Unlikely Vegas visitor TR (Vdara, mid Aug, too wordy)

I’ve kept wavering on whether to post this, because I’m an atypical Vegas traveler (based on the usual chatter and trip reports here). And my reasoning for visiting Vegas at this particularly … weird … time will probably sound pretty iffy to most people.

But … I’ve picked up some various info and random observations that people may be interested in, so heck with it.

What won’t be in here: pictures of booze, food, or gaming machines. I don’t drink (my body doesn’t like it, like really doesn’t like it, and I’m jealous of every television character knocking back of a bottle of wine per episode and shrugging it off), and my gambling experience consists mostly of cruise ship slot machines. (See: atypical Vegas traveler.) I'm too busy eating food to photograph it.

So, why am I staying in the most touristy part of the Vegas strip? One word: Vdara. Why Vdara? Because I desperately needed the option of TOTAL solitude during this first vacation in 18 months (scratch that: two years and change. July 2019, Bermuda), and Vdara having a kitchenette and an in-room washer/dryer (I have hyperhydrosis, fancy talk for “sweat a lot and don’t like to re-wear clothes or pack heavy”) was what pushed it over the edge. YES, I could have gotten an airbnb somewhere with those things, or stayed in a Residence Inn in Anytown, or whatever, but I also wanted to feel like I was on vacation, with a ridiculously large bathroom and robes and two televisions and all that.

Plus: while I like solitude when I’m on solo trips, I also like the option of going out and watching people bustling around, and the option of having fantastic, overpriced food. And if things were a bit different, I would have also liked the option of something like hitting up a Cirque show (or maybe the RuPaul drag thing I saw a billboard for?). So certain aspects of Vegas do attract me. I just also like having a self-contained suite to retreat to.

I’ve been to Vegas once before, back in 2016. I stayed at Aria back then, and liked it well enough, but found it huge, and the food to be very expensive (considering the relatively inexpensive room, at the time. I think I had some MyVegas promotional rate).

I landed yesterday, and my first thought was that I hadn’t realized how big LAS is. I would have been on SWA in 2016, whereas this time I was on Delta, and I definitely don’t remember having to ride a tram from a distant terminal. I was pretty excited to see mountains, though. The airport felt extremely crowded (with arrivals); I felt even more cramped by people than I had during my layover in ATL. So yeah: tourists still coming.

The wait for the car rental shuttle was probably about 15 minutes but felt like forever due to the afternoon heat and inadequate shade. I like having a car in a town like this, but I will do something different next time to get one. Traffic was completely tolerable, although I’ve noticed (and again, this morning) that any GPS app I tried, including Waze, seems to get very easily confused here. Valet drop off at Vdara was pretty painless, although no one was interested in helping me unload my suitcases. Which, okay, meant there was no one to hand a tip to. So it goes. Check in line was so short I don’t remember it. (At 3pm, no less.) I only lined up because so far the app wouldn’t cop to my room being available and I figured I’d see if one magically became available if I presented myself in person. (It did.)

I have a City Corner Suite, and it’s slightly worse for wear with one big carpet stain (in a corner), but nowhere near as bad as the typical one-star-review photos you’ll see. Bed is getting on and could use a new mattress, but it’s fine. Fridge, freezer, ice maker (once I flipped it on), dishwasher, clothes washer, microwave, etc all work. The dryer isn’t drying very well (clothes get hot but not dry). Apparently these are ventless dryers, please don’t ask me to explain, but after some googling I’m just going to call the front desk tomorrow and see if someone can poke it/unclog it/whatever. Worst case, I can open one of the blackout shades and let my clothes get vaporized by the afternoon sun. (Suite overlooks the pool.) Wifi is good, no problems plugging my FireTV stick into the bedroom TV (the sitting area has a media port, but the bedroom does not). (Yes, I am watching Netflix in my hotel room on my vacation. It’s my vacation.)

Dinner was a salad (meh) and a chocolate croissant from the market cafe thing downstairs. The croissants obviously come from the Aria Patisserie, and made me less sad about the fact that I was eating something that claimed to be a ‘Cobb’ salad but which had no avocado, egg, or blue cheese … but did contain chickpeas. The rest of the night was spent unpacking, poking all the appliances to see if they worked, and desperately trying to stay awake (not just jet-lag but my body has been trying to force me into an appallingly early sleeping schedule on east coast time as it is). And trying out the huge tub. (Huge tub + croissant = signals to my body that vacation is happening.) I’ve recently been learning yoga, so I brought some yoga stuff (a lightweight mat and blocks), and set up the sitting room as my yoga area. Also going to check out the gym this week and see how the crowd/cleanliness situations look.

