Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas {US-NV}
May 1, 2019, 2:10 pm
#136
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Edinburgh
Programs: BAEC Silver Hilton Diamond
Posts: 197
Checking in for a 6 night reward stay on Saturday - had contact via the concierge today which was nice - offered an anniversary amenity as informed that was purpose of our trip so look forward to seeing what that is!
Haven’t asked for an upgrade - always torn between asking now vs at check in1
Haven’t asked for an upgrade - always torn between asking now vs at check in1
May 17, 2019, 3:29 pm
#137
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Edinburgh
Programs: BAEC Silver Hilton Diamond
Posts: 197
Well must say that stay was top notch!
6 night points stay. Had an email from concierge before arrival and mentioned anniversary and birthday and received bottle of fizz and birthday cupcake. Didn’t drink fizz first night so asked for ice bucket later in stay and had 2 huge macaroons!!
Valet parked whole week - $35 is enough but worth it as used the car a lot - always have a car in vegas but this was first time since they charge for parking everywhere!
Check in was nice. No upgrade but not surprised as it was 6 nights and first weekend was fully booked.
$50 daily credit as diamond was explained and we had high floor room. Room was bigger than expected and nicely finished.
Ate by the pool a couple of times and food and service was superb. Ate breakfast at Zen twice first time food was great last morning wife’s pancakes were not properly cooked - TWICE!! breakfast was comped but as it was covered by the credit not much of a gesture!
Spa was great - had pedicures and highly recommend.
Was a little disappointed with concierge as tried to get tickets for James Taylor they were very helpful but just used ticketmaster and needed my card details not room charge. Seems a bit pointless to me - used to room charge and less fees when I have stayed at casinos before but get that WA aren’t connected - although could room charge to other MGM resorts.
Location was super - really handy for Aria and others via TRam - enjoyed Park MGM since refurb.
Was nice and relaxing being in non casino property but think will try Aria next time!
6 night points stay. Had an email from concierge before arrival and mentioned anniversary and birthday and received bottle of fizz and birthday cupcake. Didn’t drink fizz first night so asked for ice bucket later in stay and had 2 huge macaroons!!
Valet parked whole week - $35 is enough but worth it as used the car a lot - always have a car in vegas but this was first time since they charge for parking everywhere!
Check in was nice. No upgrade but not surprised as it was 6 nights and first weekend was fully booked.
$50 daily credit as diamond was explained and we had high floor room. Room was bigger than expected and nicely finished.
Ate by the pool a couple of times and food and service was superb. Ate breakfast at Zen twice first time food was great last morning wife’s pancakes were not properly cooked - TWICE!! breakfast was comped but as it was covered by the credit not much of a gesture!
Spa was great - had pedicures and highly recommend.
Was a little disappointed with concierge as tried to get tickets for James Taylor they were very helpful but just used ticketmaster and needed my card details not room charge. Seems a bit pointless to me - used to room charge and less fees when I have stayed at casinos before but get that WA aren’t connected - although could room charge to other MGM resorts.
Location was super - really handy for Aria and others via TRam - enjoyed Park MGM since refurb.
Was nice and relaxing being in non casino property but think will try Aria next time!
Jun 1, 2019, 12:23 pm
#138
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: NYC
Posts: 27,239
Stayed here earlier this month for 4 nights and overall it was a pretty good stay.
I think my biggest complaint was the service levels at the front desk, there were almost always a few people in line for no more than 2 agents, and as you might imagine, each transaction took quite some time due to "high maintenance" guests or just the nature of a luxury hotel.
Staff was generally great, with a couple of exceptions. Spa facility is top notch (but pricey!), and I had the men's section basically to myself for the hour before and the hour after my treatment (maybe 2 other guests for brief periods), although it was a Monday afternoon.
SkyBar or whatever they call it is and the lounge up there is nice, the impossible burger sliders were delicious! Interesting cocktail menu, and good service. Poolside service is nice - they set up your chairs for you and aside from one issue grabbing someones attention to take my drink order (I had to practically wave my menu in the air!), F&B service was good. They also have bulk sunscreen (of various SPFs IIRC) poolside so you don't need to bring your own, which is always a nice touch. The pool was a little "boring" though.
In terms of benefits, they will stack the HHonors Gold and Amex F&R credits, attached are the welcome letters outlining benefits for each. The credits do not carry forward if you don't use them each day though. In terms of the upgrade, we booked a Strip View room hoping for an upgrade to a Junior Suite (though Amex FHR, I wouldn't expect that from Gold Status). However, they didn't have anything available; this was the first time ever that we did NOT get an upgrade through FHR.
But they did have availability for nights 2-4, so we moved rooms after the first night. Frankly though, the layout of the Junior Suite is a little weird, and I almost preferred the regular room, which was plenty big (and had a better view).
