9 ways to cool off in Las Vegas this summer

Temperatures are soaring. The entire valley has become a real-life game of The Floor Is Lava. And you’ve begun to question every decision that led to you living in the desert. We’re here to help. Here are nine ways to cool off in the valley this summer:

Cheap movies

You can generally count on movie theaters to be among the coldest places in Las Vegas. Regardless of the temperature outside, someone in your auditorium will invariably reach for a sweater. Lean into that this summer — and save some money in the process — with weekday screenings of movies for kids and families at discounted rates of $1 to $3.

Here’s a list of those programs, along with the participating theaters that have recliners so you may even be able to kick back for a nap. Cinemark Summer Movie Clubhouse: Orleans, Santa Fe and Suncoast; Regal Summer Movie Express: Red Rock and Sunset Station; Galaxy Summer Fest: Boulevard, Cannery and Green Valley; and AMC’s Summer Movie Camp: Rainbow Promenade.

Dive-in Movies

If movie theaters aren’t your thing, hotel pools around the valley have summer screening series.

The Dive In Movies series at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas shows movies on the hotel’s 65-foot digital marquee on Mondays through Sept. 1.

Admission is $15 for non-hotel guests, $10 for Las Vegas locals with valid ID and free for hotel guests with a valid room key, MGM Rewards Gold tier members and above, and military members and first responders with valid ID.

Oasis Cinema Club at Fontainebleau Las Vegas shows movies on Thursday and Sunday evenings through Sept. 5. Admission is free for Fontainebleau Rewards members, hotel guests with a valid room key and children 5 and younger. Admission is $10 for everyone else.

Flicks Float at Silverton presents movies on a 36-foot screen at The Swimmin’ Hole on Tuesdays through Aug. 26.

Admission is free for hotel guests and anyone with a locals day pass that starts at $15.

And Dive-In Movie Nights at the M Resort has movies on the hotel’s new 800-square-foot LED screen every other Friday evening through Sept. 5. Admission is $10 per person.

minus5° Ice Experience

With more than 90 tons of ice, everything inside these attractions is made of the frozen stuff, from the walls to the seats and from the sculptures to the glasses in which drinks are served. The temperature at all three locations — the Linq Promenade, Grand Canal Shoppes at The Venetian and the Shoppes at Mandalay Place — is kept at minus-5 degrees Celsius, or 23 degrees Fahrenheit. Adult admission starts at $24, and there’s no time limit. “Most guests usually spend 30-45 minutes inside the ice experience,” the minus5° FAQ page states, “but you are welcome to keep the party going as long as you like.” That sounds like a challenge.

Ice rinks

You don’t have to skate at City National Arena, America First Center, Hylo Park Arena (formerly the ice rink at Fiesta Rancho) or the Las Vegas Ice Center. Be a spectator. Maybe even find a youth hockey or beer league team to cheer for until the pros return in the fall.

Area15

The word “cool” applies more to the vibe here than the temperature. But with all the experiences ranging from virtual reality and simulators to ax throwing and however you’d describe Omega Mart, you could spend hours — days even — here in all its air-conditioned glory.

Lee Canyon

The mountain resort boasts temperatures that are roughly 30 degrees cooler than Las Vegas. While you’re up there in the summer, you can mountain bike, practice yoga, ride the scenic chair lifts, play nine or 18 holes of disc golf or just get something to eat and/or drink while taking in the scenery.

Sportsbooks

Some of the best days are spent lazily watching sports. Any sport at all. Why not do that while someone else foots the A/C bill? Your neighborhood sportsbook is perfectly suitable. For pure comfort, though, it’s hard to beat the Westgate SuperBook and its plush leather seats.

Cryotherapy

We’re not familiar enough with cryotherapy to vouch for its health benefits. But Frost Fit, 8665 S. Eastern Ave., promises minus-110-degree Celsius cryotherapy (that’s minus-166 degrees Fahrenheit) that will lower your skin temperature by 30 to 45 degrees Fahrenheit.

Sam’s Club

You know the warehouse store for its member-exclusive pricing and its 20-gallon drums of mayonnaise. But are you familiar with the produce room and the dairy room? That’s two separate chances each visit to step inside a walk-in cooler and be hit with an Arctic blast so cold, it could freeze your brain from the outside in.

Contact Christopher Lawrence at clawrence@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4567.