This week I had a fabulous little mid-week get away to Las Vegas
Here are eight reasons you should choose to stay at the Aria for your next trip to Las Vegas:
for my birthday, hosted by the gorgeous Aria Resort.
I love Las Vegas in the winter.
In fact the cold months are my favorite months to go to sin city. The crowds are much more manageable, the resorts aren't full to the point of bursting, you can actually stroll around without getting caught up in the shuffling masses. If you've ever tried to see the Bellagio fountains thru a human curtain during the summer months, in the winter you'll appreciate the freedom of standing front and center with no one rubbing shoulders with you, no strangers at your elbow, and a completely unfettered view of the dancing waters.
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| Waiting for the Bellagio fountains, draped in (faux) leopard and free of crowds. |
Winter in Vegas is fantastic.
And Aria is my new favorite resort in Las Vegas.
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| Sleek, modern Aria |
Here are eight reasons you should choose to stay at the Aria for your next trip to Las Vegas:
1. The Aria is super modern, sleek and chic.
Unlike the theme resorts with their kitchy take on everything from pirate life to rides up the Eiffel Tower, Aria's facade is smooth and luxe and the interior design is sensational.
You can breathe inside the Aria. There is air and space and a fresh new feel. And it is beautiful.
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| Christmas decorations in the lobby at Aria |
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| Even the Christmas decorations at Aria are minimalist chic |
2. The casino feels secondary.
I know the world goes to Vegas to gamble, and the casino is king, but not everyone wants to spend their getaway weekend infront of clanging slot machines.
You don't enter Aria through the casino. The main entrance sits to the side of the casino and is part of a vast and spectacular lobby that momentarily takes your breath away.
There is also a promenade entrance that lets you bypass the slot machines and arrive via the shops.
Either way you feel like you are arriving at a major hotel, somewhere fabulous, rather than yet another casino on the strip.
3. It sounds like a hotel.
As you are walking thru the Aria to get to your restaurant, go to the shops, make a coffee run, or just to enjoy it's beautiful design you are not assaulted by the clanging bells of the casino.
Funnily enough the slot machine bells are the main reason I never spend more than a couple of days in Las Vegas. They drive me mad. And they cheapen everything about the resorts, some of which are otherwise gorgeous.
At the Aria you feel like you are somewhere fabulous. You can enjoy the casino when you feel like it, or completely ignore it - the choice is yours.
4. The concierge is super helpful, and nice.
I was really taken with how wonderful the concierge was at the Aria.
Over the years I have pretty much stopped using the concierge at resorts, mostly because they either make you feel like a nuisance or are so supercilious that you'd rather pull out your eyelashes one by one than spent 60 seconds in their domain.
Not so at the Aria. Due to arriving in Las Vegas later than expected, and thus missing some appointments, I was at the mercy of the concierge to make a few things materialize. He was (like everything else about the resort) sensational. Exactly the personality you would hope for. Nothing was a problem, he was helpful, thoughtful, volunteered some great recommendations, and organized unbelievable seats for Cirque Du Soleil's O at the neighboring Bellagio. He even messaged the box office at Bellagio to tell them it was my birthday, which was a lovely surprise when I arrived there!
With that type of leadership I wasn't surprised to find the same friendliness and helpful attitude permeating the staff all over the resort, from the valets to the check in desk, the housekeepers to the dudes who guard the access to the guest elevators. Everyone smiles, everyone makes you feel both welcome and appreciated.
5. The elevators are fast.
With 4004 rooms, Aria is the 11th largest hotel in the world.
The sheer vastness of the place could mean pure elevator hell. Instead at Aria the elevators are broken up into banks, each of which serves 5 - 10 floors. My room was on the 22nd floor, my average elevator waiting time was 30 seconds, and even when people were getting off on multiple floors before mine, the trip up was speedy. My elevator bank fast tracked to the 16th floor and maybe maxed out at the 26th floor. Sleek and efficient. Less elevator time means more time for fun.
6. The state of the art rooms.
The rooms at Aria are amazing. Mine was the most state of the art room I have stayed in anywhere in the world.
(I'm told Shanghai and Tokyo both have super high tech hotel rooms, but I've not visited either city. Yet.)
Of course the bed was beyond comfortable, the bathroom was luxe, everything was incredibly well appointed, and the ceiling to floor windows offered sensational view. But what made it all even more brilliant was the ability to control everything - lights, curtains, TV, music, temperature from a control center beside the bed.
You can program your wakeup so that the curtains open (either just the blackout curtains or the blackout and the sheers) the lights turn on (some or all, at whichever percentage of light you want), television or music come on, and the temperature adjusts to your preferred morning temp. You can also do the reverse at sleep time, and there is even a "goodnight" setting that you can program to close the blackout drapes, turn everything off and confirm that the deadbolt is set.
I loved it.
7. The bathroom was perfect.
Being that I'm all about hair and makeup I'm always looking for hotel bathrooms that have the right mirrors, the right light, and the ideal counter space to cope with (quite literally) an obscene amount of makeup and hair products.
I love love love to soak in a bubble bath at the end of the day, so just adored the separate bath room with its deep deep bath long enough for me to stretch out in, and with room for glasses of wine and whatever else you like on hand at bathtime.
8. There is so much to do.
Aria boasts 16 restaurants, (if you are G-free you will love The Buffet - due to the chef having wheat allergies it has the most gluten free offerings in Vegas), 15 bars and lounges, 12 shops, 3 pools, an 80 000 square foot spa with 62 treatment rooms, and a state of the art gym.