This was a "4th night free" stay, so the value was actually really good especially after all the credits. But I was charged the quoted rate for all 4 nights; I didn't notice this at check-out, but called when I got home. They said normally the quoted rate is adjusted down for the free night, but my confirmation from Amex had nights 1-3 at $xxx and the 4th night at $0, and I was charged $xxx for all 4 nights. I had to email that over to them, and then they made the adjustment. Not a huge deal, but just pay attention if you have this deal.
One other complaint - it's hard to get a taxi from the hotel, they don't line up. I think the valet has to turn on a light that the taxi drivers are supposed to see from the road and then drive into the porte cochere. If there's anyone waiting ahead of you, this could be a 5-10 minute wait for some reason. As is normally the case, Uber/Lyft isn't ideal either, those drivers never know where to go either and so there were some snafus with them either. Heading back to the airport, after a failed Uber pickup, and no taxis arriving, we just took the hotel Escalade that was waiting there, I think it was $25, so maybe 2x tax/uber, but not crazy.
I guess in summary, it's a very nice property. Will be interesting to see what the renovations bring. That said, I think we will generally prefer to stay in a casino hotel going forward. It's only a ~5 minute walk over to the Aria but you either have to walk up a big stairway or go a little out of your way to the escalator up to the walkway. Back is easier (you can go down the more direct stair route). The Four Seasons is the ideal balance of being separate from the casino but having it easily accessible, but I don't like that location at the far end of the Strip.
I think my biggest complaint was the service levels at the front desk, there were almost always a few people in line for no more than 2 agents, and as you might imagine, each transaction took quite some time due to "high maintenance" guests or just the nature of a luxury hotel.
Staff was generally great, with a couple of exceptions. Spa facility is top notch (but pricey!), and I had the men's section basically to myself for the hour before and the hour after my treatment (maybe 2 other guests for brief periods), although it was a Monday afternoon.
SkyBar or whatever they call it is and the lounge up there is nice, the impossible burger sliders were delicious! Interesting cocktail menu, and good service. Poolside service is nice - they set up your chairs for you and aside from one issue grabbing someones attention to take my drink order (I had to practically wave my menu in the air!), F&B service was good. They also have bulk sunscreen (of various SPFs IIRC) poolside so you don't need to bring your own, which is always a nice touch. The pool was a little "boring" though.
In terms of benefits, they will stack the HHonors Gold and Amex F&R credits, attached are the welcome letters outlining benefits for each. The credits do not carry forward if you don't use them each day though. In terms of the upgrade, we booked a Strip View room hoping for an upgrade to a Junior Suite (though Amex FHR, I wouldn't expect that from Gold Status). However, they didn't have anything available; this was the first time ever that we did NOT get an upgrade through FHR.
But they did have availability for nights 2-4, so we moved rooms after the first night. Frankly though, the layout of the Junior Suite is a little weird, and I almost preferred the regular room, which was plenty big (and had a better view). This was a "4th night free" stay, so the value was actually really good especially after all the credits. But I was charged the quoted rate for all 4 nights; I didn't notice this at check-out, but called when I got home. They said normally the quoted rate is adjusted down for the free night, but my confirmation from Amex had nights 1-3 at $xxx and the 4th night at $0, and I was charged $xxx for all 4 nights. I had to email that over to them, and then they made the adjustment. Not a huge deal, but just pay attention if you have this deal.
One other complaint - it's hard to get a taxi from the hotel, they don't line up. I think the valet has to turn on a light that the taxi drivers are supposed to see from the road and then drive into the porte cochere. If there's anyone waiting ahead of you, this could be a 5-10 minute wait for some reason. As is normally the case, Uber/Lyft isn't ideal either, those drivers never know where to go either and so there were some snafus with them either. Heading back to the airport, after a failed Uber pickup, and no taxis arriving, we just took the hotel Escalade that was waiting there, I think it was $25, so maybe 2x tax/uber, but not crazy.
I guess in summary, it's a very nice property. Will be interesting to see what the renovations bring. That said, I think we will generally prefer to stay in a casino hotel going forward. It's only a ~5 minute walk over to the Aria but you either have to walk up a big stairway or go a little out of your way to the escalator up to the walkway. Back is easier (you can go down the more direct stair route). The Four Seasons is the ideal balance of being separate from the casino but having it easily accessible, but I don't like that location at the far end of the Strip.
Jun 1, 2019, 2:16 pm
#139
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: SF Bay Area
Posts: 222
I got back from a two-night stay over Memorial Day weekend and had a similar experience as ijgordon. We booked thru Amex FHR and have HH Gold from the Platinum card and got the exact same benefits. It was nice that the Amex breakfast benefit and the HH Gold daily credit were separate. We also took advantage of the Amex offer $100 off $500 at Waldorf Astoria, so we ended up with $420 in credits altogether ($100 FHR spa + 2 people x 2 days x $25 daily credit + 2 people x 2 days x $30 breakfast + $100 Amex W-A offer).
