Hotel Review: The Vdara Hotel Las Vegas

Picking a location for our Las Vegas trip was no easy fete; there are tons of options on and off The Strip. So, when we stumbled on a great deal for The Vdara Hotel and Spa, we knew we were all set!

 

American Airlines Vacations

While we often fly American Airlines and have an AAdvantage card, we never really considered booking a trip through American Airlines Vacations. To be honest, just never thought about using them or that they offered packages.

We stumbled onto several offers that included airfare to Las Vegas and accommodations at amazingly affordable prices. It even gave us options to upgrade seats and hotel rooms that didn’t break the bank.

Choosing Our Hotel

In looking at Las Vegas hotels, we looked at lots of options. We knew that Las Vegas still had many mask mandates in place. But, we also knew that we wanted to be able to distance ourselves from being surrounded by large crowds the entire week.

The Vdara, an MGM Resorts property, is actually not ON The Strip; it technically sits on West Harmon Avenue, overlooking The Strip. It’s tucked between the Bellagio and Aria hotels. So, while it is connected to the other two hotels and has easy access to The Strip, it doesn’t have a lot of Strip traffic.

Originally designed as a residential property, it is an All-Suite Hotel. It does not have a casino. It has a small café, a lobby bar, pool, fitness center, and spa. And guests also have availability to access amenities in the neighboring Aria Hotel.

For us, the affordability of the package, the location just off The Strip, and the fact that it’s a bit quieter checked many boxes.

A Fountain View Studio

As Chuck as never been to Las Vegas, Mark wanted him to make the most of this trip. The Vdara offers Fountain View Studios. These studios have panoramic views of the north end of The Strip overlooking the famous Bellagio Fountains.

Our view of the Bellagio Fountain from our room on the 52nd floor of the Vdara Hotel.

The studio includes a kitchenette with a small dining area, a separate sitting area, King size bed, and a luxurious bathroom with a shower and BIG soaking tub.

The room gave us lots of space to spread out and relax during our downtime. We may have bought some fizzy bath bombs while out shopping and taken advantage of a tub designed for guys over six feet tall.

We loved having a small refrigerator and a microwave for reheating leftovers. Due to COVID, there were no dishes, utensils, or cooking equipment in the room. However, housekeeping was happy to bring them up if we wanted them.

The choice of the Fountain View Studio was the perfect option for us. Staying for an entire week and spending a reasonable amount of time relaxing in the room, we enjoyed the space.

Everything Else

The Vdara staff could not have been friendlier. Check-in was quick and easy.

The bell staff was incredible. As it was our first Christmas away from home, Mark worked with a local florist to deliver a holiday arrangement to the hotel. It was there before we checked in, and we were told the bell staff would retrieve it from the cooler whenever we were settled. Mark walked down, and the team had everything in their system to retrieve it.

We used both taxis and Ubers during the trip, and the valet staff was friendly and very helpful in answering questions for us and making sure drivers knew where we were headed.

The Market Café Vdara was a place we frequented on and off during the week. Sometimes Mark would get morning coffee there, occasionally a quick breakfast sandwich or pastry, and a few times a late-night snack. They have a decent selection of items – just remember it’s Vegas, and nothing is cheap.

There was also a Starbucks at one end of the lobby. They had very odd hours. It was open some days, with huge lines, and then closed the next day. It might have been a staffing issue or just opening for the holiday.

The other thing we loved is that we could walk out the front door and into the Aria Hotel using the walkway and a short walk down a hallway from the lobby into the Bellagio. We could grab a free tram that stopped at The Shops at Crystals and on to the Park MGM, giving us access to a lot of the south end of the strip.

Overall for the price, location, and service, we love the Vdara, and the Fountain View Studio is awesome!

PS, About Those Flowers

At the recommendation of some local friends in the industry, Mark used Tiger Lily to order holiday flowers for the room. The ordering process was easy, the flowers were beautiful, and they lasted all week!