Skateboarding
Skateboarding
Top 5 skateparks in Las Vegas to spin those wheels
Here are the top five skate parks in Las Vegas and what you can expect in terms of things like size, challenge, atmosphere, and more.
Las Vegas is a city known for the dazzling lights of The Strip, palatial estates, and celebrity costumes galore. But beyond Vegas proper, those who venture into the outer edges will find a number of skateparks, including the biggest park in Nevada. What's more, don't be misled by City-of-Lights stereotypes. The best of Vegas can stand up to the best skateparks in Los Angeles.
If your aim is to dodge the casino glitz, you won't be grinding over craps tables and half-piping a giant emptied roulette wheel. The skateparks of Las Vegas stick to the fundamentals instead, and while they're certainly big and well-appointed, some are also blessed with natural beauty. This belies one critical secret about Vegas: it actually offers a lot of great outdoor attractions if you know where to look.
1. Hollywood Skatepark
You may want to leave the younger kids at home or be cautious yourself if you've yet to buy your first skateboard. Hollywood Skatepark is definitely intermediate to advanced in difficulty, with a full-pipe 18 feet high and a kidney pool dipping as low as 11 feet. You'll find a plethora of ledges, stairs, and other imposing, but awesome obstacles for those who can handle it. At 29,000 square feet, Hollywood Skate Park is no vacant lot. Prepare for a lot of curving obstacles as well, from arching rails to parabolic stairs and pool lips.
Hollywood is only about 18 minutes straight east of the city center and 20 minutes from The Strip. It's raw Nevada tumbleweeds and cobble as far as the eye can see, and the park is set well off from the road. All in all, it's a great spot to get some air and test your skills.
Open Times, Rules, and Fees
Hollywood Skate Park is open from 2:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Monday through Friday so consider making other plans for the morning. Saturday is an exception, when it's open from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. On Sundays, the park is closed. The entry fee is $1 per skater per day, or you can opt for a $15 one-month pass for full access. The park has evening lighting (tip: stay late and shoot a pic of the city and horizon).
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2. Doc Romeo Park
Beginner-friendly but no pushover, Doc Romeo Park offers playgrounds, baseball and softball fields, and the sizable skateboard park. It's a nice area to look at, with a lot of wild desert plants maintained cleanly around concrete pathways. At the park itself, you'll find huge quarter pipes and bowls, plus some big transition lines. If riding street is more your speed, there are several rail ledges and fly boxes, plus a long downhill sidewalk with low-ground rails placed throughout.
The park is popular with BMX riders as well as skaters, so don't be surprised to see some air tables on the ramps. The park, on the whole, is nice to walk through, and the area is jam-packed with other great nature and city parks to check out, many with their own skateboarding sections.
Open Times, Rules, and Fees
Doc Romeo Park charges no entry fee and is open from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. seven days a week. As for safety gear, helmets are required.
3. Anthem Skatepark
You will have to take a 10-minute trip south of McCarran Airport to reach this park, but for those chaperoning little Tony Hawks in the making, Anthem Skatepark is a good fit. Large but roomy with its obstacle positioning, moving around in Anthem is comfortable. The big flow is awesomely spacious, like sinking into another world. Many visitors come back for its left-hand kidney bowl, steep transitions, and other features that give an equal chance to perfect your balance and pull off a trick.
Don't take Anthem's accessibility as a dig against its value. Its size and variety easily make it a top contender among Las Vegas skateparks. Full of everything you might need but not too dangerous, Anthem makes for an awesome beginner-to-intermediate park where you could spend all day polishing your skills. You can even ride out the night thanks to the park's extensive lights, which only turn on at closing time.
Open Times, Rules, and Fees
Anthem SkatePark is open from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. seven days a week and charges no entry fee. Helmets and general safety gear are required.
4. Desert Breeze Park
This 240-acre facility, largely undeveloped, is known for Tony Hawk visiting and tearing it up with the locals. This park is awesomely designed, with sections for beginners, and intermediate to advanced riders as well. Relax on the benches under shaded pavilions when you need a break, get some water at the fountains, or skate into the night thanks to the extensive evening lights.
Desert Breeze is popular for much more than its skateboard area, mainly the basketball courts, separated dog park, and walking trails. With such a lush and well-kept area, it's hard to believe you're in the deserts of Nevada.
Open Times, Rules, and Fees
Desert Breeze Park charges no entry fee and is open from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. seven days a week.
5. Craig Ranch Skatepark
A newer establishment north of the Neon Capital is Craig Ranch Regional Park. Twenty minutes from The Strip and 10 from the city center, this monster has few competitors in the states. Explore this 65,000-square-foot concrete park, and you can test your friends and rivals on one of two pool bowls, a flow bowl, a half-pipe, and plenty of square rails. Several areas, including a large plaza, are shaded to offer a nice break from the Nevada sun.
Considering this park's size and its intense congestion of features and obstacles, you may want to hold off if you're brand new. It can be a lot to soak in. Definitely stretch and warm up before you take on the bigger stuff.
If you were envisioning some massive skate paradise concealed by thirty acres of spiky Nevada desert, you'd be half-right. While mostly surrounded in natural terrain, the park is also set right by the 573, making it convenient for some but distracting for others. But apart from that single shortcoming (and another round rail or two would be sweet), this is an easy first choice for skate parks to visit in Las Vegas. Or, save it for last and end your journey with a bang.
Open Times, Rules, and Fees
Craig Ranch Skate Park is open from 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday and closes at 10:00 p.m. on weekends. The connected park opens at 6:00, so you're free to visit early and possibly enjoy a hike or cool photo spot before hitting up the rails. Access to Craig Ranch Regional Park is free. Bikes are allowed.
Skating is about getting away from it all and focusing on a creative, perseverance-driven sport. It's great to see the parks on offer at Las Vegas, a city associated more with sitting at a table than kickflipping over it. These five hot skateboarding parks prove that Vegas is a worthwhile alternative skate trip destination.
