Review Archives · EDGe Vegas

Thoughts On Cosmopolitan

By Marc January 5, 2011

I wanted to share some thoughts now that Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas has been opened for a couple weeks. Let me say this, in general, as someone with a marketing background I usually try to avoid all of the grand opening hype. Most people will report nothing but the good at that point.

I prefer to let other people break in a property for a few days before I grace it with my presence. I did the same with CityCenter last year (which I need to look back at 1 year later). I’ll have more thoughts moving forward, but I’ll break my thoughts on the Cosmo today down like this:

Tall, Skinny, Ugly on the outside but Pretty Inside

I’m not enamored by the way the building looks on the outside. However, once I looked inside of the building I saw lots to like. There are plenty of modern features and beautiful, shiny crystals and chromes. The Cosmo is bright inside, but not in a bad way. Think the opposite of Aria.

The furnishings are things I’d love in my house, but I can never seem to find affordable, comfortable modern furnishings. I guess that’s what $4 billion can do.

The profile of the building(s) are very tall and very narrow. Every time I’ve walked through the place looked and felt crowded. There were a lot of people just looking around and not gambling or eating or shopping so I’ll look into this again in 6 months after the curious people are gone.

It would be great if Cosmo remains crowded but with people spending money. She’s pretty today, but we’ll see what happens after a little wear and tear.

Casino and Sportsbook

As I mention above, the casino is narrow and feels crowded but upon further inspection those were just people looking. Maybe the feeling of being crowded will lessen with time as people quit gawking and/or hit the tables.

Each visit I’ve seen the tables and machines have all been fairly quiet. Maybe 1 player per table on average. Tables are pretty good for a strip casino: blackjack minimums are as low as $10 with 3:2 payouts for blackjack on all except double deck games. As per Vegas Tripping the video poker pay tables are slightly above other strip casinos.

The sportsbook is TINY. I could never see myself hanging out watching games here. It feels more like a lounge than a sportsbook. Planet Hollywood has a tiny sportsbook, but at least they have Blondies and the PBR bars in the Miracle Mile shops for overflow.

They also have a stage in the sportsbook with free concerts, that’s pretty nice but it will definitely get in the way of the gamblers. I’m stoked for the free shows, but I wonder how the two will work together.

I’ve walked by the sportsbook about 4 or 6 times and only noticed sports on the TV’s once. I’m not sure that’s always the case, but that’s what I noticed.

Lastly, there is no poker room. I’m pretty sure this will change in time. There’s really no reason not to have one except for differentiation.

Restaurants & Shopping

The restaurants and shopping are on the second and third floors. There are a lot of restaurants that seem as if they’ll be good. My first dining experience was great!

Some friends and I split a bunch of small plates & appetizers at Holsteins. Everything was fantastic. In fact, this was one of the best meals I’ve had in Vegas in a while! The beer list was huge and the prices weren’t insane like most casino restaurants. I cannot wait for a return trip.

On another trip I tried Comme Ca. It was ok. Not priced too bad for a casino, but there wasn’t anything amazing about my meal. I’m looking forward to trying the others – specifically the pizza place, China Pablano and Scarpetta.

Planet Hollywood Hollywood Hip Room

By Marc October 6, 2010

My last trip to Las Vegas was my longest and I split duty between Planet Hollywood and the Venetian. Generally, I love staying at Planet Hollywood and this time was…

Venetian Suite Review – Meh

By Marc August 23, 2010

I’ve stayed at the Palazzo for my past two trips to Las Vegas and enjoyed the suites both times I stayed. This time I figured I’d stay with (Enrico) Palazzo’s sister (whoa) the Venetian. Poor girl’s insides haven’t aged very well.

The Palazzo is still relatively new, so I was expecting a little wear and tear on the Venetian suite, but there was a little more than I expected. Fortunately, the bathroom was still in excellent shape. The shower and tube were spotless and cleaned daily.

The vanities both had marble tops and gold fixtures.

Unlike the Bally’s room I had in Atlantic City there was nothing gaudy about anything in the bathroom.

Unlike the Palazzo suites, the door to the water closet does not shut automatically. That’s a good thing.

My Vegas Vacation – Eating at the Grand Lux Cafe

By Marc May 21, 2010

I love a good meal, but I like sharing good eats with friends. As I mentioned last year in a guest blog at Solo Friendly when I travel alone I…

Planet Hollywood – A Tale of Two Rooms (Part 2)

By Marc May 6, 2010

As I mentioned yesterday my stay at Planet Hollywood was a tale of two rooms. After walking around and taking pictures of dirty room 1, I went back downstairs to check in to inform them about the room. Without question and before I could list off all of the dirty items I had a new room. I think the old man in the scooter yelling about his stay helped me get a nice room. 🙂

I’m pretty sure I was upgraded to a resort room, which I’ll call “Room 2.” This room was MUCH larger and thankfully cleaner. There was ample room and options for me to charge my iPhone. I chose the work area as my charging station.

