A gleaming blue tower stands out on the Las Vegas skyline, a good distance from the rowdy crowds at the attractions and casinos in the middle of The Strip. An elegant sign on the ticker at the top of the skyscraper makes it clear who this building belongs to – Fontainebleau. An instantly recognisable name has become synonymous with the highest levels of luxury and sophistication in the hospitality industry.
The $3.7 billion hotel, which is the second addition to the legendary Fontainebleau Miami, opened at the end of 2023, making it the first hotel built in Sin City in over a decade.
The star-studded grand opening celebration, which attracted A-list celebrities like Cher, Sylvester Stallone, Justin Timberlake, Ivanka Trump, and Kim Kardashian, certainly shook up the Strip. However, Fontainebleau’s path to the ribbon-cutting ceremony was likely one of the hardest and longest in the history of Las Vegas.
Long-awaited debut
Fontainebleau Chairman Jeffrey Soffer said that “bringing Fontainebleau Las Vegas to life has been an extraordinary journey.” To describe the resort as the most eagerly anticipated property in the city is not an exaggeration.
Soffer began the project in 2007, but the financial crisis of 2008 forced him to walk away with the building 70 percent complete. For more than 10 years, the site remained empty through various ownership changes, only to be interrupted again during the pandemic.
The light at the end of the tunnel reappeared when Soffer reacquired the property in 2021. When you step inside the 67-story tower, you realise that it was worth the wait!
New era of luxury in Vegas
This colossal hotel complex, spread across 25 acres and housing some 3,644 rooms, contains everything that makes Las Vegas the destination that it is. An endless array of gambling and entertainment options, restaurants and bars, pools and night clubs vie for your attention and the energy levels never dip below ‘lively’.
Despite all of this, Fontainebleau is very different from its rivals. When you arrive, it feels impossible to believe you’re in Las Vegas. The lobby is a gaming-free sanctuary where you don’t need to walk through an endless line of slot machines to get your room key.
Instead you are greeted by the smell and beauty of red roses. Celebrity florist Jeff Leatham is changing the bouquets every three days and switches flowers depending on the season. Overall this is more like a ballroom rather than a registration area. There are marble floors, vast columns, sculptures and ambient music. In the city where you are so used to imitation and marketing tricks it’s something truly extraordinary.
Effortless elegance
This feeling of change and class continues when you finally reach the casino. Historically, Vegas gambling spaces have low ceilings and little natural light. At Fontainebleau, the casino is two stories and situated under 42-foot-high ceilings, making it spacious and airy, resembling an oasis in the desert rather than a cramped, smoky cave. You won’t find the usual ringing and pinging from the various machines, nor the tacky bright neon colours that tend to dominate Las Vegas hotels.
Tribute to Fountainbleau Miami architect
The design of the hotel is homage to architect Morris Lapidus who designed the original Fontainebleau in Miami in 1950s. His signature bow tie motif was incorporated into the new resort’s interior. Throughout furniture, finishes and other design elements, guests can find bow ties hiding in plain sight. For example, there are also 1,200 golden bow ties sparkling from the 60-foot-tall centerpiece chandelier that hangs above the bar on the casino floor.
Miniature bow ties are hidden in a stylish pattern of circles that burst against its navy carpet too. Tiny bow ties are stitched into the back of plush periwinkle leather chairs, beckoning you to each slot machine, while chrome bow ties gleam from the handles on every dresser in the suites. You can find them on the napkins in the Collins bar and in other locations across the resort.
The Rooms
In a city filled with aging hotels with mostly dated designs and tired furniture, the rooms at Fontainebleau are a breath of fresh air – beautifully designed, purely contemporary, bright and spacious. Dark blue and gold is everywhere and it looks incredible, screams luxury and is nicely complemented by modern art lining the walls.
The luxury continues with amenities like large comfortable beds, super soft robes, branded slippers, a refrigerated draw and lots of soft mood lighting. Instead of switches there are touch panels that control the lights and automatic opening blinds.
The spacious bathroom is stunning with a large walk-in shower and some of the nicest smelling shower gel you’ll ever find. There’s even a gold metal disposable toothbrush and shaving razor with engraved Fontainebleau logos – you can’t beat that.
