The day I said would never arrive, is , in fact , arriving very soon! My 40th birthday will be on May 2nd , and as many of you know I will be starting off my birthday celebrations in Las Vegas, Nevada.
I chose Las Vegas, due to its relative easiness to get to, and price, so people would be able to join in the fun! In this post, I will lay out the details, and options for getting there, and staying there.
WHEN
May 1st, 2nd,3rd (ish).
I will Arrive in Vegas on the night of April 30th, a Monday, and leave the evening of May, 3rd, a Thursday. I have friends, and family coming in from 1 of those days to all 3 , and some even staying longer. Since this is a very informal gathering, people can come and go as they please, the only plans are really on the 2nd, (MY BIRTHDAY) probably at the pool cabanas and/or club, and later at dinner and maybe a casino 500. I would be very happy seeing ANYONE, ANY part of the time I will be there, so please don’t stress so much about dates, JUST COME WHEN YOU CAN!
UPDATE / CLARIFICATION: The gathering at the pool / club will NOT be a pool party, as I am not pool party ready, it may be at or around the pool but cute warm weather clothes are fine, swim wear is up to you, but the party will be in the open air club or in cabanas. after writing I received several texts about this, so don’t worry you DONT NEED A POOL BODY!
WHERE
Las Vegas, Nevada.
I will be based out of both the SLS Las Vegas, and the W Las Vegas, both, SPG properties. The SLS and W are in the same complex, the former Sahara resort and casino, actually.
The SLS used to have 3 towers, the Lux, Story , and World towers. In December 2016 the conversion of the LUX tower into a separate hotel, the W was complete. The hotels have separate entrances and facilities, but are in fact on the same property! I have stayed at the SLS, in the LUX tower before it was a W and it was, in fact, FABULOUS, check out the review HERE!
This hotel is located on the strip, at the end of the Las Vegas Monorail, so its easy to get anywhere you need to go!
You, of course can stay anywhere you want, and if you have comped rooms elsewhere I would not blame you, but I try to ALWAYS stay at SPG properties, especially on special occasions, as you get treated so well!
The SLS Las Vegas
The SLS is the lower priced of the 2 hotels. I have 3 rooms booked here for myself and family. Including the silly $32 a night resort fee and taxes, I have rooms from $75 a night to $105 a night, give or take. I actually used the SPG Best rate guarantee for all 3 of my rooms, because I was able to find them cheaper on other sites than what I booked them direct with SPG. I had the option to match the lower price , plus an additional 25% off or 2,000 points, I chose the points in this instance because the rates were already low! Read the terms and conditions about the best rate guarantee, and use it if you can… I love to use TripAdvisor because they show MANY booking sites and I always do well finding a lower rate!
The current rate I am finding on SPG.com, including all taxes and fees is $99 a night, (See HERE). A quick search on TripAdvisor shows rates as Low as $91 a night with several providers (See Here.) Therefor, at time of writing, you would qualify for the SPG Best Rate Guarantee !
Meaning you would have the choice of the lower rate (before taxes and resort fee), PLUS 25% more off, or 2,000 points. Like I said, because of the low price already, I chose points, as I find 2000 SPG points way more valuable then $10-$15 dollars. Actually , 2000 SPG points are worth over $50 dollars, so …Easy decision, one would think… and to put it into perspective, you can redeem 2,000 SPG points for a weekend category 1 free night, which makes it even more valuable.
As you can see, the SLS Las Vegas is a very nice hotel , yet fairly reasonable, especially if you utilize the SPG best rate guarantee!
*To book use the SPG phone App, or on the SPG website HERE!
The W Las Vegas
The W, Las Vegas in only about a year old as a separate hotel. Like I previously said, it used to be the Lux tower of the SLS, but is now actually a separate Hotel, managed by Starwood / SPG, even though its located on the same compound.
I will be spending probably 2 nights at the W, because I am sure the SPG recognition for a platinum guest is going to be better there, and I really want to stay there since its changed to a W. The problem, if one sees it as a problem, is the W is about twice the price, and I cannot seem to find any lower rates to use the SPG best rate guarantee. At time of writing the price total price for may 1 and 2 is $186 a night, including all fees and taxes, and that’s with a AAA discount.
Don’t get me wrong, I am sure its well worth it, I have never stayed at a W that I was disappointed with, they are usually very modern and over the top with service!
Other Hotel Options
Many of you may have free or discounted rooms elsewhere, and that’s fine, we can meet up, although if at all possible I would love to have everyone close!
Remember to always book direct, like I talked about, even if you find a cheaper rate, because SPG and many other chains, have a best rate guarantee program. When you book direct you get points and perks and a SPG member, that you will NOT booking through a 3rd party site!
NOTE: If you book either the W or SLS, put in the notes, or special requests section of the reservation, that you are attending @TouringTony’s Birthday so the hotel/s can keep track of everyone and keep things a bit organized.
*To book use the SPG phone App, or on the SPG website HERE!
Flights
I will be writing about flights from Oklahoma, as well as Mexico, as that’s my 2 homes, and where most of my friends, and family will be departing from.
I always use Google Flights to search the best airfare. Google flights does not search Southwest fares, which doesn’t affect me, as I don’t fly them. so you have to go direct to their website to search, BUT they do have direct flights from Oklahoma to Vegas for around $250, a few friends have booked them already for this trip!
Here is a sample search from Oklahoma City or Tulsa on Google Flights.
Here is a Sample Search From Mexico City using Google Flights.
As you can see, the airfare, because its midweek, is very cheap no matter how you look at it! Play around with dates, and airlines to find the best fare that suits you, but its fairly straight forward!
Wrap-Up
I hope I was able to lay out how easy it is for you to join me in celebrating my big 40 in Vegas! You really have no excuse, and seriously, everyone is welcome! Surprise me, its fine, I would love to have as many people celebrate this huge birthday as possible, even if we are just acquaintances! This trip, like I said is very loosely organized, so send me a message or just drop into the SLS or W and ask for the TouringTony Group!
You CAN RSVP HERE if you want, but its not necessary!
If you have any questions, please let me know!
and stay tuned for more of my Birthday Month Activities, because 2 days after I return from Vegas I’m off the Dubai and Abu Dhabi!
Thanks for reading, and PLEASE, TRAVEL MORE!!!