The Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas is a luxury non-gaming hotel that recently changed brand from Mandarin Oriental. We booked two rooms for three nights – here’s a review of our experience.
Our stay was part of our May/June 2019 USA Trip – click here for all the USA trip reviews. We flew Delta Airlines into Vegas from Atlanta and picked up a large SUV (GMC Yukon) from Avis. The great part about landing in Vegas is that the airport is only a short drive from the Vegas strip.
Valet parking ($35) was smooth and not outrageously expensive, which is handy as they don’t offer self-parking. There is no ground level reception, you have to take the elevator to the 23rd Floor. The lobby had a champagne vending machine – well it is Vegas.
Check in was smooth and as Gold and Diamond HHonors members, we were both upgraded to superior rooms, not suites. We were advised that the breakfast wasn’t free, but that a $50 per room per day credit was added.
The room was luxurious as you would expect.
Both the net and blackout curtains were opened automatically. The view was impressive.
But much better at night.
This our second room the room next door at night.
The bathroom had a bath, shower and dual washbasins.
The toiletries were a little odd.
Why rename standard products such as conditioner, shampoo and shower gel? That’s just pretentious. The tops of these things were also really hard to open and close. They were annoying enough that I didn’t even take any!
The bathroom had a sliding side panel that opened up the room. So you could sit in the bathtub and have a view to the strip.
There was a valet closet where you could leave and pick up laundry without being disturbed. I added some ‘no rush’ laundry around 9 am and let housekeeping know it was there – it was back the same afternoon.
Breakfast was in the Zen Kitchen. The best value was the buffet, although hot food could only be obtained by asking the server and there was often nobody manning the hot station – it was a little annoying. The table-serve American breakfast was ridiculously priced, especially as you could choose bacon or sausage but not both. Our breakfast for three easily burned our combined $100 room credit each day.
The nearest casino is the Aria and you had to go outside along the street and inside. Contrast that with the Four Seasons, where there is a private elevator down to the Mandalay Bay casino floor. I have to say that I didn’t really like the gaming at the Aria. Table minimums were too high and maximums too low. The Venetian is still the best gaming experience for me.
I’d read about the ex-Mandarin decor being tired and that the soundproofing in the rooms wasn’t good – that wasn’t my experience. It still feels like a luxury hotel, nowhere near as good as the Four Seasons (top of the Mandalay Bay) but much better than the Venetian. I’d certainly consider staying again, but only because of my HHonors benefits.
Cost
The first two nights @ $245 per room per night incl. taxes and resort fee, the last night for a reasonable 57000 HHonors points. The plan with using points was to avoid the ridiculous $45 per day resort fee – I heard that points bookings don’t attract a resort fee. Well my confirmation email showed the fee, but I can’t see the charge on my card. I’m actually disappointed that the resort fee isn’t waived for Gold and Diamonds.
Waldorf Astoria Hotel
3752 Las Vegas Boulevard South,
Las Vegas, Nevada, 89158
United States of America
Telephone: 702-590-8888
Email: LASWD.Hotel@waldorfastoria.com
BugAdvisor.com 