Views for miles
Fontainebleau is the tallest occupiable building in Nevada and the second tallest in Las Vegas, so needless to say, the views from up there are fantastic. The floor-to-ceiling picture-like windows frame a new angle on the Strip, The Sphere, The High Roller and the mountains. The perfect place to sit and enjoy a coffee or glass of champagne and admire that view.
To elevate your experience even higher, the top five floors consist of the 76 Fleur de Lis suites collection ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 square feet, the largest being a four-bedroom penthouse. Guests securing these accommodations will arrive by Rolls Royce into a private motor court before being escorted to a VIP Lounge for check-in – a private place to relax and grab complimentary drinks and snacks. Show tickets, restaurant reservations or tours – whatever you need, just ask the staff in the lounge for assistance. But you don’t need to be a VIP to enjoy the most beautiful parts of this resort.
Pools and outdoor entertainment
Outdoors, the stunning Oasis pool deck lets you soak up all that desert sunshine against the backdrop of the blue tower. You have six pools to choose from, and all of them are equally good, with plenty of sunbeds.
For those seeking sanctuary, the cabanas at the adult-only Legacy Pool for VIP guests come with dedicated butlers to cater to all your needs, including booking you a poolside massage.
For partygoers the dayclub LIV Beach is a lively poolside paradise with capacity of 2,000 people. Guests can enjoy live music by some of the world’s hottest DJs such as David Guetta, Tiesto and Calvin Harris, while sunbathing. There are six VIP Bungalows each with private pools, two levels of cabanas and a dance floor centered around the DJ.
There is a weekly Oasis Cinema Club too. A few weeks ago Mark Wahlberg surprised the guests as they enjoyed a screening of Ted.
Spa and wellness
Wellbeing has never been more at the forefront of our minds than now, and the 55,000-square-foot, two-level Lapis Spa fully embraces this trend. The design of the space helps to create a wonderful separation between everyday life and your weekend/holiday escape. To boost the escapism all attendants are politely suggested to leave their phones in the lockers.
The menu for private sessions ranges from short 20-minute treatments, including compression therapy for legs (great for recovering from a long haul flight), various facials and skin consulting sessions, to lengthy two-hour body treatments for a full mind and body switch off.
We loved our 60-minute Odyssey Massage, offering the choice of Swedish, Deep Tissue, or blend of both techniques, the message is paired with aromatherapy oil and can be enhanced by the use of hot stones on the body.
Ultimate spa experience
On the first floor you can find the purifying salt cave, snow room, infrared sauna, herbal inhalation room, men’s and women’s sections with hammams and hydrotherapy lounges and many other nice features. You may not know where to begin!
It takes about an hour to try everything, including increasingly warm pools, cold shower hoses to blast the lymphatic system, steam rooms, and, finally, the triumphant main atrium pool with various double seats and powerful massage jets, the ultimate being the overhead shoulder blaster.
If you want a reprieve from the saunas or the relentless Nevada sun, you can cool down quickly in the snow room. Inside it’s a frosty 14 F (-10 C) while fluffy snowflakes fall from the ceiling. Heated floors will make the falling snow disappear and keep your feet warm. When your session is complete head to the heated stone loungers.
Event sauna
The most unusual offering is Aufguss (from the German “infusion”), or as it’s called here – Event Sauna, with a 120-inch screen showing picturesque landscapes and colour-changing mood lighting.
Guests are welcome to take part in the various 15-minute theatrical experiences featuring a “sauna meister” who performs towel choreography set to music and lights with aromatherapy steam. She teaches you how to breath, meditate and relax in the ice cold plunge pool. A new experience for us and we really enjoyed it and felt very relaxed afterwards. These Aufguss rituals take place four times a day so check the schedule if you’re interested.
After that if you’re feeling a bit too relaxed, there’s a nap room with comfy loungers, blankets and no lights other than the ceiling covered in twinkling stars – the Rolls Royce of nap rooms.
State of the art gym
The hotel has the 14,000-square-foot gym – one of the largest on the Strip with the floor-to-ceiling windows. The fitness center is outfitted with Peloton and Echo bikes, Woodway treadmills, Hydrow rowers, VersaClimbers, a Jacobs Ladder, a HIIT modular system, and a sled-push and tractor-tire-flip area. There are also machines not commonly found in commercial gyms, like a Keiser Triple Trainer, a strength machine that uses compressed air for resistance. There are also complimentary daily dance, pilates and yoga classes.