We didn't eat at the hotel except for breakfast and one mojito my husband ordered at the pool. I did two spa treatments to use up our credits; pricy but very relaxing and well done- my manicure is still perfectly intact a week later. My husband said the pool was super busy when he went during my spa treatment; I tried to go the next day and it was empty but that was due to the winds being so strong. He enjoyed his mojito but forgot to close his tab; one call to the front desk later that evening and we got it closed/sorted out. We ordered breakfast a la carte one morning and did the buffet the other; we preferred the a la carte. Portions were not large (probably a good thing so you have room to enjoy other eateries) but of good quality.
We did have to wait a bit to get a taxi one evening, but we weren't surprised given the traffic during the long weekend (and the house car was unavailable). Final note about an issue we had with calling an Uber (not the W-A's fault) here: the app has a difficult time locating you (GPS signals bouncing off all the tall buildings), even when you specify the W-A as your pick-up location. The app dropped our location pin at the Shoppes across the street, so it kept thinking the driver was already at our location and waiting to pick us up. I notified our driver and she had to loop around to get us. I had to file a request to Uber to take off the driver waiting fee since it was the app's fault for failing to position our pick-up location correctly.
We didn't eat at the hotel except for breakfast and one mojito my husband ordered at the pool. I did two spa treatments to use up our credits; pricy but very relaxing and well done- my manicure is still perfectly intact a week later. My husband said the pool was super busy when he went during my spa treatment; I tried to go the next day and it was empty but that was due to the winds being so strong. He enjoyed his mojito but forgot to close his tab; one call to the front desk later that evening and we got it closed/sorted out. We ordered breakfast a la carte one morning and did the buffet the other; we preferred the a la carte. Portions were not large (probably a good thing so you have room to enjoy other eateries) but of good quality.
We did have to wait a bit to get a taxi one evening, but we weren't surprised given the traffic during the long weekend (and the house car was unavailable). Final note about an issue we had with calling an Uber (not the W-A's fault) here: the app has a difficult time locating you (GPS signals bouncing off all the tall buildings), even when you specify the W-A as your pick-up location. The app dropped our location pin at the Shoppes across the street, so it kept thinking the driver was already at our location and waiting to pick us up. I notified our driver and she had to loop around to get us. I had to file a request to Uber to take off the driver waiting fee since it was the app's fault for failing to position our pick-up location correctly.
Last edited by EmpressRouge; Jun 1, 2019 at 2:31 pm
Jun 2, 2019, 7:51 am
#140
Join Date: Mar 2014
Posts: 322
I wonder if I should be surprised that the hotel cars are never available. I tried several times to use it, but they never managed to make it happen. At the Beverly Hills location it's relatively easy to book the Phantom, which is lovely.
Jun 3, 2019, 8:48 am
#141
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: CT/ Germany - Ich spreche deutsch
Programs: UA 1K, Bonvoy LTTE, HH Dia, HY Expl
Posts: 4,657
I’m at the hotel right now and having a similar experience to what other Diamonds have reported. First off, I find the setup with the check in on 23 pretty strange and you definitely need to get used to the two elevator banks. Check in experience needs to be improved as the wait is too long even with only 2 people in front of you. I was trying to figure out what each attendant was doing for several minutes after they completed checking one person in and before they called up the next person. What’s all the typing for? No upgrade at all offered but when I asked she went to see the manager and “found” me a strip view room. Room is nice and I really can’t say anything bad about it.
I ate breakfast in the restaurant yesterday since I was up early due to jet lag from a trip from Europe. Overall pretty satisfied but I do find it odd that if you pick the buffet that egg orders need to be given to the waiter instead of the woman actually standing behind the warm food buffet station. What’s she doing other than scooping warm options at customers request? This morning I just went down to get some coffee and get a muffin, $25 credit per person is acceptable and at least better than the $10 credit I got at the WA Boca.
I’m here for work for a couple of days so I won’t be spending much time taking advantage of the things the hotel has to offer and I’m eating outside of the hotel all nights. Room quality and service wise I would definitely stay here again. I like the overall quiet vibe of the hotel.
I ate breakfast in the restaurant yesterday since I was up early due to jet lag from a trip from Europe. Overall pretty satisfied but I do find it odd that if you pick the buffet that egg orders need to be given to the waiter instead of the woman actually standing behind the warm food buffet station. What’s she doing other than scooping warm options at customers request? This morning I just went down to get some coffee and get a muffin, $25 credit per person is acceptable and at least better than the $10 credit I got at the WA Boca.
I’m here for work for a couple of days so I won’t be spending much time taking advantage of the things the hotel has to offer and I’m eating outside of the hotel all nights. Room quality and service wise I would definitely stay here again. I like the overall quiet vibe of the hotel.
