A sunny, Sunday afternoon at Downtown Container Park in Las Vegas is a family favorite. Kids of all ages are accompanied by parents of all ages; eating, strolling through the shops and playing in what must be one of the most creative, fun and unusual playgrounds around! Live reggae music and an absence of showgirls and slot machines are enough to foster the illusion that this is no longer Las Vegas. It is only after you leave the park that the iconic lights and relics of advertising from the past on the street will remind you of where you are. It’s only a short walk to the Fremont Street Experience with its hourly evening light show.

Container Park feels like a trendy neighborhood community; one dedicated to ecological responsibility, creativity and diversity. Merchants occupy 30 reconstructed shipping containers and 41 modular metal cubes giving it a modernistic feel. The shops are small and selective in their offerings; most focus on unusual, hand-crafted or higher-end items. There is a wine bar and even a shop that sells nothing but gourmet beef jerky. The giant treehouse playground is in the center courtyard. At one end, behind the stage, is an old train. Inside the train is a men’s barbershop with an antique barber chair! Anyone remember ‘Mayberry?’

With live entertainment regularly scheduled and the eye-catching, giant Praying Mantis sculpture marking the entrance, the area positively glows after dark – literally. The huge insect sporadically lights up the night by emitting fire from his antennae, like some fire-breathing dragon. Valet parking is available.

After 9 p.m., no one under age 21 is permitted, allowing adults to party into the night but the daytime crowd, at least on a Sunday afternoon, is fascinating in its diversity and harmony; a young man with spiked, purple hair chats with an elderly woman. Older couples sit at bistro tables alongside hipsters and middle-aged women with huge purses. But it is the families; parents with kids in tow – with backpack baby carriers or holding their hands, cradling the tiniest infants in their arms and older children intertwined on their laps – that are the most in evidence. They all seem happy with the mellow atmosphere in the afternoon sun. Some are eating an ice cream bar concoction in pastel colors, others await a food order at one of the many restaurants. One little girl dances to the music, as the two adults with her finish their corn on the cob. Soon the man gets up and playfully dances with her, while the woman finishes feeding the smaller child resting in her arms.

Daddies and mommies are both in the playground, appearing to have as much fun as the little ones. They are talking, playing, jumping, in short; ‘interacting.’; no crying or fussing here; from the parents or the kids. ‘Interactive’ has long been a buzzword in educational programming and displays, exhibits, etc –terminology for hands-on activities that physically and intellectually involve or challenge the audience or participants. But perhaps the most valuable interaction of all is the family bonding happening at Container Park in Las Vegas on a Spring day.

707 Fremont Street
Las Vegas, NV
702-637-4244

Downtown Container Park