’t get in. In November 2024 we only knew of three lots on the Strip that fit us: Circus Circus, New York New York, and a lot behind the Flamingo.

A casino parking lot

One night in November 2024, we parked overnight in the Circus Circus lot. It was outdoor, high clearance, and as far as we knew then, the only lot on the Strip that allowed free parking. When we came back in March 2025, some of you had suggested other places in the comments, so we parked elsewhere that time.

An RV campground in the middle of the city

For a couple of nights in November 2024 we stayed at the Thousand Trails campground in Las Vegas, which was included in our annual membership, so no extra cost. It’s one of the smallest campgrounds we’ve been to. The sites are tight, and there’s traffic noise and airplanes overhead. The upside is location, about 20 minutes from the Strip. We were really there to add water, top off our power and sleep.

Dinner at the campground. With hookups, I could sous vide a steak, which I only do when we have power and water to spare.

Quiet streets

In March 2025 we slept on quiet streets: one night on a back street behind a commercial building in Chinatown, and another by a storage building near a busier road. The second one was a pretty quiet area at night, and we had a good night’s sleep. We’re very careful when we choose a spot: we make sure it’s legal for us to park there and that it feels safe. Rina wasn’t comfortable with it at first. Her fear was the knock on the door, but nobody has ever knocked on ours.

Hotel nights to avoid van life burnout

Every so often we stay in a hotel to reset. Van life burnout is real, and in my words at the time, where’s a better place to stay in a hotel than Las Vegas? It helps us keep doing van life long term.

• November 2024, New York New York, two nights. It has an above-ground, high-clearance lot. The room was modern and comfortable, but with no bathtub, which made Spencer’s bath harder.
• March 2025, a budget hotel near the Strip, two nights. New York New York was $300 to $400 a night that week, roughly double what we usually pay, so I booked something cheaper half a block off the Strip. The room was advertised at $15 a night, but with the resort fee and tax it came to about $68, plus about $19 a day to park. Then Rina read the reviews, mostly one star. We walked in expecting the worst, and it was okay: decently clean, with fast enough Wi-Fi for me to upload a video. We really just needed a place to shower, and it did that.

Showers, water and laundry

• Showers: at the campground (Rina showered there, and we helped Spencer with his) and in the hotel rooms. More on how we shower living in a van.
• Water and power: topped off at the campground.
• Laundry: at laundromats while Spencer napped, once right next to the restaurant where we were waiting for dinner. Here’s how we do laundry with two kids.
• Packages: we picked up a new little bathtub for Spencer from an Amazon drop box.

Dinner inside the van after Spencer’s nap ran late. It was already dark at 5:30.

What we did with a toddler

We plan around Spencer’s nap: we drive while he sleeps, or head back to the room or the van for it.

• SeaQuest at the Boulevard Mall, with the annual membership from our one back home. Spencer got to feed the fish.
• The aquarium at Mandalay Bay. Tickets were $29 for adults. It’s beautifully designed but on the pricier side and not too big.
• Easy stops on the Strip: the Coca-Cola store and M&M store, the Christmas display at the Bellagio, the free wildlife habitat at the Flamingo, and the big aquarium in the shops at Caesars.
• Discovery Children’s Museum. We got 50% off through our children’s museum membership, so it was $10 a person, and everyone over 1 pays. It’s big, about four floors, but on a Tuesday it was way too busy for a 2-year-old. It’d be better at 4 or 5.
• Playgrounds. Fox Hill Park was one of the most epic playgrounds we’ve visited: spacious, clean and new, with zip lines and a really fast slide, though a lot of it is for older kids. Town Square has a play area and a little train ride.
• Adventure Dome at Circus Circus. Not much there Spencer could go on.

Fox Hill Park, March 2025. A lot of it is for older kids, but there was still plenty for Spencer to climb.

The Strip is a lot of walking

We underestimated how far everything is. Walking from New York New York to the buffet at Wynn took us about an hour and a half. We probably should have taken an Uber. We thought about bringing Spencer’s trike, but it’s honestly inconvenient on the Strip, with escalators and stairs everywhere and no straight way from A to B. The second time we used the monorail, and still carried Spencer most of the way.

Where and what we ate

Roast duck at Win Kee. The skin is crispy in a way we rarely get anywhere else.

Win Kee HK BBQ and Noodle

One of our favourite Hong Kong barbecue spots, and we went both trips. The restaurant is decorated like the streets of Hong Kong, which makes it feel nostalgic for us since Rina and I are both from Hong Kong. We had crispy pork belly, char siu and roast duck. Most places we’ve been around the country don’t get duck skin this crispy. Spencer was happily eating the char siu.

Full disclosure: on our March 2025 visit, the owner, Ida, came to say hi, we got a look at the kitchen, and they comped our meal. It was the first time that has ever happened to us. We’d been back because the food is good, not because of that. We have a whole video on it.

88 Noodle Papa, Chinatown

Our go-to in the Shanghai Plaza for Hainan chicken, which I think is one of the best in the country, plus braised pork knuckle and Rina’s shrimp dumpling soup. The food is really good but notably expensive. In March 2025 my chicken rice with dark meat was almost $19, Rina’s dumpling soup about $17 and drinks $5.50 each, while the pork knuckle was a reasonable $10.

Taiwan Deli

Rina’s craving every time. It’s Taiwanese breakfast, open in the morning until 2 pm. Her order is the sticky rice roll with fried dough and pork floss, and the thick, crispy radish cake. We also had fried dough dipped in soy milk, which was a first for me.

888 Japanese BBQ

You could tell the quality from the marbling.

All you can eat at three tiers: $28, $34 and $45 a person in March 2025. We picked the $34 one, since it has mostly the same food as the top tier. Filet mignon was my favourite, and Spencer ate it like nothing. Dessert is included too. They don’t take reservations, and when we left there was a two-hour wait, so go on a weekday, come early and join the wait list as soon as it opens. Here’s the full video.

Buffets and hot pot

• The buffet at Wynn: $75 a person in November 2024, and worth it for us. The king crab, stone crab and prime rib were the highlights; the lobster was a little tough. We liked it a lot more than the buffet at Caesars Palace, which was almost $90 and mostly tough lobster.
• Navi Hot Pot: all you can eat for $29.95 a person, with 1 hour 20 minutes at the buffet. It also had a sushi selection, which was the cool part.

FAQ

Can you park a high-roof van on the Las Vegas Strip?

Not in most casino garages, which are under 7 or 8 feet. In November 2024, the open-air lots we knew of were Circus Circus, New York New York and one behind the Flamingo.

Where did you shower in Las Vegas?

At the RV campground and in our two hotel rooms. The budget hotel was mostly for the shower.

If you want to see what a day actually looks like, watch our day of van life in Las Vegas on YouTube.