Fontainebleau Las Vegas Review: This $3 Billion Las Vegas Hotel Is the Tallest in the City
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Since its inception in 1954, Fontainebleau Miami Beach has been heralded as a masterpiece in American design and a cultural hallmark. After all, it was where Oddjob murdered Jill Masterson in the James Bond film Goldfinger and a preferred haunt of Frank Sinatra. It therefore seems only fitting that Paul Anka and Justin Timberlake headlined the opening of Fontainebleau Las Vegas on Dec. 13 at a black-tie, Rat Pack-inspired soirée rumored to have cost $20 million.
“The original Fontainebleau Miami Beach turns 70 years old this year, but it has stood the test of time, and I believe this property will as well," Jeffrey Soffer, chairman and CEO, tells Travel & Leisure. "When you build a design-oriented resort rather than themed, or that copies some style, it’s everlasting."
And that is genuinely the ethos of Fontainebleau Las Vegas. Walking into the 20,000 square foot lobby through a 1,600-ton cantilevered steel porte-cochere, I was immediately overcome by a sense of awe and the intoxicating smell of roses set by celebrity florist Jeff Leatham — whose installations are reminiscent of his artistic direction at the Four Seasons George V in Paris.
Continuing on a clean, curvilinear path led me past Collins Bar (one of eight on the property presided over by master mixologist Juyoung Kang, the mastermind behind beverage programs for the Peninsula Beverly Hills, Venetian Resort, and Resorts World) and a multimillion-dollar painting from Richard Prince's High Times series before I arrived to a bank of elevators. Beyond this lies 150,000-plus square feet of gaming floor crowned by 42-foot-high ceilings. Here, an immense chandelier composed of 1,200 bowtie-shaped glass columns covers the center Bleau Bar, which, along with canopied gaming nooks, help humanize the four-story room.
What I loved most about the design curated by the resort’s creative director Peter Arnell, who worked in concert with executive vice president of design John Rawlins, Carlos Zapata Studio, David Collins Studio, Lissoni & Partners, and Rockwell Group, was the vertical integration of the property. Rather than building outward, this 67-story property is built 729 feet up, making it the largest occupiable structure on the strip. This affords guests only a short walk from their room to an elevator to any destination on the property.
Beyond the chandelier, the design collective uses the bowtie iconography popularized by Morris Lapidus in Miami. From drawer pulls to sconces, there are seemingly more subtle bow ties than hidden Mickeys at Disney.
As a Las Vegas enthusiast, I told Soffer that not since Steve Wynn opened his eponymously named Wynn Las Vegas in 2005 has there been more buzz about a project. To which Soffer contends, like Wynn, “My identity is within this building. We are owners and operators.”
Part of this excitement has been the promise of a star restaurant line-up of all first-to-market concepts by the hospitality titans David Grutman and Hakkasan Group founder Alan Yao. There will also be an outpost of Tribeca’s Michelin-starred sushi den ITO and Gabriela Cámara’s Mexico City cantina Contramar that will feature an immersive Casa Dragones tasting room, a recreation of the brand’s ultra-premium agave temple found in San Miguel de Allende. Soffer hopes that the investment will result in Fontainebleau's food and beverage program being regarded as "the finest in the city."
Beyond F&B, much of the property’s excitement comes from Soffer’s acquisition of exceptional talent. This includes his partner and president of Fontainebleau development Brett Mufson, who has led more than $7 billion of multisector development, Zen master Jennifer Lynn, who conceived the Qua Baths and Spa at Caesars Palace, The Spa at Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas, and the Awana Spa at Resorts World, in addition to tapping Grutman to transport Miami’s LIV Nightclub and birth LIV Beach dayclub in the desert.
Here's everything you need to know about Fontainebleau Las Vegas.
- Each room (all 3,644 of them!) features thoughtful amenities such as refrigerated drawers, steamers, and oversized showers, while suites have bathtubs that are among the longest and deepest we’ve seen.
- The property's impressive selection of contemporary art includes a 46-foot piece by Urs Fischer crafted from steel, aluminum, and gold leaf and a kinetic sculpture by BREAKFAST aptly titled Oceans,which moves based on real-time tidal data from across the globe.
- Located on the Strip's northern end, the hotel is immediately adjacent to the Las Vegas Convention Center and proximate to the Sphere, Chinatown, and downtown Las Vegas.
