Review of Vdara Hotel, Las Vegas, NV (Nevada): Pros and Cons

 

Vdara Hotel, Las Vegas (entrance area)

My wife and I had visited Las Vegas on numerous occasions.  I had visited five times while my wife had visited three times, up until the last trip.  When we decided to go on a vacation, we again decided Las Vegas was the right destination for the both of us.

Las Vegas is a desert oasis that is home to nearly 2.7 million people.  Over 45 million visitors have stopped over at Las Vegas in 2019.  It is the most exciting city west of New York City, and it certainly earns its moniker of ‘Entertainment Capital of the World’!

I started going to Las Vegas in 2001 when COMDEX trade shows were still being held at the Las Vegas Convention Center.  This was right after 9/11 happened. COMDEX was held in November of that same year.

I remember going to the airport with trepidation and worry.  New York City was still reeling from the aftermath of 9/11.  There were still cleanups going around downtown Manhattan.   From our apartment building in Queens, NY, we could see smoke coming up from the ruins of the World Trade Center.

Against this backdrop, I had to go to Las Vegas merely 2 months after 9/11, on business.  The airport security was super tense.  Every flyer was scrutinized for any suspicious bags, liquids, or weapons.

Everyone who was flying displayed signs of nervous energy and anxiety.  It was as if everyone was sizing each other up to make sure each looked ok...

I arrived, for the very first time, to the city of lights (and the city that never sleeps!), that is Las Vegas.  I was glad I had made it safely.  I checked in at the Bally’s Hotel and Casino and had dinner.  I walked around the Strip (Las Vegas Boulevard) with my work colleague, who was showing me around.  It was like his 10th trip to Las Vegas.

The first impression I got was how busy the streets were.  There were vendors, visitors, locals, and performers doing their own thing.  It reminded me of Times Square in New York City.

I had a great time at Las Vegas that first trip.  That good first impression would stay with me through my numerous trips to Vegas.

For this latest trip, we decided to stay at the Vdara Hotel on the Strip.  We chose Vdara because it was one of few hotels that didn’t have a casino.  Although I do gamble from time to time, we were changing it up this time.  We wanted to try a hotel that didn’t reek of smoke.

We parked our car at the Aria Hotel and Casino next door.  We found out the Vdara Hotel didn’t have its own self parking garage!  It does have valet parking, but we didn’t feel like waiting 30 minutes each time we needed to get our rental car out...

We walked what felt like a mile from the Aria parking lot to Vdara Hotel.  Unfortunately, there is no connected walkway from one to the other.  We had to walk through the casino, out the main entrance, then out to Vdara.

When we arrived at the Vdara Hotel, it was pretty late into the night.  We were exhausted from the flight and from walking with our luggage in tow!

We had originally booked a bigger studio room, but upon checking in, I had the idea to ask for an upgrade to this room.  The front desk agent recommended a one bedroom suite for about $40 extra per night.

Since we hadn’t gone anywhere the past 8 years or so, we decided to splurge and go for the upgrade.  Unbeknownst to us at the time, it wasn’t really just $40 per night upgrade, but rather more like $75 per night as there were other fees and taxes that got tacked on top of the original $40.

Well, we live and learn…

Once we checked into the hotel, we were incredibly happy with the cleanliness, the large space, and the additional bathroom.  At least the upgrade was worth that whopping extra per night...

The following morning, we ordered hotel room service as the hotel gave us $30 per night food/beverage credit.  We again, like suckers, splurged more than we should have.  The total bill came out to be around $75 for breakfast!  This was the result of fees on top of fees for room service:  delivery fee, taxes, gratuity, hotel room service fee, etc.

We’ll never do that again from that point on!



Pictures of our one bedroom suite at the Vdara Hotel

Here are our pros and cons with the Vdara Hotel:

Pros:

  • Clean hotel:  Age of the hotel has something to do with it.  Lobby area, elevators, and rooms are all top notch.  It befits a 4 1/2 to 5 star hotel rating.  
  • Rooms are nice sized and clean:  Furniture are all fairly new, appliances at our suite were practically never used.  House cleaning did a wonderful job of keeping things tidy each day.
  • Our one bedroom suite had full kitchen appliances:  We could buy dinners then bring leftovers to our hotel to reheat the next day.  Microwave oven and refrigerator were a godsend!  We ended up cooking home meals few times.
  • No casino:  Not having a casino means the hotel is quiet compared to all the hotels we previously stayed in.  No loud chatter at midnight, no hollering after one too many drinks, and no smoke!
  • No smoke:  Vdara not having a casino also means no smoking in the lobby!
  • Central location:  Vdara is right next to the Bellagio Hotel.  Location (minus the parking situation) is simply amazing.
  • Walk over to the Bellagio Hotel using indoor walkway:  Although the walkway is fairly long, at least it’s indoors.  Useful on a hot Las Vegas day.

Cons:

  • No self parking garage:  Prepare to walk what seems like a mile(!) to park your car at Aria Hotel then to walk over to Vdara.
  • Not enough dining options:  Vdara has one bar/restaurant inside the hotel and a market cafe.  You’ll need to go over to Aria Hotel for more options.
  • Pools (indoor and outdoor) were closed during our trip in April.  Be sure to check with the hotel to confirm pool openings...
  • Does not have any entertainment options at the hotel:  You’ll need to go over to other hotels like the Aria or the Bellagio for entertainment options.  
View of Las Vegas from our hotel room

As usual, we had a great time in Las Vegas.  We managed to visit natural wonders of Red Rock Canyon, Valley of Fire State Park, and Mt. Charleston, away from the hustle and bustle of the Strip.

We’re sure we’ll revisit Las Vegas once again in the future!  The city has something for everyone.  From non stop entertainment, 24/7 casinos, to natural attractions, Las Vegas has it all.  

We hope you enjoyed our pros and cons of the Vdara Hotel.  Thank you all for reading!


Jake

Wandering Money Pig 


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