The Forbes Travel Guide Star Award Winners were released a couple of weeks ago. You may remember that I shared some of the relevant press releases in Vegas News.
I didn’t add commentary because I had more to say than fit the quick-hitting column structure. Surprisingly, I take the list somewhat seriously when it comes to Las Vegas.
Luxury is not for everyone. Not everything is true luxury.
A few years ago, Mr. Travelzork and I had a fun conversation about “bro luxury.” It isn’t luxury for wealthy travelers, but it’s definitely a step above average. I think about this often when discussing the topic.
Las Vegas is a market where everything claims to be the best. I still remember a bar in a casino mall reopening as an “ultra luxury dive bar.” That’s not a real thing, and it tilted me for about a year.
When I listen to casino operator earnings calls nowadays, it feels like every third word is luxury. It makes sense that a business would target wealthy and profitable customers. Unfortunately for them, not all expensive things are truly luxurious.
The Forbes Travel Guide helps sort some of this out. The report covers three levels, with five stars being the highest and “recommended” meaning well above average but not elite.
It’s a fairly accurate representation of the most luxurious place in Las Vegas. The annual rankings are a useful reference even if the winners aren’t very surprising.
I don’t do spas, but I enjoy eating in top restaurants and occasionally staying in the fanciest hotels, and can add some context.
Forbes Travel Guide Las Vegas Hotels
Most of the hotels on the Forbes list aren’t a surprise. What might be surprising are some of the omissions and twists to include certain brands.
5-Star
- Aria Sky Suites
- Encore Tower Suites
- Skylofts at MGM Grand
- Wynn Tower Suites
4-Star
- Crockfords Las Vegas, LXR Hotels & Resorts World Las Vegas
- Encore at Wynn Las Vegas
- Four Seasons Hotel Las Vegas
- The Palazzo at The Venetian Resort Las Vegas
- The Venetian Resort Las Vegas
- The Villas at Caesars Palace
- Wynn Las Vegas
Recommeneded
- Conrad Las Vegas at Resorts World
- The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas
- Trump International Hotel Las Vegas
- Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas
Aria is considered a luxury hotel, but it isn’t, according to Forbes. Only the Sky Suites made the cut. That’s 442 rooms of more than 4,000 rooms. MGM Grand isn’t positioned as a luxury resort, and similarly, only a small percentage of its rooms are on the list.
Staying with MGM, The Cosmopolitan lands on the lowest rung of luxury, while Bellagio isn’t considered a luxury hotel by Forbes. The Cosmopolitan rooms are in dire need of a refresh, but renovations won’t begin until 2028.
Caesars Palace made the list because of a small collection of rooms known as The Villas. I’m sure the 31 suites are nice, but that’s just a sliver of the nearly 4,000 rooms at the property and now Caesars can use the Forbes name in its marketing.
Meanwhile, all of the hotel towers at The Venetian and Wynn appear somewhere on the list.
Notably, between MGM and Caesars, only four towers across their combined 19 Strip casinos appear on the list. Technically, it’s three towers since MGM has no involvement with Four Seasons Hotel Las Vegas.
The biggest surprise inclusion may be Conrad at Resorts World. The rooms are nice but unspectacular. I enjoy the property, though many visitors don’t.
Are any hotels missing on this list? Drop a comment below or wherever you read this.
Forbes Travel Guide Las Vegas Restaurants
Las Vegas has so many great fine-dining restaurants, but only 16 made the Forbes list. It feels like there should be more, but I really only care about steakhouses, so I could be way off here.
5-Star
- Le Cirque Las Vegas
- Restaurant Guy Savoy
- Wing Lei
4-Star
- CUT
- Genting Palace
- Joël Robuchon
- Kusa Nori
- L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon Las Vegas
- Michael Mina
- Mizumi
- Sinatra
- SW Steakhouse
Recommended
- Bouchon
- Craftsteak
- Hakkasan
- Mott 32
The three steakhouses listed rank near the bottom of my usual recommendations. All three are very good, but I haven’t visited in years because there are better options around town, from StripSteak at Mandalay Bay to Andiamo downtown at The D.
Are any restaurants missing on this list? Drop a comment below or wherever you read this.
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Marc grew up on the mean streets of the South Bronx. He's the rare combination of Yankees and Jets fan which explains his often contrarian point of view. He learned about gambling at a young age working down the street from a bookie who took action on anything from the mainstream sports to the last three digits of the purse for certain horse races. Yeah, that's a thing. Today Marc is a freelance writer and social media consultant which allows him to work anywhere there's a wifi signal. This allows him to work from the sportsbook at Red Rock Resort or the food court at The Venetian where you’ll find fast and free wifi. Writing about steak, booze, gambling and Las Vegas is a tough job but somebody has to do it.