- David Grutman’s second-floor entertainment district featuring Papi Steak, Komodo, and LIV Nightclub has already established itself as one of Las Vegas’ hottest entertainment destinations.
- Booking a seat at ITO’s penthouse omakase counter grants guests access to the resort’s super swank private members club, the Poodle Room, before and after their dinner.
The Rooms
While guest rooms start at 488 square feet and feature oversized showers, refrigerated drawers perfect for chilling beverages or storing snacks, steamers, and custom, pillow-topped mattresses dressed in 500 thread count linens, suites kick things up a notch.
The highlight of our 936-square-foot Royal Suite was a massive sunken tub. Grand Panorama Suites are “more dramatic with pool tables and butler service,” according to Mufson. Expect a cerulean and chrome color pallet accented by mercurial mirrors, pops of coral, and brass with surfaces lined in gray wood veneer, pearlescent shagreen, and Arabescato marble, conferring a feminine yet art deco aesthetic.
The property’s top five floors consist of 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 whisked up to their residences, where they will be met by a dedicated team of butlers ready to draw a milk bath or operate a Jura coffee maker. These rooms feature bespoke Jeff Leatham florals, welcome chocolates from Patrice Caillot (a gold medal-winning World Pastry Team champ), temporary membership to the resort's exclusive Poodle Room, and a private VIP pool.
Food and Drink
With 36 first-to-market concepts, it's hard to comprehend the scale of the culinary operations at Fontainebleau, but let’s start in the bakery. Here, Mufson explained that the Fontainebleau's bakery provides bread for the entire building, ranging from a cacio e pepe pull-apart croissant at Don’s Prime to a recreation of Miami’s iconic El Bagel. Fun fact: Fontainebleau uses 1,250 pounds of flour daily, and as Miami’s water is more alkaline than Las Vegas, they pH balance it for their bagels.
While Don’s Prime has quietly become one of Vegas’s best contemporary steakhouses (their steak tartare and caviar-topped Hasselback potatoes are a must), Papi Steak is handily the most fun. Here $1,000 “beef cases'' present cuts of wagyu with the fanfare of bottle service, but our picks are their Glatt kosher tomahawks, wagyu pastrami, and Monop Potato, dolloped with a full ounce of Kaluga caviar named after co-proprietor David “Papi” Einhorn’s friend and graffiti artist Alec Monopoly.
Near Papi Steak is Groot Hospitality’s other eatery, Komodo, where pan-Asian fare is presented with a side of vibe — think Miyazaki “cloud” beef and beautiful nigiri. Regarding other Asian cooking, Alan Yao (the man behind Hakkasan, Yauatcha, and Wagamama) is proffering exceptional dim sum at Washing Potato. Here, guests ascend onto a stage-like dining platform for a performative experience that showcases north of 50 selections. Chyna Club, a more formal Cantonese concept, serves uni fried rice, lobster Cantonese, and Peking duck.
Rounding out the Asian offerings are Chef Chris Arellanes' Kyu and Masa Ito and Kevin Kim’s Ito and Bar Ito. Kyu, a Miami and Mexico City transplant, is an Asian-inspired, wood-fired restaurant that delivers bold flavors — we loved the light kale chips and octopus bulgogi. Bar Ito is a more affordable but extremely elevated temaki counter, while Ito is poised to become one of the country’s most rarefied omakase experiences.
Regarding other fine dining, we would be remiss not to mention Chef Evan Funke’s first effort outside L.A. The pasta and pizza master came correct with a focused selection of authentic Roman cuisine at Mother Wolf, including a bright prawn dish served with green garlic salsa verde.
Should you find yourself looking for more casual fare, the promenade (read food hall) also consists of a coffee bar called Break, Capon’s Burgers, Miami Slice, Nona (sando and salad shop), and L.A.-based Roadside Tacos, while Alain Ducasse alum Laëtitia Rouabah is curating one of the most refined brunch affairs in the city at La Fontaine — her buckwheat crêpe and Saint-Jacques rôties were exquisite.
Activities and Amenities
Like New York, Vegas never sleeps, and there is certainly plenty of entertainment on offer, including a six-acre pool deck that Mufson likens to an adult playground. "[LIV Beach dayclub] and our main pool are a bit more high octane with high energy, while we’ve modeled Gigi’s Grotto after the YSL House in Morocco," Mufson explains. A butler-serviced Legacy Pool will also be reserved for Fleur de Lis guests, along with a gaming area, five bars, and two restaurants.
