[ou812girl]

I've been thinking of taking my students there on a field trip. I have pretty high functioning first and second graders with Autism. Do you guys think there's enough there to do a field trip?

[Bennysmom]

I am so glad you posted this. Thanks Chest.
I have been wanting to go, and no one we know has been to the Springs Preserve yet.

Good to know you enjoyed it. We will be checking it out in the next couple of weeks.

[jfkIII]

Well, Chest, now you've done it! You should know to keep a gem to yourself when you find it out there! Now everyone and their brother will be heading there, to ruin a good thing.

Think about it....all you need to find there after paying those high prices are 20 or so highly functional autistic 1st & 2nd grade kids running around!

Good job!

[lvknight]

Originally Posted by ou812girl

I've been thinking of taking my students there on a field trip. I have pretty high functioning first and second graders with Autism. Do you guys think there's enough there to do a field trip?

There's more than enough there to do a field trip. My two five year olds and I went at the end of July/beginning of August time frame when the temp had dipped down to high 90's. They had an absolute blast. I also wish I had bought the annual family pass. There are a ton of interactive exhibits, video games (on water waste and saving water), displays about the founding of las Vegas, mock ups of indian homes, animal displays, and more. They also have a pretty cool indoor and out door play area for kids. My kids didn't care for the hiking trails. They found it boring. I don't know if kids with autism that age would have the attention span to do the hiking trails. There are alot of markers you can stop and read, old buildings, a marsh area, among other things. The trails are 1.5 miles if I recall.

I personaly didn't care for the cafeteria. I didn't like the salad, and the food was overpriced in my opinion. However, when i went they didn't have the main cafeteria open yet. At the time it was a small counter in what looked like a meeting room. The food was catered by Wolfgang Puck. If its a mini Wolfgang Puck in the cafeteria now where you can get food made to order, similiar to what's in the airport, the food should be much better than when I originally went.

[guinnessjim]

Originally Posted by lvknight

I personaly didn't care for the cafeteria. I didn't like the salad, and the food was overpriced in my opinion. However, when i went they didn't have the main cafeteria open yet. At the time it was a small counter in what looked like a meeting room. The food was catered by Wolfgang Puck. If its a mini Wolfgang Puck in the cafeteria now where you can get food made to order, similiar to what's in the airport, the food should be much better than when I originally went.

it is a mini-puck-like place now...decent wood fire pizza, great burger, good salads, others. the menu is still kinda being flushed out, and they seem to be experimenting a bit. prices are still a bit high, but the food and view have me overlooking that for the moment

[Gronilot]

I also give a huge thumbs up to Springs Preserve.

If you pay for a day pass, and then decide to change to annual once you get inside, just go to the pass office with your receipt - and they will deduct that amount off the annual fee. I think you have to change on the same visit to adjust the cost, but it is worth a shot to ask.

I have 3 kids aged from 4-13, and all of us had a great time. There are things to do/see for all ages.

My kids favorite part is the nature exchange

Young collectors bring in found items such as shells, rocks, bark, pinecones and more. Collectors earn points for their items. These points can be banked or used to take home another item from the Exchange. The Exchange encourages responsible and ethical collecting. The Exchange does not accept live animals, items that come from endangered or threatened species or items from the Springs Preserve site. If you have questions, please call (702) 822-7759 to check with us before you bring the items.

They can bring in any item from nature, and the more they can tell about it the more points they get. Then they use the points to exchange for other items that are already there, or that other people have brought in.

For example, my son brought in a snake skin. You get more points for explaining why and how often snakes shed, what type of snake it was, it's natural habitat, what it eats....etc... the more info the more points.

It is well worth the money for the annual pass- and it isn't even finished yet.

[guinnessjim]

Originally Posted by Gronilot

For example, my son brought in a snake skin. You get more points for explaining why and how often snakes shed, what type of snake it was, it's natural habitat, what it eats....etc... the more info the more points.

awesome...always good to see places make an effort to educate and entertain at the same time. education in the natural sciences especially, as more often than not, these get over looked in favor of things that are easier (both financially and logistically) to teach.

i'll have to make an effort to walk around the next time i am there (as i said earlier, we usually just pop in for lunch....maybe i need to take an extended lunch some friday)

[Buzz123]

Originally Posted by lvknight

I personally didn't care for the cafeteria. I didn't like the salad, and the food was overpriced in my opinion. However, when i went they didn't have the main cafeteria open yet. At the time it was a small counter in what looked like a meeting room. The food was catered by Wolfgang Puck. If its a mini Wolfgang Puck in the cafeteria now where you can get food made to order, similar to what's in the airport, the food should be much better than when I originally went.

We had the same problem when we went, plus it was about 110º that day. But we really enjoyed it. We also went to the Jewel concert on opening day which was reasonably priced. In fact it was cheap. I still say the price for the museums is too high for locals who have been waiting for ...what...102 years...to see the preserves. But there is a lot to see and plenty of interesting information that anyone living in Las Vegas should know about. For just the two of us, we would have to go three times a year to pay for the "family" pass. I don't know that we'd go that often, but we do plan to go in cool weather to catch what we missed the first time. We spent a lot of time at the gardens when they were open, which were free, and now I guess they just moved it all across the street to the preserve.

[oeccscclhjhn]

Just make a b-line to the botanical garden. Lots of birds. Sat and watched a hummingbird.

[Clarkcty]

Love the Springs Preserve, been a member for a long time but I need to reinstate my membership. $30 for an annual pass is not bad which includes entrance to the Nevada State Museum. More attractions are being planned for the place so it is definitely worth the money.