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Youth Sports: Playing Softball in Las Vegas
Iconic sign welcoming all visitors to fabulous Las Vegas Nevada.
There are many reasons to travel. Sometimes it’s for vacation, sometimes it’s to visit relatives and sometimes it’s even for work. One of the biggest reasons we travel in my family is for youth sports - softball in particular. We were pretty stoked when we found out that our daughter’s travel team was going to do a tournament in fabulous Las Vegas. We booked a hotel, flight and rental car through Costco Travel, of course! The long weekend was fantastic and exhausting, as is every weekend when your child does travel sports. Here are some tricks and tips we used, not only to get us through the weekend, but also to take advantage of the location.
Leadoff single for the girls in game two.
Arrive a Day (or Two) Early
Arriving a day or two early ensures that you can spend some time enjoying the destination, in addition to acclimating your athlete to a potentially different environment than they usually play in. Plan to go to a show or do something you can only do in that destination. We decided we wanted to go to a celebrity chef’s restaurant that we would not be able to go to normally, and it was one of the best meals we’ve ever had. We also used our extra day to walk The Strip, hitting every shopping opportunity from the Fashion Show mall to the MGM Grand.
Arrive a Day (or Two) Early
Arriving a day or two early ensures that you can spend some time enjoying the destination, in addition to acclimating your athlete to a potentially different environment than they usually play in. Plan to go to a show or do something you can only do in that destination. We decided we wanted to go to a celebrity chef’s restaurant that we would not be able to go to normally, and it was one of the best meals we’ve ever had. We also used our extra day to walk The Strip, hitting every shopping opportunity from the Fashion Show mall to the MGM Grand.
Leadoff single for the girls in game two.
Intense on the base path, ready to jump! Photo by fellow softball parent Jennifer Cook.
Choose a Car You Know
When we got to the rental car location, we gravitated towards a vehicle make and model that we currently drive at home. While it can be fun to test drive something different than what you normally drive, it can also be really stressful to try and figure out how to adjust the mirrors, locate the climate controls, or get the lights turned on while simultaneously trying to figure out where you’re going. We also knew for a fact that the particular make and model we selected could easily fit all of our daughter’s softball gear and our luggage, as we are getting pretty good at playing “gear Tetris.”
Plan to Be Back to Your Hotel Early
In Las Vegas, this one is not an easy ask. There are things to do everywhere, all the time. Giving your athlete the best possible tournament experience means having to make sure they get the rest they need. For example, we had a 6:30 a.m. start time, which means that we had to start waking up around 4:30 in the morning. Fortunately, there was a 24-hour restaurant in the hotel where we could pick up breakfast to go before heading over to the fields. Most hotels in Las Vegas have at least one 24-hour restaurant… take advantage of it!
The team congratulating a team member on a home run... one of two for the weekend! Photo by Jennifer Cook.
During the Tournament
The early morning games were cold, so we layered our clothes. The afternoon games were sunny and 70 degrees, so we simply peeled off the layers and remained comfortable throughout the day.
Bring snacks for both the athlete and the family. A quick bite between games can make a huge difference in the attitude of your athlete. No one likes to be hangry after all, and you can’t really rely on a ‘snack shack’ at the field, as there may not be one available. With that, also make sure you have plenty of water. We forgot and had to run to a fast-food restaurant to purchase multiple bottles of water.
Last, but not least… remember to have fun! Umpires are not perfect. Kids strikeout, or make mistakes. The coach is going to make substitutions that you might disagree with. Ultimately, your child is only going to be doing travel sports for a very short time, and when you look back on it, you won’t be thinking about that umpire, strikeout or even the coach. You’ll remember the look on your kid’s face when they catch a ball in the outfield, hit that surprise double (or homerun) or when their team wins a hard-fought game by one run.
During the Tournament
The early morning games were cold, so we layered our clothes. The afternoon games were sunny and 70 degrees, so we simply peeled off the layers and remained comfortable throughout the day.
Bring snacks for both the athlete and the family. A quick bite between games can make a huge difference in the attitude of your athlete. No one likes to be hangry after all, and you can’t really rely on a ‘snack shack’ at the field, as there may not be one available. With that, also make sure you have plenty of water. We forgot and had to run to a fast-food restaurant to purchase multiple bottles of water.
Last, but not least… remember to have fun! Umpires are not perfect. Kids strikeout, or make mistakes. The coach is going to make substitutions that you might disagree with. Ultimately, your child is only going to be doing travel sports for a very short time, and when you look back on it, you won’t be thinking about that umpire, strikeout or even the coach. You’ll remember the look on your kid’s face when they catch a ball in the outfield, hit that surprise double (or homerun) or when their team wins a hard-fought game by one run.
The team congratulating a team member on a home run... one of two for the weekend! Photo by Jennifer Cook.
Sign Up for Costco.com Emails
If you are interested in great deals Costco Travel has to offer, click here to sign up to receive emails. This will ensure that Travel and Costco.com values are sent directly to your inbox.
Once You Are Ready to Travel Again, Costco Travel Can Help
We invite you to take some time to browse around - Opens a dialog and dream of your next vacation, rental car or cruise, whether you’re booking for next month or toward the end of next year.
Iconic sign welcoming all visitors to fabulous Las Vegas Nevada.