The culinary collection
With 36 restaurants there’s everything you can ever want, from casual poolside bites to the luxury food court to once-in-a-lifetime meals. Each restaurant has a different look and feel, with some of the most impressive interior design you’ve ever seen.
Let’s start with a slice of southern France – Le Cote, a bright and airy poolside restaurant only open during daytime, this is a great spot for a morning coffee or brunch.
Celebrity hot spots
Fine dining can be fully embraced at Mother Wolf. The original restaurant opened in Los Angeles a few years ago and has made a sensation attracting celebrities including Beyonce, Jay-Z, Michelle Obama, Adele and many others.
The newly launched Las Vegas edition delivers the same level of service and quality. Serving exquisite Italian food in a cinematic interior created by Martin Brudnizki, Swedish designer with a global portfolio, from Annabel’s London, Fortnum & Mason Hong Kong to Soho Beach House, Miami.
Famous for its pasta, try one of four iconic Roman pasta preparations – cacio e pepe, amatriciana, carbonara and alla gricia. Consider sharing with one other person before diving into grilled whole Mediterranean sea bass. It’s delicious but huge and personally prepared tableside. Of course, no visit to an Italian restaurant would be complete without tiramisu.
The finest steaks
For an otherworldly steakhouse experience, Don’s Prime is not to be missed. It’s a glamorous old-school dining spot, named after Donald Soffer, the father of Fontainebleau Chairman.
As with Mother Wolf, Don’s Prime is as focused on its aesthetics and atmosphere as its food. Here, you will find plush furnishings, soft lighting, and a 1950s vibe of Manhattan. The restaurant consists of several elegantly designed and intimately unique dining rooms. Waiters wear burgundy velvet jackets sourced from the UK specifically for this establishment.
The menu features top cuts of beef as well as hand-selected Japanese and American Wagyu. Trolley carts bring the experience tableside with sharp-dressed servers carving steaks, preparing salads, and flambéing desserts.
As soon as we sat down, we were offered freshly baked bread, still warm from the oven. For starters we had the Jumbo Lump Crab Cake and Octopus salad, followed by a 32oz porterhouse (medium-rare of course), with sides of mac and cheese and asparagus which was a perfect amount for two and delicious to say the least. We finished our meal with sticky toffee pudding and the signature chocolate cake.
Seafood dream
An elevated Asian affair can be found at a high-end Cantonese spot called Chyna Club. The restaurant was founded by Hong Kong born, UK-based restaurateur Alan Yau. Here you can try the highly sought after turbot fish, or traditional dishes like fresh lobster cantones, drunken king crab and of course peking duck.
Chyna Club is not Yau’s only restaurant at the resort. Washing Potato offers comfort street food and dim sum in a futuristic interior with a unique layout and atmosphere of a night club with animated wall lights and moving spotlights. One of the coolest restaurants we’ve experienced.
Late night entertainment
There are plenty of spaces for pre or post-dinner drinks. Nowhere Lounge is a suave spot with live music, great cocktails and plenty of seating. Collins bar is also your winning bet for traditional cocktails and piano music with a Gatsby vibe.
If nightclubs are your thing, LIV nightclub is one of the hottest clubs in Vegas regularly featuring the biggest DJs around the world like Tiesto and Calvin Harris. Finish the night with some blackjack in the casino.
Unforgettable experience
Las Vegas has always been a city that can reinvent itself. Fontainebleau Miami set the standard when it opened in 1954, and this new resort raises the bar in Sin City.
It’s the newest resort on the strip and therefore the most modern and takes luxury higher than any of its rivals. It has everything you need and at the highest standard and even the location, although slightly off-strip it’s far enough away to escape the chaos but still close enough to the action, while enjoying an air of exclusivity that cannot be matched.
For us, it’s the best hotel resort we’ve ever stayed at and overall an unforgettable experience.
More information about Fontainebleau Las Vegas can be found here.
Image credits: © Fontainebleau Las Vegas, Connie Zhou, Mark Mediana, Sammy Dean, Drex Agency