Their in house Cirque Du Soleil show is Zarkana
Aria is part of the city's $8 billion City Center complex, comprising the Aria, Vdara and Mandarin Oriental, 2 condo towers and a
500 000 square foot shopping and entertainment district. You never need to leave the complex, but should you decide to there's the Aria Express tram that zips you thru the sky to the Bellagio and Monte Carlo.
I can't wait to get back to the Aria.
Their Cirque show, Zarkana, was dark when I was there, and barMasa, the restaurant I had wanted to eat at was closed for the season, both of which give me more reason to make another impromtu dash back to Las Vegas sooner rather than later.
Next time hopefully I will get to stay a few days longer.
You don't enter Aria through the casino. The main entrance sits to the side of the casino and is part of a vast and spectacular lobby that momentarily takes your breath away.
There is also a promenade entrance that lets you bypass the slot machines and arrive via the shops.
Either way you feel like you are arriving at a major hotel, somewhere fabulous, rather than yet another casino on the strip.
3. It sounds like a hotel.
As you are walking thru the Aria to get to your restaurant, go to the shops, make a coffee run, or just to enjoy it's beautiful design you are not assaulted by the clanging bells of the casino.
Funnily enough the slot machine bells are the main reason I never spend more than a couple of days in Las Vegas. They drive me mad. And they cheapen everything about the resorts, some of which are otherwise gorgeous.
At the Aria you feel like you are somewhere fabulous. You can enjoy the casino when you feel like it, or completely ignore it - the choice is yours.
4. The concierge is super helpful, and nice.
I was really taken with how wonderful the concierge was at the Aria.
Over the years I have pretty much stopped using the concierge at resorts, mostly because they either make you feel like a nuisance or are so supercilious that you'd rather pull out your eyelashes one by one than spent 60 seconds in their domain.
Not so at the Aria. Due to arriving in Las Vegas later than expected, and thus missing some appointments, I was at the mercy of the concierge to make a few things materialize. He was (like everything else about the resort) sensational. Exactly the personality you would hope for. Nothing was a problem, he was helpful, thoughtful, volunteered some great recommendations, and organized unbelievable seats for Cirque Du Soleil's O at the neighboring Bellagio. He even messaged the box office at Bellagio to tell them it was my birthday, which was a lovely surprise when I arrived there!
With that type of leadership I wasn't surprised to find the same friendliness and helpful attitude permeating the staff all over the resort, from the valets to the check in desk, the housekeepers to the dudes who guard the access to the guest elevators. Everyone smiles, everyone makes you feel both welcome and appreciated.
5. The elevators are fast.
With 4004 rooms, Aria is the 11th largest hotel in the world.
The sheer vastness of the place could mean pure elevator hell. Instead at Aria the elevators are broken up into banks, each of which serves 5 - 10 floors. My room was on the 22nd floor, my average elevator waiting time was 30 seconds, and even when people were getting off on multiple floors before mine, the trip up was speedy. My elevator bank fast tracked to the 16th floor and maybe maxed out at the 26th floor. Sleek and efficient. Less elevator time means more time for fun.
6. The state of the art rooms.
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| The rooms at Aria are chic and fabulously appointed |
The rooms at Aria are amazing. Mine was the most state of the art room I have stayed in anywhere in the world.
(I'm told Shanghai and Tokyo both have super high tech hotel rooms, but I've not visited either city. Yet.)
Of course the bed was beyond comfortable, the bathroom was luxe, everything was incredibly well appointed, and the ceiling to floor windows offered sensational view. But what made it all even more brilliant was the ability to control everything - lights, curtains, TV, music, temperature from a control center beside the bed.
You can program your wakeup so that the curtains open (either just the blackout curtains or the blackout and the sheers) the lights turn on (some or all, at whichever percentage of light you want), television or music come on, and the temperature adjusts to your preferred morning temp. You can also do the reverse at sleep time, and there is even a "goodnight" setting that you can program to close the blackout drapes, turn everything off and confirm that the deadbolt is set.
I loved it.
7. The bathroom was perfect.
Being that I'm all about hair and makeup I'm always looking for hotel bathrooms that have the right mirrors, the right light, and the ideal counter space to cope with (quite literally) an obscene amount of makeup and hair products.
I love love love to soak in a bubble bath at the end of the day, so just adored the separate bath room with its deep deep bath long enough for me to stretch out in, and with room for glasses of wine and whatever else you like on hand at bathtime.
8. There is so much to do.
Aria boasts 16 restaurants, (if you are G-free you will love The Buffet - due to the chef having wheat allergies it has the most gluten free offerings in Vegas), 15 bars and lounges, 12 shops, 3 pools, an 80 000 square foot spa with 62 treatment rooms, and a state of the art gym.
Their in house Cirque Du Soleil show is Zarkana
Aria is part of the city's $8 billion City Center complex, comprising the Aria, Vdara and Mandarin Oriental, 2 condo towers and a
500 000 square foot shopping and entertainment district. You never need to leave the complex, but should you decide to there's the Aria Express tram that zips you thru the sky to the Bellagio and Monte Carlo.
I can't wait to get back to the Aria.
Their Cirque show, Zarkana, was dark when I was there, and barMasa, the restaurant I had wanted to eat at was closed for the season, both of which give me more reason to make another impromtu dash back to Las Vegas sooner rather than later.
Next time hopefully I will get to stay a few days longer.