You can see how big the room is by turning around from the work area. The TV and wall unit was on the opposite wall with the bed set to the right. This was a slightly awkward angle to watch TV, but it wasn’t too bad.

There were two big comfy chairs and a table to the left side of the room. I spent most of my time in the room in one of the chairs.

I may have passed out in the chair after my 3rd tall Grey Goose and Soda, which was proceeded by two drinks in the Diamond Lounge.

Pictures and more after the jump

Planet Hollywood – A Tale of Two Rooms (Part 1)

By Marc May 5, 2010

In addition to my stay at Palazzo, I took a night to explore Planet Hollywood. I love the casino, but haven’t stayed there in a few years. I had similar offers to stay at each casino but after your votes I decided to make my home at Palazzo.

My stay at Planet Hollywood was a tale of two rooms. Check in was packed. It’s a small area, but there seemed to be hundreds of people. Luckily for me there was a fast quiet room for diamond total rewards members to check in.

In minutes I received my keys to my first room. I’m going to guess I had a basic “Hollywood Hip” room, but I’m not sure so I’ll just call it “Room 1.”

Room one wasn’t cleaned from the previous guests and the TV didn’t work. Additionally, the room was one of the smallest I’ve seen in Vegas. I can’t imagine how two queen beds could fit in this space and I don’t know that I want to find out. Of course, I love the casino so I’ll fight with myself about this in the future.

My trusty iPhone charger was the only item that made the trip down the strip with me. I figured that I’d wake up and head right over to Palazzo whenever I woke up the next day.

Unfortunately, the way the room was laid out there was no obvious place to set my phone for a charge outside of the bathroom. The work space was a little tight and just about up against the bed. It’s not easy to see, but there’s a half finished iced coffee by the lamp.

One nice feature is that each room had a newspaper delivered each morning. The night/morning I stayed at Planet Hollywood I ran into delivery.

The bed itself looked nice. The bed had cream coverings with dark trim. I didn’t bother trying out the mattress or coverings, but at least it looked good.

I was standing next to an awkwardly placed chair when I took the picture above. This was pretty much the only place there was room for a sitting area in the room. This was the only place someone could sit and watch TV if the TV worked. The TV didn’t work. Leftover item #2, a Mountain Dew bottle, is to the left of the TV.

Looking the other direction from the chair was the view outside. The room had a nice view of the pool. The pool area isn’t very big, but it looks nice.

More pictures and room information after the jump

Return to The Palazzo

By Marc May 4, 2010

This was a return to Palazzo for me. Even though I spent one night at Planet Hollywood my main home casino this trip was Palazzo.

I had a good time at Palazzo in December and wanted to relax a little on this trip. The casino at Palazzo never got too crazy and the environment, in general, was pretty chill so it would make for a nice place to stay.

I also had an offer I couldn’t refuse of three comp nights. It would be hard to say no. The rooms are large and comfortable. Perfect to get away in.

Once again my room/suite didn’t disappoint. It was clean when I arrived and cleaned daily. All furnishings were in tip top condition.

I tried the “$20 trick” for the first time and was treated to a high room, near the elevator, with a nice view of the strip. I’m not normally one to sit by a window and look at the view, but it was nice. I was more happy to be by the elevator.

more pics on my flickr page

Walking into the room I saw one of my favorite features in the suite – the Master Light Switch. This controls lights in the bathroom, sleeping and living areas. It just lessens the amount of lights to turn off/on. This is a big room! Not a big deal, but it’s nice to have.

I had the same type of suite as I did in December so I didn’t take many pictures. You can look at the old flickr gallery to see more. Having said that, into the bathroom we go. There was a powerful shower and tub to the left.

The water closet (toilet) is to the right of the bathroom. I don’t love the high throne and hate that the door automatically slams shut. I was not sticking my foot in the picture so you could see the toilet. 🙂

The bathroom is huge and set up very nicely. The only negative is that the water closet door slams shut.

Next up is the sleeping area with huge 42″ HDTV and cool underlit dresser. Bottle of water not included.

The sleeping area also has a big, comfortable chair to relax and watch TV from.

There are lots more pictures and Palazzo room info after the jump.