Aria... who has stayed? Right vibe?

[vega$]

A couple other tips I just thought of:

(1) The safe for the room is located in one of the drawers next to the bed. It is the easiest safe I have ever encountered to work with. FYI, from reading reviews on TripAdvisor I learned that Aria has been having some problems with the maids stealing shit, so make sure you use the safe when you are out of the room.

(2) If you bring your I-Pod, you need to bring the cord that you charge it with (can't remember the name of that little connecting cord) in order to plug it in and play it. On the other hand, the little remote controlled thing by your bed has a bunch of music channels that you can play on the TV, which I really liked. You can jam out while you are getting ready and switch from station to station with the touch of a button.

(3) Make sure you hit the service light on your way out the door. When you hit the service light your room gets cleaned first.

[kimball]

A couple other tips I just thought of:

(1) The safe for the room is located in one of the drawers next to the bed. It is the easiest safe I have ever encountered to work with. FYI, from reading reviews on TripAdvisor I learned that Aria has been having some problems with the maids stealing shit, so make sure you use the safe when you are out of the room.

(2) If you bring your I-Pod, you need to bring the cord that you charge it with (can't remember the name of that little connecting cord) in order to plug it in and play it. On the other hand, the little remote controlled thing by your bed has a bunch of music channels that you can play on the TV, which I really liked. You can jam out while you are getting ready and switch from station to station with the touch of a button.

(3) Make sure you hit the service light on your way out the door. When you hit the service light your room gets cleaned first.

great tips, thanks.

[justcole0516]

its on the northwest side. and yes they do try and just get girls. its a cool club but just like any other light group. kinda a mix between, bank jet and LAX

[Chicago]

I spent a weekend at Aria recently, and would now consider it my go-to for future trips. The room was excellent...not huge by any means ("standard-sized", as someone mentioned up-thread), but very well designed. Furniture & decor were all clean & modern, the 42" flatscreen had quite a few HD channels & a bunch of music channels (plus the iPod input was nice, but as someone else mentioned, take the USB charging cable & a male-to-male headphone cable), and the floor-to-ceiling/wall-to-wall windows with remote-controlled curtains was sweet. The bathroom was half the the size of the room, and had a big soaking tub in the shower (weird layout, but nice feature). Also, the beds were fantastic, I slept like a champ both nights.

As far as the casino itself, I really liked the vibe. I thought it was upscale but still kinda casual, and the average age of the crowd was easily a decade or two younger than the casino crowd at the Wynn or Encore. The best analogy I can come up with is if the Wynn is St. Regis, then Aria is W Hotel. Personally, I find the Wynn to be too stuffy & quiet for my tastes. Table minimums are similar to what one might find at Bellagio or the Venetian, and drink service was much faster than I experienced at Mandalay Bay & Hard Rock (the only other places I gambled while I was there this time).

We ate at Lemongrass (upscale-casual pan-Asian) and Jean George Steakhouse, both were excellent. Lemongrass is on the pricey side for a casual meal, but the serene atmosphere & an order of their pad thai washed down with a Thai iced tea make for a great hangover remedy. Jean Georges Steakhouse is pretty expensive, but totally in line with any other upscale steakhouse or restaurant in any of the strip hotels (plus our waitress was crazy hot...she looked like an Asian Megan Fox).

Didn't make it to Haze (under the casino, on the side of the hotel that faces Vdara) or Eve (which is just outside, in the Crystal Shops). Did check out Todd English pub (also in the Crystal Shops, right next to Aria front entrance) - what a stupid mistake. Do not go there. $9 for a pint of Stella, with all the atmosphere of a chain restaurant (reminded me of The Yard House chain of brew pubs). Also went to Gold Bar, that wasn't bad for a small, clubby lounge.

[dutchryan]

Chicago,

great info, thanks for sharing. Did they offer you any type of room upgrades when you checked in? I know it's owned by MGM and MGMgrand hands out upgrades like they're skittles. I have a few rooms reserved there in august and am thinking about booking one big suite, but now i'm wondering if i might just be cheaper to try and tip my way up to a better room. From what I understand, the hotel is enormous with 4000+ rooms.

Anyone stayed in a suite there yet?

