I had stayed at Vdara several times (years ago), not long after its opening in 2009, and I remember being very impressed. One time, I was even given a massive City Corner Suite upgrade.
Since then, I’ve moved on to the Delano Las Vegas and Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas in terms of my favorite non-gaming Las Vegas hotels.
So when I recently got an M Life offer for a room at Vdara for $82 bucks, I jumped at the chance.
But was Vdara as good as I remembered?
Review: VDara Hotel & Spa (Las Vegas, Nevada)
Editor’s Note: This review is part of my ongoing travel series on Las Vegas. Click here for more reviews on Las Vegas Hotels and more on Hiking Las Vegas.
About Vdara Hotel & Spa
Vdara is an M Life branded, all-suite, non-gaming hotel in the City Center area of Las Vegas.
Sharing a close proximity to ARIA, Vdara is a Hyatt Category 5 hotel, redeemable for 20,000 World of Hyatt points.
The Check-In
The check-in was quick and efficient.
I was recognized for my World of Hyatt status and told I’d be given an “upgrade” to a “larger room”.
The Hallway
The “Upgraded” Room
Well, it’s kinda sad what’s considered an “upgrade” in Las Vegas these days.
Turns out, I was “upgraded” from my Studio room to a “larger room” that was actually a Studio Accessible room.
This is the room I got “upgraded” to, the Studio Accessible room:
This is the room I should have gotten, the Studio room:
The Studio Accessible Room
So the “upgrade” wasn’t really an upgrade.
But the room was at least clean, right? Wrong.
This room was dusty, grimy, and dirty. If it had been cleaned, it had definitely been “cleaned” half-heartedly.
There were fingerprints on the glasses on the table, oily-hand smudges on the wooden surfaces, and streaks on the glass on the nightstands (see the pictures below).
Oily smudges on the wood by the TV
Streaks and dust on the lower-right edge of the nightstand
The room artwork
The Dining Table
The Kitchen
One good thing about Vdara is its kitchens.
The kitchen was large and came with a sink, a small electric oven, extra storage space, and 2 mini-refrigerators (one a stocked mini-bar, the other empty).
Chips on the lower cabinet
Extra storage space
The Bathroom
On the other hand, the bathroom was [thankfully] very clean if not a bit awkward – with two showers across from each other (although one did double as an accessible bathtub).
Otherwise, the bathroom was well-lit, smartly designed, and came with the VIVE Skincare line of toiletries.
Shower #1
Shower #2
The View From The Room
The view from one of the windows was amazing, the view from the other was amazingly dirty.
The “amazing view window”
Call me crazy, but I think this window could use a good cleanin’
The ARIA Express Tramway Station At VDARA
The Check-Out
Check-out was quick and easy, but I would like to point something out.
The $82 dollar-a-night “M Life promotional rate” room I booked (=$164), ended up costing me more than double that for a total of $369.60.
Yes, the breakfasts from [the excellent] Burger Lounge and Pressed Juicery added up (to $95.22), but the hotel still ended up costing $274.38 after all the taxes and resort fees (and resort fee taxes!) were added in.
Vegas ain’t cheap, even when it’s on “sale”. That’s why I usually use points, free nights, or the FHR or LHRC programs when I “do Vegas”.
How $82 a night (for 2 nights) magically turns into $369.60 in Las Vegas
The Bottom-Line Review: VDara Hotel & Spa (Las Vegas, Nevada)
I was not pleased with this stay. The cleanliness (or should I say, “uncleanliness”) of the room was a major issue that I just couldn’t get past.
I would have changed rooms for sure had I not been using it solely as a “homebase” for sleep purposes only.
To be fair, I’ve had some incredibly awesome stays here before with some amazing upgrades, so I know Vdara could be great if it wanted to be.
Unfortunately for me, it was not great on this most-recent stay, and that concerns me.
Final Rating: 4.5/10 – An “accessible room” is not an upgrade, and a dirty, grimy room is just plain unacceptable.
