I want to write this so that others know what I experienced and what to ACTUALLY expect when spending this much money for a Penthouse. I have never once written a negative review on AirBnB and my intent is not to do that here as well. I am going to give my accurate and honest opinion on the entire experience.
We decided to rent this unit because my now-wife and I wanted to get married here. The pictures looked great and it seemed like the perfect place to have a small ceremony and reception.
Communication:
Communication with the host is not that bad. They will respond in a reasonable amount of time but their responses are very calculated and transactional. There is no exceptional customer service in regards to their communication. Simple No's and Yes's. There were some templated informational responses given.
Price:
The price will highly fluctuate between $2500 a night and $7500 a night. I get high demand times, holidays, etc.... but the price literally doubled between the Thursday before I rented it and the Thursday I got married. Consistent pricing would be a favorable thing for most guests. Why should one person pay one price and another pay another price for the exact same day of the week? The owners/managers of this property will give you zero wiggle room on pricing. I have multiple reviews on this site of previous places that I have stayed and all of them state that the place was in immaculate condition when I left. I am a Veteran and pride myself on leaving things in better condition then when I accepted them. I asked for a discount on the $475 cleaning fee and immediately was shot down. So in regards to price, just understand that it is what it is.
Check in:
Our wedding ceremony was at 6pm. The host said that check-in was at 4pm. I asked multiple times if we could check-in early if the room was available and no responses were given at first. Then when I contacted AirBnB from this location they said that check-in was at 3pm and asked if we wanted to come early. I was thrilled to find this out as we needed every minute we could to set up for the wedding and get the food and decorations set up. I told her we'd show up between 2-2:30 and thanked her. We showed up at 2:30 ish and walked up to the check-in desk. I was begrudgingly greeted by a very rude and condescending staff member at the desk. I gave her my name and she bluntly told me "Check in is at 3". I advised her that the lady on the phone said we could come early and get set up. She responded with "Check in is at 3" If you spend $1000 for a Sky Suite at the Aria, you get a private entrance, limo service, a dedicated check in area, private elevator. You get your butt kissed. Spend $6000 here and you get attitude from the front desk. So I politely thanked her and walked back outside and sat in the parking lot for 20 minutes. I came back to the front desk and they ignored me for 5-6 minutes before acknowledging me again and checked me in. Since I have never been to this place before, I asked how many keys could we get, do they have the guest list, how do guests check in....etc..... I got crappy vague answers. After a few phone calls, they advised me that the guest list would be given to the security guy and he would let them up. The staff at this place is an absolute joke. They don't give 2 craps about the customers or service at all.
Getting up to the room:
Here's where some minor frustrations came in that could have been totally avoided if the hosts knew how to take care of people. You have to take the elevator up to the 58th floor, which no one told us. You have to find a double door to the side, which no one told us. You put your key in that door to access the private elevator to the 59th floor which no one told us. Then you can access the Penthouse. Once we got it, we unloaded and tried to quickly get set up. There are absolutely zero instructions in the house to show you how to use anything. Blinds, Audio for the whole place, the TV in the master suite, the jets for the master suite tub, the controls for the heated hot tub outside, the lighting. Nothing. You literally have to have 3 or more kids with tech know-how to figure it all out. A simple booklet with a list of instructions would have been amazing.
The Penthouse:
I will start with the positive. The view is absolutely stunning. You wont find a better view of the valley anywhere in Las Vegas. This is what saved the entire experience. The beds are very comfortable. The sunrise the next morning was breathtaking. The kitchen is awesome. Having said that here we go.....The pictures on this site were professionally done and done well. The place is VERY dated. There are cracks in the floors, stairs are missing pieces, floor moldings are busted, the hot tub is leaking water on the roof, the toilet seat in one of the bedrooms was completely missing (not a bidet), the outside grills are nasty, 1/2 of the main suite jetted tub is not working..... and oh yeah. The A/C in the master suite is completely out. The room my fiance had to get ready in was 90 degrees. We lowered the blinds, turned the temp down and nothing. We called maintenance and they sent a tech up that verified that the unit was not working. What did the host do? Told me that they are unsure how that is an inconvenience, and refunded me $250 (not offered...it was after I asked for