Just left the lovely Virgin Las Vegas. I loved it. The room was fabulous, the staff was great, and the food was pretty good.
Arrived late-ish to an empty check-in line; because of this, I have no idea if there's a 'cheat' line for Diamonds--meant to look at other times but didn't. A very friendly gal, Summer, checked me in. I checked my reservation during my ride over from the airport, and the reservation still said "King Chamber", but Summer preempted any groveling or begging by outright saying, "Thanks for being a Diamond member, we've upgraded you to a suite". Okay then! Out went my scheming for a better room, didn't have to ask, didn't have to "$20 trick" it. Low-floor, with nothing higher available (unless I wanted a 'smaller room' [read: downgrade] according to Ms. Summer). Turns out it was to a corner suite, in the Ruby tower--I think a little bigger than what
Friendly Traveling Deathmerchant showed above...It also had a foyer, which didn't seem part of the layout they showed:
That spilled into the living room:
I didn't get a pic of it, but basically two giant TVs, butted up back-to-back, separated the living room from the bedroom (no closed-off door, I'd call this a Jr Suite at most other places--and that's not a complaint, just what I'd compare it to).
To the left of the bed was the bathroom. HUGE. Bigger than hotel rooms I've had in NYC or Hong Kong. Extremely deep and long tub, huge walk-in shower, the amenities were nice (Red Feather branded), toilet in a separate, closed-door 'water closet'.
The bed was very, very, very comfy. Memory foam-ish that I just kind of sunk into as I laid down. As was noted previously, plugs, USB outlets, Qi chargers everywhere. Didn't get in that big ol' fancy tub, but I did wish the shower's water pressure was a bit stronger--but I guess most places have low-flow these days anyway. My one complaint was the lighting. I tried for a few days and couldn't figure out how to turn on/off just ONE of the room's other lights. No switches that I could find (that worked, some were labeled for things but despite a master's degree and lots of life points, it was beyond me); I had to unplug one of the nightstand lights because that damn thing wouldn't turn off no matter what I did. There were buttons on the TV for the lighting, but again, nothing for the specific lights in the room--the 'master on/off' buttons were all over the suite. Clunky and over-complicated would be my choice of words to describe the lighting. Unremarkable view, parking lots, but the skyline of the strip off in the very far distance, then again, I never opened the curtains again after my initial arrival. I wanted a high floor to avoid any noise--but even on the 4th floor, it was very quiet, Summer said the low floor could be an issue in the main tower, but not to worry about it in the Ruby Tower, and she was right.
The Ruby Tower does have its own check-in area (I guess, there was always someone behind the counter there, day or night)...It's quite large, with a check-in desk, seating, a work area and a concierge desk (I never saw a concierge sitting there, but mostly came and went early AM/back to the room after 8PM). Was convenient at check-out to just tell them I was leaving, not having to stop at the front desk. I would guess that if one booked a Ruby Tower room that they'd proceed there for check-in.
Diamond $15 credit per person towards breakfast (or other meals), so a $30/day credit. No buffet (fine by me); everything made-to-order. That pretty much covered one breakfast at "The Kitchen" with coffee and OJ thrown in. Food was actually really good. Service was super friendly, and because I was there weekdays (for work) and went to eat around 7AM, there was never more than a dozen others in the restaurant at any time I was there. I really enjoyed the eggs benedict...Had it 3 of my 4 mornings.
Nothing special for my 1,000th, Lifetime Diamond-clinching stay. But that's okay. The upgrade was nice, the room, food and service was spectacular...I had nothing to complain about. Would definitely repeat. However, I know I was there 'mid-week', but wow--not a lot of action around there. I hope they're selling rooms, because the casino was deserted when I returned to the hotel nightly (usually around 8PM-9:30PM, so a time you'd think there'd be action). I don't play much, but had hoped for maybe a Texas Hold 'Em table game (not a poker room game, but like Ultimate TX Hold 'Em), but they literally had 3 BJ tables, one craps table and one roulette wheel going--with hardly anyone at any of these tables. You certainly didn't have to wait to play a machine, if that's your thing. Comps seemed very tight from a cash-back perspective--but I didn't play very much either.
My weekday stay's rate averaged $80-something/night plus the $45 BS fee. An amazing value, all things considered! But further concerning, checking for 2 weeks from now, this place is THE cheapest base rate of all Hilton-family properties in Vegas. $72++ average/night on weekdays starting March 21st. Even the crappy Tropicana (Doubletree) is close to $100++; which I don't think bodes well for the property. Hopefully they find some traction as life gets back to normal-ish (whatever that even means anymore).
Definitely would repeat, and am wishing and hoping for great things from this place. I like it because it's off-strip, it's quiet, rooms are super nice and the staff was wonderful. Easy in and out of the property itself. Never waited more than 4-5 mins for an Uber, including leaving for the airport at 5:30AM.