Jun 4, 2019, 9:49 pm
#142
Ambassador: World of Hyatt
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: San Diego,CA
Posts: 10,093
I’m at the hotel right now and having a similar experience to what other Diamonds have reported. First off, I find the setup with the check in on 23 pretty strange and you definitely need to get used to the two elevator banks. Check in experience needs to be improved as the wait is too long even with only 2 people in front of you.
Some really good feedback on posts here from aware guests
The hotel was set up for guests to check in on a higher floor to avoid people floating in off the street.It was designed that way from a security angleThey don't want drifters flowing into the hotel being a non casino hotel with typically more affluent guests
While it it can be a bit time consuming I see the trade off as worth it for the small added layer of protection
Jun 12, 2019, 2:46 pm
#144
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: ORD (formerly SAN)
Programs: Hilton Diamond; IHG Platinum; Bonvoy Gold; AA Platinum Pro and United Premier Silver (DH = AA EXP)
Posts: 1,929
That's pretty amazing. I was specifically told at other Waldorfs that they do NOT stack and that they will give me the more generous credit, but not both.
Jun 12, 2019, 4:03 pm
#145
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Falkirk, Scotland,VS Red, BA Gold, HH Diamond,UK Amex Plat
Programs: Master of the Privy Purse des Muccis
Posts: 17,921
I believe the app is in error and have not heard of anyone being charged a resort fee on an all points award ( I think there was one case of the fee appearing on the bill in error though)
Regards
TBS
Jun 12, 2019, 4:44 pm
#146
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: NYC
Posts: 27,239
Some really good feedback on posts here from aware guests[/left]The hotel was set up for guests to check in on a higher floor to avoid people floating in off the street.It was designed that way from a security angle
They don't want drifters flowing into the hotel being a non casino hotel with typically more affluent guests
While it it can be a bit time consuming I see the trade off as worth it for the small added layer of protection
They don't want drifters flowing into the hotel being a non casino hotel with typically more affluent guests
While it it can be a bit time consuming I see the trade off as worth it for the small added layer of protection
I think it's partly a function of security, but probably primarily a function of the real estate footprint; in many of these hotels there's no space for a full lobby reception on the ground floor because of restaurants, retail, or, in the case of the W-A LV, the lobby for the Residences.
I think this one is a little unique in that the lobby is on the top floor, and then you have to go down to your room, but actually once you're checked in, outside of late-night hours, you can change on the 3rd floor for the guest room elevators, so you don't have to go out of your way. IIRC after midnight, you have to go up to 23 and then down to the room, presumably for security purposes as there's no staff on 3 at that point.
Jun 12, 2019, 4:48 pm
#147
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: NYC
Posts: 27,239
Well I wonder if at other WAs the Gold benefit is specifically a breakfast benefit/credit. Here it's specifically a general food/beverage and spa services, so it's really different from the Amex FHR benefits which are for breakfast and for the spa.
Jun 12, 2019, 4:56 pm
#148
Join Date: May 2009
Location: EUG
Programs: AS MVP, AA MM, HH Diamond, MR Gold
Posts: 8,223
This is not that uncommon of a design for hotels. Three I can think of off the top of my head that have a lobby above the ground floor accessed by separate elevators are the Westin Philadelphia, the W New York Times Square, and the Mandarin Oriental New York.
I think it's partly a function of security, but probably primarily a function of the real estate footprint; in many of these hotels there's no space for a full lobby reception on the ground floor because of restaurants, retail, or, in the case of the W-A LV, the lobby for the Residences.
I think this one is a little unique in that the lobby is on the top floor, and then you have to go down to your room, but actually once you're checked in, outside of late-night hours, you can change on the 3rd floor for the guest room elevators, so you don't have to go out of your way. IIRC after midnight, you have to go up to 23 and then down to the room, presumably for security purposes as there's no staff on 3 at that point.
I think it's partly a function of security, but probably primarily a function of the real estate footprint; in many of these hotels there's no space for a full lobby reception on the ground floor because of restaurants, retail, or, in the case of the W-A LV, the lobby for the Residences.
I think this one is a little unique in that the lobby is on the top floor, and then you have to go down to your room, but actually once you're checked in, outside of late-night hours, you can change on the 3rd floor for the guest room elevators, so you don't have to go out of your way. IIRC after midnight, you have to go up to 23 and then down to the room, presumably for security purposes as there's no staff on 3 at that point.
Jun 14, 2019, 2:35 am
#149
Join Date: Jan 2013
Posts: 115
Really enjoyed my stay here for a weekend (2 nights), concierge provided an upgrade to junior suite as a diamond before arriving after asking. Unfortunately, the pool was closed, due to high winds.
Great service from all of the staff - kept offering water.
Great service from all of the staff - kept offering water.