Palazzo Las Vegas
As I recently described, I’d been considering a stay at the Palazzo at the Venetian for quite some time. I never got around to another Vegas trip when IHG free night certificates were redeemable there, and that option is now long gone. But the property’s sheer size is hard to ignore – it’s still visible from my Vegas rearview mirror that looks back 12 years or so. Clunky metaphors aside, The Palazzo was my third and final Fine Hotels & Resorts property to experience during my recent Las Vegas trip. With the Conrad and Encore behind me, I was curious to see how The Palazzo would measure up. Here we go!
Booking
I booked my Palazzo stay via Amex’s Fine Hotels & Resorts program and leveraged a Platinum $200 FHR credit. Room rate and taxes came to ~$237, plus a $51 resort fee not covered by the credit. My out of pocket expense was $88, excluding gratuities. I’ll cover the FHR benefits specific to the Palazzo in a future article.
Location
The Palazzo is located adjacent to The Venetian toward the southern end of Las Vegas’s North Strip area. Visitors can easily access other North Strip properties and are conveniently located to Mid Strip attractions, as well. More adventurous pedestrians may consider certain South Strip areas within reach.
Check-In
The Palazzo lobby with its 60 foot glass dome is probably the most striking one I experienced during my recent Vegas trip. A helpful employee oversees the front desk, directing guests to available agents. Given the vast length of the front desk and my growing hotel check-in exhaustion, it was nice for someone else to direct me. Doug at the front desk was a smooth talker, but in a good way. His handling of my check-in was rhythmic, as if he was verbally dancing throughout. I let him lead.
He helpfully mentioned a pro tip for Fine Hotels & Resorts customers – anyone checking in on such a stay can do so at the “Invited Guests” counter perpendicular to the front desk. This came in handy for an expedited checkout experience the next day.
Room
As part of the FHR stay, Doug upgraded me to a king suite with a pool and strip view. Beyond the view, this is a standard Palazzo room. And that’s still pretty good, because the Palazzo is known to have the largest standard rooms on the strip. My King suite measured approximately 650 square feet, and the layout made it feel even bigger. After passing the bathroom adjacent to the foyer, guests arrive at the large bedroom. After taking two steps down, guests enter a living room area which holds a large couch, full desk, and separate dining table and chairs. The room offered two large televisions, one each for the bedroom and living room areas. Two TVs against the same wall is a bit superfluous, in my view, but perhaps not in Vegas.
The bathroom is has plenty of space, as well. Off the main area featuring the dual vanity, separate seating/makeup area, and small television were the powder room, shower, and tub.
Taken as a whole, I feel like the Palazzo room was the most functional one I had during my recent Vegas trip across five different hotels. I had ample room to work, entertain, and sleep. I give the Palazzo high marks for giving all guests access to such useful rooms with ample space.
Amenities
DiningÂ
Countless dining and drinking options exist at the Palazzo and the Venetian. I’m not saying that lightly – it would be quite a challenge to count all the different options across the two properties and the Grand Canal Shoppes. My friend and I enjoyed a straightforward breakfast at the Grand Lux Cafe – my chicken and waffles did not disappoint, and he seemed pleased with his salmon dish. We later had lunch poolside at the Capri Restaurant and Bar. The arugula on the pizza made lunch seem healthy – the tasty drinks, not so much.
Pool
Continuing with a running theme at the Palazzo, the main pool and seating area are large. Rows and rows of guests were filed away in their seats. But in general, everyone seemed to be having a great time in an easygoing environment.
Fitness Center
The Palazzo’s fitness center is oddly tucked away behind the Canyon Ranch Spa and dormant Canyon Ranch Grill. The Techno Gym equipment was showing age but functional enough. The fitness center is probably the only small part of The Palazzo. Compared to the number of rooms, I feel like the miniscule gym size can’t possibly support demand in certain timeframes. But maybe I’m wrong. It wasn’t that busy during my late afternoon visit.
Casino
The Palazzo houses the type of casino I’m historically accustomed to – large, loud, a bit disorienting, and a diverse clientele. In short, it feels exactly like a cliche Vegas casino should, and that’s fine with me. There’s a convenient casino bar with great views for people watching.
Shopping
Let’s not forget that The Grand Canal Shoppes are adjacent to the Palazzo and the Venetian. This indoor mall has a distinctive layout with yes, the Grand Canal, singing gondoliers, their beautiful rides, and a picturesque piazza. Beyond the design, though, it’s the normal everyman shopping and dining you can experience at existing malls around the country (yes, some still exist).
Service
I didn’t receive highly personal service at the Palazzo, nor did I expect to. That’s the opposite of what to expect at such a gargantuan property. However, I did receive perfectly adequate service everywhere, right at my expectations. Notably, I didn’t experience any service disappointments here like I did at the Conrad.
Conclusion
My Fine Hotels & Resorts credit was the push I needed to finally stay at the Palazzo Las Vegas. But based on my recent stay, I could easily justify a return visit here on my own dime (with points or cash back rewards, more accurately). All Palazzo visitors obtain great value at this property – large rooms at reasonable rates, dining at fair prices, and well-rounded amenities. I don’t have definite plans to return, but I can completely understand why people do. The Palazzo Las Vegas seems happy in its own skin, and so do most people who stay here.
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I have been coming to this hotel since it opened.
The main pool doesn’t get the morning sun, and they now charge you for a chair at the pool that does. It’s between 50-100 dollars for each chair you reserve. This is just for the chair. Completely ridiculous that you have to pay to sit in the sun. The hotel is nice, but that policy has people angry and rightfully so.
We don’t have this issue at Wynn…they have plenty of sun at their pools and no charge.
Just booked two nights with free IHG night certificates at palazzo. June 2-3. Maybe I am misreading but FYI they still work.
Emilee,
Congrats! Mine haven’t worked there for a good while now. YMMV, indeed!
The Canyon Ranch fitness center at Venetian is the largest hotel gym in Vegas, which Palazzo guests have access. It’s super modern and feels like a giant 24 hour fitness or Equinox. It’s only a 5 minute walk and a shortcut elevator is in the Shops walkway. The Palazzo version is just a mini workout area for light work. But that Venetian Canyon Ranch is the most impressive gym I’ve seen of any hotel in any city. I end up spending 2 hours there just trying all the unique machines.
Larry,
Thanks for sharing!
Agree with Larry. I stay at the Palazzo but always use the Venetian gym. Best gym on the strip!
I’m dying to know…was the bathroom soap situation satisfactory? 😛
It was, indeed.
It a shame that you did not get an opportunity to visit the prestige amenities. That is the part of the palazzo and the Venetian where you get excellent personal service.
The gym and spa at The Palazzo is an afterthought in terms of space(they make up for that in cost. Egads) IMO. The gym over at the Venetian is huge and very cool. Rock wall for climbing, massive amounts of equipment etc…. I would highly recommend.
And Grand Luxe is like McDonalds compared to the myriad choices of places to eat. None are cheap but Delmonicos is a decent deal. SushiSamba is usually good but can vary depending on what you order. Sadly, the best restaurant in the entire complex is no longer. Carnevino(Mario Batali). It was great.
Geoff,
Thanks for sharing!