My standard hotel reviews include a breakdown by the following topics. Feel free to skip to whichever section you find most interesting.
- Highlights
- Lobby & Check-in
- Room
- Hotel Space / Ambiance
- Food & Drink
- Fitness
- Miscellaneous
HIGHLIGHTS: SLS Las Vegas, a Tribute Portfolio Resort
My second stay at the SLS Las Vegas, comped through play during my first, was vastly different. Not only was service on par with last time (resulting in plenty of frustration), I did not receive any Platinum benefits as it was a comped room. None the less, the food was again, decent, and I got to explore more of the the SLS in a culinary way.
LOBBY & CHECK-IN
Same as before, if you have a car driving you from McCarran, don’t take the Las Vegas Strip, go behind the back to the other entrance and it will be much more efficient for you.
ROOM
This was a basic room with a King bed I believe, but very small and compact. Thankfully, I was only here for a night, but it was a major step downward from my nice suite. I did like the setup of two large mirrors on each side of the room, as you could light them up and they would reflect each other.
HOTEL SPACE / AMBIANCE
Escaped the National Finals Rodeo, so no more inane country music blasting everywhere. Much more subdued and quiet, even on a Sunday night before a Monday holiday.
FOOD & DRINK
I was able to get two $10 dining credit vouchers at the SLS Las Vegas, as well as breakfast (once I spoke with my Starwood concierge who worked some magic). The 24/7 Northside café was good again, however I have a bone to pick about their gai lan, which should have leaves rather than just being the stems. Their Siu Mai was decent, but their fried rice and eggplant dish were still tops.
I was also able to finangle a drink ticket, and spent it at Perq to try their strawberry banana smoothie. I believe it is a 16 oz, so on the smaller side, and also does not have the consistency of Jamba Juice – it was far too watery. Their Southwest Chicken Salad held up for about four hours without refridgeration, and kept me company at the airport as I hunted my machines.
FITNESS
I worked out in my room this time, especially as I had spent the entire day walking around the airport.
MISCELLANEOUS
Overall, I wouldn’t stay as the SLS Las Vegas again without some amazingly crazy deal – the resort fee is high, and their location is poor. I won’t get any points or amenities on comped rooms, either. The food was good (and I have a $50 credit to use for next time) so that is one of their redeeming qualities.
Featured Image is of my room. Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links which, should you click through and/or make a purchase, grant me a commission. Also, I only post in the best interest of my readers. Lastly, thank you for supporting my blog and my travels.
What do you think of my writing? Have any questions? Let me know in the comments, or reach me directly at TheHotelion@gmail.com! Like my posts? See more here, on TravelUpdate! Follow me on Facebook (The Hotelion) or on Twitter and Instagram: @TheHotelion
I am stumped about what the SLS strategy is/was. It wants to be a luxury property (it was even part of the Amex FHR program) but cut every corner possible. In a city full of legitimate-quality properties (with better locations), did they really think this was going to be competitive?
They say they cater mostly to conventioneers – which makes sense, but you have absolutely the same line of thinking as I do.
Something to consider if you’re in Vegas and you play enough to get comped is downtown on Fremont Street. Many of the hotels down there (The D, Plaza, and Downtown Grand) have gone through recent renovations and don’t charge resort fees on comped rooms. All of the downtown Boyd Gaming properties (California, Main Street Station and Fremont) and Four Queens don’t even charge the resort fee at all, even if the room’s not comped. Considering these stupid fees can come out to $40+ per night, that’s a significant savings.
True – however I normally don’t play enough to get comped so that’s probably not going to happen (think last time was 2 hours at $10/hand ultimate texas holdem). Downtown is also very smoky and that’s hard for me to handle. Thanks for reading!
If you haven’t been down there in a while, I’d suggest giving it another look. I really hate smoke as well, but I only really have that issue at El Cortez, Four Queens and Binion’s. The others have done a pretty good job of handling the issue. If you throw any play (particularly machine play) you’ll likely get room comps at the D and Golden Gate – but the rooms are generally a lot lower cost down there anyway.
True – depends on where I have reason to say. Thanks for reading! I’ll see if downtown’s an option