Caesars Palace
How did it make you feel when you got there?
The best thing about the Augustus and Octavius tower rooms is that they have their own entry on Flamingo, which is away from all the other people on the Strip. There is valet parking, and you can go straight to registration. At the Forum and Julius towers, and even at Nobu, which is a hotel within a hotel, you have to go through the busy main door. You won’t even be close to a casino floor in Augustus, so it feels very quiet. The colors are light, and the lines are clean. There are no centurions taking selfies with tourists drinking margaritas here.
How is the crowd?
Tourists who come to Augustus often know exactly what they want from Caesars, the 4,000-room Roman spectacular. Every tower is different, and Augustus is one of the newest (and most recently fixed up). The rooms are big, and the newer Octavius tower is thought to be better, but it takes longer to walk from the main door and the casino to Octavius. People who choose Augustus over Octavius know this. Most of the time, they’re well-informed Vegas tourists who come here often to either do business or gamble. This part of the resort has a Starbucks right off the lobby, where in other places it can take a long time just to find coffee. Everything seems to be better planned.
What’s cool? Describe your room.
The Palace Tower, which has 1,181 rooms and is Caesar’s tallest building, just got a $100 million makeover a few years ago. If you want to treat yourself, the villa suites on the 29th floor are the way to go. They are huge and have lots of great (and over-the-top) design features, just like the grand villas in the Octavius and Augustus towers. The shops on Appian Way and the Garden of the Gods Pool are both a short walk from the Palace Tower, which is in the middle of everything. Because Vegas is all about pretending to be someone else for a while, the villas have a wide range of styles, from ancient Greece to a formal northern European villa with Biedermeier furniture, to neoclassical French Empire and English Regency. Each villa has 24K gold-plated fixtures and hand-painted murals, as well as private elevator access, limo service, and VIP check-in.
We really need some deep, healing sleep. They got us?
The beds are great. Very soft and tall.
What about the little things, like a minibar or shower treats? Do any of those things end up in your bag?
Some nice tech touches were added to the rooms in 2016, but the rooms didn’t change that much. For example, lamps now have USB ports and electricity outlets built into their bases, so you don’t have to look far to plug in your phone.
Tell us that the bathroom will be good.
I really enjoy the bathrooms at Caesars. They have a lot of marble and feel very fancy. Caesars seems to know how important it is to always be able to watch TV because there are flat-screen TVs that you can see from your hot tub. The toiletries have the spa’s name on them, but they’re not that special that you’d want to keep them all to yourself.
Wi-Fi is likely the most important subject of all. What do you call it?
The Wi-Fi was very fast and was part of the club fee, which costs $45 per night and is pretty fair. The catch was that I could only link two things together. Your traveling partner will have to pay extra if they want to use the Wi-Fi on their laptop and phone.
What to eat and drink Even Caesar’s restaurants are getting new looks. I love that not everything here costs a lot of money. You can walk to the Forum Shops to get some good fast food. The Forum Food Hall has great food, like DiFara Pizza and Bobby’s Burgers. Then treat yourself at Nobu, Mr. Chow, or Restaurant Guy Savoy.
Is room service worth it?
When you order food through room service, you can get big breakfasts, starters, salads, and main courses like salmon, chicken, and a grilled New York strip. Caesars has done the right thing by letting customers order pizzas from Di Fara as well as its Chinese restaurant, Beijing Noodle No. 9. You almost feel like you’re getting food brought right to your door. “Except that with the $10 delivery fee, 18% tax, and tip included, this may be the most expensive way to eat in your room in Vegas.” I might skip eating in my room and go downstairs instead, unless it’s pizza (which is great) or Chinese food (which is standard but a great idea). The Bacchanal Buffet is not far from Augustus Tower.
Staff: Who would get a prize if you could give one? Why?
I might not give anything to the staff, but I would give something to the people who work at the very busy Starbucks in the hallway!
Do any of the other services and benefits stand out to you? It doesn’t matter if it was babysitting, gyms, spas, parking, or something else.
Some of the pool buildings are family-friendly and have a lot of beautiful pools. Some of the most amazing buffets in the world are still at the Bacchanal Buffet. It serves about 500 foods at a time and never ends. If you want to go to the spa, Augustus Tower is the best place to stay because it is close to Qua Baths & Spa. Another good thing about this is that you won’t have to go through a casino with wet hair and no makeup on after resting there. Caesar’s has so many restaurants that it’s hard to keep track of them all. If you want to walk to the other end of the huge complex, you’ll find the Forum Shops, which have even more restaurants and a lot more shops. It’s really a city by itself.
Ability to access The huge Caesars does a great job of making its different levels accessible. It has ramps connecting the different levels, accessible guest rooms with lots of room for power wheelchairs, and chairs that can be moved at the slot machines and table games.
What did you remember or find most upsetting about your stay?
A lot of people have seen Las Vegas a million times and just want to relax somewhere nice. Caesar’s is one of the best places to do that. This is one of the best places to stay if you want to be close to everything you need, like food, shops, games, coffee, a pool, and a spa.
In the end, is it worth it, and if so, why?
You may have to walk a long way to get to where you need to go at Caesars because the rooms are so big. Las Vegas room rates change based on what events are going on, but these rooms can be about the same price as Wynn. They don’t have as many frills as Wynn rooms, though. This is where you should really check in if you want to stay at a lodge that you don’t have to leave.