There are many reasons to travel. Sometimes it’s for vacation, sometimes it’s to visit relatives and sometimes it’s even for work. One of the biggest reasons we travel in my family is for youth sports - softball in particular. We were pretty stoked when we found out that our daughter’s travel team was going to do a tournament in fabulous Las Vegas. We booked a hotel, flight and rental car through Costco Travel, of course! The long weekend was fantastic and exhausting, as is every weekend when your child does travel sports. Here are some tricks and tips we used, not only to get us through the weekend, but also to take advantage of the location.
Leadoff single for the girls in game two.
Arrive a Day (or Two) Early
Arriving a day or two early ensures that you can spend some time enjoying the destination, in addition to acclimating your athlete to a potentially different environment than they usually play in. Plan to go to a show or do something you can only do in that destination. We decided we wanted to go to a celebrity chef’s restaurant that we would not be able to go to normally, and it was one of the best meals we’ve ever had. We also used our extra day to walk The Strip, hitting every shopping opportunity from the Fashion Show mall to the MGM Grand.
Arrive a Day (or Two) Early
Arriving a day or two early ensures that you can spend some time enjoying the destination, in addition to acclimating your athlete to a potentially different environment than they usually play in. Plan to go to a show or do something you can only do in that destination. We decided we wanted to go to a celebrity chef’s restaurant that we would not be able to go to normally, and it was one of the best meals we’ve ever had. We also used our extra day to walk The Strip, hitting every shopping opportunity from the Fashion Show mall to the MGM Grand.
Leadoff single for the girls in game two.
Intense on the base path, ready to jump! Photo by fellow softball parent Jennifer Cook.
Choose a Car You Know
When we got to the rental car location, we gravitated towards a vehicle make and model that we currently drive at home. While it can be fun to test drive something different than what you normally drive, it can also be really stressful to try and figure out how to adjust the mirrors, locate the climate controls, or get the lights turned on while simultaneously trying to figure out where you’re going. We also knew for a fact that the particular make and model we selected could easily fit all of our daughter’s softball gear and our luggage, as we are getting pretty good at playing “gear Tetris.”
Plan to Be Back to Your Hotel Early
In Las Vegas, this one is not an easy ask. There are things to do everywhere, all the time. Giving your athlete the best possible tournament experience means having to make sure they get the rest they need. For example, we had a 6:30 a.m. start time, which means that we had to start waking up around 4:30 in the morning. Fortunately, there was a 24-hour restaurant in the hotel where we could pick up breakfast to go before heading over to the fields. Most hotels in Las Vegas have at least one 24-hour restaurant… take advantage of it!
The team congratulating a team member on a home run... one of two for the weekend! Photo by Jennifer Cook.
During the Tournament
The early morning games were cold, so we layered our clothes. The afternoon games were sunny and 70 degrees, so we simply peeled off the layers and remained comfortable throughout the day.
Bring snacks for both the athlete and the family. A quick bite between games can make a huge difference in the attitude of your athlete. No one likes to be hangry after all, and you can’t really rely on a ‘snack shack’ at the field, as there may not be one available. With that, also make sure you have plenty of water. We forgot and had to run to a fast-food restaurant to purchase multiple bottles of water.
Last, but not least… remember to have fun! Umpires are not perfect. Kids strikeout, or make mistakes. The coach is going to make substitutions that you might disagree with. Ultimately, your child is only going to be doing travel sports for a very short time, and when you look back on it, you won’t be thinking about that umpire, strikeout or even the coach. You’ll remember the look on your kid’s face when they catch a ball in the outfield, hit that surprise double (or homerun) or when their team wins a hard-fought game by one run.
During the Tournament
The early morning games were cold, so we layered our clothes. The afternoon games were sunny and 70 degrees, so we simply peeled off the layers and remained comfortable throughout the day.
Bring snacks for both the athlete and the family. A quick bite between games can make a huge difference in the attitude of your athlete. No one likes to be hangry after all, and you can’t really rely on a ‘snack shack’ at the field, as there may not be one available. With that, also make sure you have plenty of water. We forgot and had to run to a fast-food restaurant to purchase multiple bottles of water.
Last, but not least… remember to have fun! Umpires are not perfect. Kids strikeout, or make mistakes. The coach is going to make substitutions that you might disagree with. Ultimately, your child is only going to be doing travel sports for a very short time, and when you look back on it, you won’t be thinking about that umpire, strikeout or even the coach. You’ll remember the look on your kid’s face when they catch a ball in the outfield, hit that surprise double (or homerun) or when their team wins a hard-fought game by one run.
The team congratulating a team member on a home run... one of two for the weekend! Photo by Jennifer Cook.
Sign Up for Costco.com Emails
If you are interested in great deals Costco Travel has to offer, click here to sign up to receive emails. This will ensure that Travel and Costco.com values are sent directly to your inbox.
Once You Are Ready to Travel Again, Costco Travel Can Help
We invite you to take some time to browse around - Opens a dialog and dream of your next vacation, rental car or cruise, whether you’re booking for next month or toward the end of next year.
About the Author: The above piece was written by Penny Anderson, mother of two young athletes, and Merchandising/Ecommerce Manager at Costco Travel. Penny has been a Costco employee for 23 years, 15 of these years at Costco Travel.