(I’ve managed to lose 10 pandemic pounds in the last few months, and would rather not lose all that ground in one week, which my body would absolutely do.)

(Yes I know it would mostly be water weight.)

Actually, if I’m being honest, I’ve become one of those pandemic Peloton weirdos, and I’m temped to walk to Bellagio and check out their gym because they supposedly have Peloton bikes, but it’s unclear to me whether I could even access that gym. Anyway, a lot of days lately I am too stressed out/exhausted at the end of the workday to exercise, so the freedom to work out whenever I want is another nice aspect of this vacation.

All this said, you’ll be happy to know I had a giant truffle burger from Posh Burger for lunch today. ($16, I’m going to grudgingly say it was worth it. Strip mall burger restaurants in my mid-sized home metro are happy charging $14-$15 ish for much smaller burgers, although you usually get a side dish. But this burger was huge/double patty, and I’m still pretty full many hours later.)

Early this morning, I got my car from valet. Maybe 6-7 minute wait? At that? Don’t bother trying to call down, just go down and scan your stub at the valet machines, then go back inside and wait in the a/c until you see it. Anyway, very quick service but it was early, 7ish. I was awake and wanted to do stuff, but nothing I wanted opened until 8am, so I drove out to Henderson for those things (Target and Trader Joes, for room supplies and snacks). Spent a little while in a Panera killing some more time. That area of Henderson felt bizarrely empty, not sure how else to describe it, but everyone I interacted with was very, very friendly. Made me realize how aggro people are in my state right now, or at least the places I usually shop. I also hit up a dispensary near the TJs and grabbed a few things, mostly for the spouse. Essence, they were also very nice. Cash only, ATM inside. Cop or security guard with pink hair opening the door. My first dispensary ever, so I guess it was novel. I acted like an uncool dork who had never been in a dispensary.

Traffic remained unremarkable, even though I was supposedly driving in Monday rush hour. GPS apps all continued to suck, even in Henderson. (I’m used to my car’s built in nav, so it was weird. Waze used to be fine? Is it just Las Vegas?) Google Maps couldn’t even figure out where I was, when I was in the middle of a generic strip mall area. Anyway.

Back at hotel: unloaded my loot, realized I still hard energy to burn, walked to Aria, walked through to Park MGM. Crowds seem light to medium (but again: weekday morning). Most lines are for, hilariously, you guessed it, Starbucks. Walked right up to mlife desk on Aria floor to get a new card. She found my old account from 2016 and merged it with my new one. I now have “Pearl” status, but I’m not sure if that’s from the 2016 losses, or just the new trip. (I thought status was something you had to maintain year over year.)

Aria and especially Park MGM: lots and lots of closed restaurants, stores, etc. Posh got my business through actually being open and being willing to sell me a burger at 10:30am since my stomach was still on east coast time. (Moneyline was still on seated-only breakfast menu.)

Back at the room: I was skeptical about housekeeping actually showing up (because staffing issues; hotels all over the country are not offering daily housekeeping, even at $300/night hotels). A super nice room attendant did show up. I just asked her to take the trash and trade me for new towels.

Side note: tipping. I feel like I’ve lost my handle on tipping during travel since pre-pandemic. I had the usual ‘cash is king’ kind of thing, and I’m probably a middle of the road tipper. This time around, basically everyone I’ve handed money to, from the skycap guy at my home airport, to the valet dudes, to housekeeping, has acted … bemused? Confused? bored? … Have the tipping rules changed? Am I not tipping enough? A guy who brought some supplies to my room late yesterday afternoon said he had no change for my $20 because no one had tipped him yet that day. (I don’t know if I was getting conned or if he’d just come on shift, but don’t tip workers usually carry cash on them for this?) The valet stub machine lets you tip there with a card. I asked the valet guy who brought my car up if they’d prefer cash, and asked if they actually get the tips from the kiosk, and he just seemed … whatever, like why was I asking him this tedious question. So uh, yeah, I don’t know. Did the whole landscape shift and I am now insulting them with tips? Are we England? (Is that even still true in England?)

Unsolved Mysteries: Vdara pool, which was hopping when I arrived yesterday afternoon, has been (checks) 100% empty all day, or at least every time I’ve looked. Closed for some other reason? Hotel just empty right now? Vdara death ray? No idea. (Edit: apparently it’s closed during the week and google doesn’t know it.)

Food: I do have some tentative dining reservations but I may fold. (Momofuku, Best Friend, Bardot.) We’ll see. Some of the crowding is still weirding me out, at least in casino floor chokepoints.

