After a business trip to Kansas City, a few extra days at the nearby Legends at Village West and the surrounding western Kansas City, Kansas area, can provide a fun filled family vacation.
Stop overnight while on a road trip along I-70. This former residential, prairie, and farmland area has been transformed into a recreational playground. The Legends at Village West opened in 2006 as an open air shopping, dining and recreational area.
Recreation and Dining
There is plenty of year round entertainment in the area. Winter can be considerably cold, and late summer days can be very warm and humid. However there is a great variety of activity indoors and outdoors to comply with the weather.
- The Legends 14 Theatre sits in the center of the complex, with an adults-only balcony area with servers and a full service bar, and features an 87 foot wide screen auditorium with 500 seats. An enormous, decorative fountain sits in front of the theatre where many shoppers rest and relax. Several other Kansas themed fountains adorn the area.
- For kids and adult fun, there is a dinosaur themed restaurant, T-Rex Cafe, designed by the makers of Rainforest Café. Guests can take pleasure in Dave & Buster's for arcade fun, or try Pin-Up Bowl for a lively bowling experience with a trendy lounge. There are a large variety of restaurants and bars to choose from to suit everyone's taste.
- Shopping is plentiful from small shops to department stores.
- During the summer, concerts are held on Saturday afternoons.
- Across from the Legends shopping area, is the Kansas Speedway, presenting Nascar Racing in the spring and fall, with other events during the year. There are sports travel packages available including hotel and race tickets.
- Community America Ballpark is the home of the T-Bones, a Northern League baseball team that provides family fun mixed with a day of baseball.
- The Schlitterbahn Vacation Village is the new water park in the area with all sorts of water fun. A future water-park hotel is planned, Treehaus Resort. Reservations are not yet accepted.
- More shopping is available for the sports and outdoor enthusiasts at the massive Cabela's retail store.
- Nebraska Furniture Mart, a mega superstore, sells furniture, electronics, flooring and all sorts of fun gadgets, next to Legend's shopping.
- Take in a concert at Capitol Federal Park at Sandstone.
- The National Agriculture Center and Hall of Fame is minutes away full of farming history.
- Sunflower Hill Golf Course for a round of golf in Bonner Springs, KS, is a fifteen minute drive.
Where to Stay
Several hotels are now available in the area including Holiday Inn Express, Country Inn and Suites, Candlewood Suites and Hampton Inn. Great Wolf Lodge is a resort featuring a huge indoor water park, while the guest rooms are designed with a north woods cabin theme. Alternately, Chateau Avalon offers themed suites, great for an anniversary or a unique getaway.Some hotels offer weekend packages with special rates and features throughout the year.
Location
The Village West area is easily located about twenty minutes south of Kansas City International Airport, south on I-435. The Parallel and State Avenue exits will direct you to all establishments, most being on the west side of I-435. Alternately, from I-70, take the I-435 North exit and take the Parallel and State Avenue exits, about eleven miles west of Kansas City, Missouri.
Future Plans
Soccer fans will enjoy the Kansas City Wizards Stadium now under construction. Work will begin constructing the Hollywood Casino in summer 2010, and expects to open January 1, 2012. The casino will include table games, slots, nightclub, bars, and a spa. Plans also include a Sprint Nascar race for 2011, and a Grand-am sports car road course at Kansas Speedway.