Las Vegas: Ladies-Only Shooting Range with Pickup & Video

4.96

(48 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

First thing I noticed was the smell — that sharp, metallic tang you only get at a real shooting range. We’d barely stepped out of the shuttle (which picked us up right from our hotel on the Strip, by the way) before someone handed us ear protection and a safety briefing. Our instructor, Maria, had this easy confidence about her; she cracked a joke about the “Pink M4” being her favorite, and honestly, I believed her. The place buzzed with energy but didn’t feel intimidating — more like a group of friends trying something new together.

I’d never held a Glock 17 before. It felt heavier than I expected, cold and solid in my hands. Maria stood close by, showing me how to line up the sights and reminding me to breathe (I kept forgetting). The first shot was loud — like, chest-thumping loud — but after that? Weirdly satisfying. There was this moment when I caught myself grinning at nothing after hitting the target dead center. Someone behind me cheered; I think it was one of the other women in our group. Or maybe it was Maria again.

The MP5 was next, then the Pink M4 — which looked almost too pretty to be real until you actually fired it. My hands shook a little after each round, but not from nerves anymore. More like adrenaline or pride or both? Hard to say. They filmed us during the session (included in the package), so now there’s actual proof I didn’t totally embarrass myself. At some point I tried to make small talk about Vegas weather with Maria while reloading magazines — she just laughed and said she’d take desert heat over city traffic any day.

I still think about that feeling as we left: ears ringing slightly, hands smelling faintly of gunpowder, everyone swapping stories on the ride back to our hotels. It wasn’t what I expected from a day trip in Las Vegas — more personal somehow, like we’d all done something brave together without making a big deal out of it.