(Would be interested in: “Momofuku v Best Friend: which one would you cancel?”)

Overall, I’ve been happy enough with the accommodations and my ability to unwind (for the first time since, like, March 2020) that I extended my stay by one day, even though it meant paying Friday night rates. Got a miles refund for moving my flight date though.

Can answer any general questions about Vdara, stuff I've mentioned, or general situation on the ground at the moment.

Oh, smoke haze seems to be gone. Temps back up.

Edit: Oh, for science: My MiL is a healthcare worker at a private practice that got a ridiculous amount of Abbott BinaxNOW quick test kits, and she gave me some, so I will test myself towards the end of the trip. Will report back. Of course, if I test positive, I'll need to stay here and quarantine. Or whatever the hotel guidelines are. I have no idea. Didn't think that part through. At the very least, I can say I won't get on a plane with a positive test result. (I am vaxxed fwiw.)

 

Love it.

Enjoy the vacation!

 

thess thanks for sharing your trip with us and info so far. Re: reservations - if you don’t feel comfortable dining out, just get take out from the restaurants you mentioned. Enjoy your vacation. It reminds me of Sinatra’s song “I did it my way” I love going on vacations and making them any way I want. Look forward to more about your trip.

 

Thanks for sharing!

 

Good luck and safe travels. Enjoy the solo trip. I always enjoy them as well.

 

Enjoy the solo time!

Curious about the pool closure during the week. Do you think it’s staffing? Do you have access to the Aria pool since it’s closed? I’ll likely be there in the Spring.

Henderson sounds very peaceful!

 

I can’t think of any other reason the pool would be closed than staffing, no. But yes, you can use the Aria pool:

https://vdara.mgmresorts.com/en/amenities/pool-and-cabanas-vdara.html

 

Love your writing style

 

Welp, the time zone/sleep thing got me and I was out by about 9pm. Woke up at around 4:45 am (gross). Checked fitness center schedules. Had myself convinced Vdara’s was 24 hours now. Lol, no. 8am. Aria’s opens at 7. Until I walked it yesterday, I still didn’t believe just how close/short a walk it is to Aria (I was looking at the big traffic circle from my room, and not seeing the ped walkway). So going to very slowly make my way over there, and kill some time looking around and maybe lose some money before the gym opens. Can’t find any reliable info on whether the Aria fitness center has towels or water or anything, so will have to schlep some stuff over.

… actually, I just called (pro-tip, the 866 number routes you to a customer service line that doesn’t open until 7; call the 702 number instead). The rep I spoke to said Vdara guests can’t use the Aria gym since the Vdara gym is operational. I mentioned the operating hours difference but she was dubious about my chances of getting in. Weird. Reconsidering plans.

 

Ended up doing some warmup in the room, then went down to the front desk to put in a maintenance request for the dryer. (They don’t answer any of the phone lines, just don’t bother. I tried the in-room phone, and a 702 number from the website. When I got down there there were no customers at the front desk, so not sure where the calls are being routed.) Then went to check out the Vdara gym. I knew it was going to be small, but didn’t realize how small. Basically a bunch of treadmills, one elliptical, and one sad recumbent bike. Some free weights but not a lot of space to use them. I noped out of there (I really wanted a spin/upright bike), back to the room. Maintenance guy was there (turns out he’s also the main IT guy. I’m IT so we did the usual IT chat, making fun of users and our bosses). He said what I expected: ventless dryers suck. Advised me increase the spin speed on the washer to get more water out and then just … wait for hours for the dryer to eventually dry stuff. At least I mostly brought cheap clothes. ‘It’s fine.’

After that I decided to try social engineering 101, “wherever you are, act like you belong there”, and walked over to the Aria gym. The doors are propped open. You’re technically supposed to check in with your card at the front desk (about 10’ inside the gym itself), but I kind of swerved around that desk and asked a gym attendant about lockers. So, uh, yeah. He super nicely helped me with the locker/water/towel situation and then I got on a spin bike. I’d like to think I could have sweet talked my way into them letting me use the gym anyway (“guys, have you seen the Vdara gym? Woof.”) but maybe not. Gym was about 30% full, maybe. Weird setup with no locker rooms or restrooms nearby, but water and towels and antibacterial wipes available. And lockers. I’m not sure I’ll try this again, we’ll see how the week goes. (Unfortunately I’m reaching the age where, as a woman, if you get too … self-confident? or ask for too much? … the kids just think of you as “Karen”, and my sense of humor is hit or miss with hospitality folks. You have to have really good delivery to say “Can I speak to your manager?” and have them realize you’re kidding.)