[Chicago]

Chicago,

great info, thanks for sharing. Did they offer you any type of room upgrades when you checked in? I know it's owned by MGM and MGMgrand hands out upgrades like they're skittles. I have a few rooms reserved there in august and am thinking about booking one big suite, but now i'm wondering if i might just be cheaper to try and tip my way up to a better room. From what I understand, the hotel is enormous with 4000+ rooms.

Anyone stayed in a suite there yet?

We tried the ol' tip sandwich at check-in, the dude was totally cool with it, but apologetically handed the $50 back and said the hotel was totally full that weekend.

And yes, the hotel is huge. The walk from the elevator bank to our room at the far end of the hallway was brutal after a long night of drinking

[dutchryan]

that's good to know, at least the guy was cool about you trying the sandwich trick. I'm sure i'll end up trying the same thing. hopefully my thursday night arrival ups my chances of an upgrade. the only gripes i've heard about the hotel have to do with it being set back from the action a bit. did you think the hotel was uncomfortably far off the strip?

[Chicago]

that's good to know, at least the guy was cool about you trying the sandwich trick. I'm sure i'll end up trying the same thing. hopefully my thursday night arrival ups my chances of an upgrade. the only gripes i've heard about the hotel have to do with it being set back from the action a bit. did you think the hotel was uncomfortably far off the strip?

While the hotel is set back a bit, I never felt cut off from the strip. I think a lot of that is thanks to the rerouted sidewalk, which basically brings the strip halfway up to Aria's front entrance.

Also, the Crystal Shop's back door is right next to Aria's lobby, and its front door is on the strip, so it's a handy shortcut that does a lot for making you feel less removed.

[ChiVegas]

Chicago,

great info, thanks for sharing. Did they offer you any type of room upgrades when you checked in? I know it's owned by MGM and MGMgrand hands out upgrades like they're skittles. I have a few rooms reserved there in august and am thinking about booking one big suite, but now i'm wondering if i might just be cheaper to try and tip my way up to a better room. From what I understand, the hotel is enormous with 4000+ rooms.

Anyone stayed in a suite there yet?

YES. I stayed in a corner suite there, (i actually owe a trip report about it, but i've been crying since i left, so once is stop reminiscing, i'll get to it. And it's BANANAS.) and i'm TELLING YOU, get it. 950 square feet, 3 tv's a wet bar and fridge/freezer combo. There is a 4 person shower, and stand alone tub that is completely exposed because the whole wall to the suite is a window. Yes, you can look at Vegas as the sun rises, smoke a cigar, watch tv AND a lady friend cleanse the night off all at one time. Did i mention the room is made separate from everyone else, giving you about 10 feet of privacy? Yeah you won't regret it, especially if you are a Vegas freak and decide to do the things i did in that hallway...there ARE no cameras in the hallway...

[ser182]

Chivegas are all room smoking. i would like one for the adult smoke? i booked a suite with one bedroom. Got any pics of the room?

[nighthawk06si]

I'm heading there next weekend and staying in the 2bdrm suite. Was gonna stay at the penthouse suite but I didn't think spending a couple extra hundred bills for a dining room table was necessary so I'll use that money for bottle service and gambling.

I'll post up pics of the suite and maybe the casino floor to give people an idea of what vibe they're putting off.

[ChiVegas]

Chivegas are all room smoking. i would like one for the adult smoke? i booked a suite with one bedroom. Got any pics of the room?

I booked a smoking room, and got non-smoking because it was fight weekend and they were full....still smoked in it though because the front desk clerk said they couldn't do anything about it becaus the didn't give me what i paid for. I have no pics but it's on [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESD5rjaodWo[/ame]

that's the same exact room....hope it helps

[dutchryan]

Chivegas, GREAT info and video. Thanks for sharing. Really happy to see that so many people enjoyed themselves at Aria. There are so many questionable reviews on tripadvisor, but I chalked that up to people having unrealistic expectations. I'll be sure to take a ton of pics when I'm out there in august and will report back about the casino, haze, and liquid. My trip is actually a little female heavy right now, 5/2, but I can't imagine that hurting our chances of having a fun trip.

[richcracker]

staying there this Sun-Tues, will report back.

[VtecVick]

staying there this Sun-Tues, will report back.

See if you can get a corner suite with a 20 dollar tip. Might have better chances since your not staying on a weekend.