Long lines at Starbucks. So glad I brought my travel kettle. (Although walking past the second floor Starbucks at Aria, I realized the line was just as long there in 2016. Eh.)

There is some kind of basketball thing happening, and some of the players are staying here. Or there is an Extremely Tall Person convention happening. (I don’t know anything about sports, sorry, but there’s a definite basketball vibe, NBA logos on some clothes, etc.) Have seen them over at Aria too, but a couple guys were coming out of the Vdara elevators this morning with suitcases.

Next plan is to try the Cosmo “secret route” from Vdara, look around a little, then lunch at Momofuku.

 

Cosmo tip: don’t let the ropers at the skin care store by the food court hand you anything. Woman said “hand sanitizer”, I took it, next thing I know I’m getting the most hilariously aggravating hard sell by a dude who wants me to spend $200 for some magic product for my “puffy, baggy eyes” (thanks bro). I usually evade this kind of situation with no problem, but they caught me off guard. I couldn’t stop laughing because it was so awkward and cringey, guy was trying every sales tactic he could think of (“today is my last day”) and I finally just had to walk away. As I was leaving he was like “is it because of the money?”. I wished him good luck.

So yeah. Stay away from that store. Skin 6.2 or something.

 

I so want to go screw with this same guy now!

 

Be sure you find the “miracle phone charger” guy in the Miracle Mile shops. Had an answer for everything I came up with to avoid. According to him, these phone Chargers are “life changing.” My favorite one was this:

“Sorry man, I’m on my way to grab some lunch..”
“Oh but sir, your awesome phone needs to eat TOO!”

 

You’ve got to hurry, today is his last day. Tomorrow he gets on a plane to Canada to sell the product somewhere else. Fernando. He’s from Spain. Tell him the giggling woman sent you.

 

Following along.

 

In Vegas, try using Tess instead of Thess

 

Lol this is great. I love how you write.

 

Ventless dryers aren’t that bad, especially when you live in NYC and actually have a w/d in your apartment. The secret to them is that they need ventilation to work, if it’s in a closet or other closed space, you need to leave the door open so it can vent out the hot air. If you leave it closed, the hot, moist air will just recirculate into the dryer and it’ll take hours to dry anything.

 

Unfortunately, Fernando kind of set the tone for the rest of my Cosmo experience. I was too hungry after working out to wait for my reservation, and with some regret, canceled Momofuku. I don’t know what Eggslut is, but there’s no way it’s worth the lines it had. (All the way around the corner, back all the way past the restrooms and then some.) Ended up eating a very overpriced cheesesteak (essentially, they called it something else) at Lardo, on slightly stale bread. I could have made better choices.

(I do see the difference in the Cosmo crowd that some people here allude to. It’s not exactly an age thing, but it’s something. Just a lot of “hey look at ME” folks.)

I got my Cosmo identity card, and then lost $20 to the first slot machine in less than a minute. So basically a reverse ATM. Only it works faster than an ATM. I obviously need to find “penny slots” or something, because I can’t afford the dollars per minute this form of entertainment costs.

I’m not trying to be a Debbie downer, but there’s a SIGNIFICANT sewage smell happening on the main floor of the Cosmo casino right now. (No, it isn’t weed. It’s a plumbing problem. I do know the difference.) So I headed back to Aria. Unfortunately, it was around this time that it occurred to me that I hadn’t seen a single slot machine (in any casino) being wiped down or anything like that. Aria had abandoned drinks left on machines. Staffing problems.

Ok, so look, I got norovirus on a trip once. After that, I’ve been fastidious about high-traffic touch surfaces, so this already would have grossed me out a little, way before 2020. (It was a really bad case of noro.) Looked around, also quite a few chin straps. Just got that queasy, bad-movie Vegas feeling. Bailed without donating to Aria. Might try again earlier in the morning.

(Side note there: even since before the pandemic, I always caught colds on flights, which sucked. I started using this UK product called First Defence (it’s made by Vicks, I don’t know why it isn’t sold in the US). It’s basically a gel you snort that’s supposed to make it harder for viruses to reproduce your sinuses. I snort it about once per hour during flights or in (post 2020) crowds. Haven’t had a bad cold since 2018. Fingers crossed.)

Tomorrow is getting the car out of valet and driving around some more. I just get a kick out of seeing such a different skyline and scenery from my home state. Might check out Planet 13 or Nuwu for novelty’s sake, and some off-strip non-chain food. Tonight I’m staying in and watching Netflix and eating fettuccine from Trader Joe’s.

 

Coincidentally, I did this today — the W/D at Vdara are in tiny closets, so I figured that the door being open could only help. It did seem that stuff got a bit dryer. Thanks.