Beyond the pool, wellness takes center stage within the 14,000-square-foot fitness center and 55,000-square-foot Lapis Spa.
Come afternoon and evening, some of my favorite spots to grab a drink were The Tavern, an ultimate man-cave meets sports bar; the moody, agave-focused Azul; and Nowhere, where you can play a game of pool or backgammon with a background of a live band playing the postmodern jukebox.
During my stay, I also caught Post Malone playing an intimate set in the 3,800 square foot BleauLive theater, which Mufson says will be programmed by Live Nation and can serve as a multifunctional space for everything from conferences to comedy shows.
But, perhaps the most notable is the arrival of David Grutman to the Vegas market, who, in addition to Papi Steak and Komodo, has opened LIV Las Vegas. The Rockwell Group has designed the 50,000-square-foot space, which is truly an immersive experience. “I love to be able to put people into my world and being able to have different touching points throughout the day and evening to keep it as an ecosystem that all lead back to LIV at the end of the day," Grutman tells T+L. As for the talent? He says we can expect to see headliners like “the Tiestos [of the world], but we also have the John Summits and Metro Boomins who are the next generation of what’s hot.”
The Spa
Jennifer Lynn, the director of spa and wellness, spent the past 18 months conceptualizing the property’s Lapis Spa. "Las Vegas has been copy-paste for years with separate men’s and women’s spaces, but there has been a recent evolution," she tells T+L. "We were able to [build Lapis] around a communal area, which is the largest thermal experience in the city.”
To understand this evolution, Lynn traveled throughout Europe and studied sauna culture throughout the Netherlands, Austria, and Italy and enlisted the help of a three-time world champion sauna, Meister, to bring the art of Aufguss to the resort. Here, trained dancers use choreographed towel flicks to move heat throughout the performance space. It’s a multi-sensory experience complete with aroma and light therapies that are just a component of this bathhouse. There are also hydrotherapy pools, cold plunges, a snow shower, a salt mist cave, an herbal inhalation room, and the like.
For the ultimate party, groups of up to eight people can book the Super Nova Suite with a private relaxation lounge, vitality pool, steam shower, sauna, and three treatment tables.
As for treatment, expect “technology forward services,” says Lynn. Be it a Dr. Barbara Sturm facial (she invented the vampire facial, and Victoria Beckham and Hailey Bieber favor her products) combined with a Geneo X Oxfoliation to get you red carpet ready for a Vegas night or an X massage which makes use of Vagus nerve oil and specialized techniques to downregulate the “Vegas stim.”
Sustainability and Accessibility
"Sustainability is at the forefront of what we do, and we are proud to have achieved three Green Globes certified,” says Mufson — no small feat given that Fontainebleau Las Vegas’s operations are comparable to a small city.
Many of these efforts may not be readily apparent to guests, but all lights on the property are LED, and aerators help mitigate water waste. Everything is recycled, and even food waste is sent to a pig farm in nearby Pahrump.
While the resort’s vertical integration creates quick paths to all that Fontainebleau, the resort is entirely ADA-compliant.
Location
Situated at the Northern end of Las Vegas Boulevard, Fontainebleau sits immediately adjacent to the Las Vegas Convention Center’s West Hall. Given the resort itself has 550,000 square feet of meeting space, including the largest, pillarless carpeted ballroom in a hotel in the US (it can fit two 747 nose-to-nose), the resort is primed to become a go-to destination for meeting goers and planners.
The resort is also only a short stroll to Wynn Las Vegas, Resorts World, and The Venetian Resort, which is connected to the recently debuted Sphere. For those venturing further afield, the property is only a 10-minute cab ride from downtown Las Vegas to the North and one of America’s best Chinatowns to the West.
While self-parking is free for hotel guests, rideshares and taxis are easily available.
How to Get the Most Value Out of Your Stay
With rates starting from $176 midweek for a Bleau King, a stay at Fontainebleau is attainable. The property has also launched its Fontainebleau Rewards program, which rewards gaming and non-gaming spend. Non-gaming guests will begin to progress through tier levels with $1,500 of ubiquitous spend on the property and be rewarded with dining and spa credits, complimentary parking, upgrades, early and late check-out, waived resort and ATM fees, and VIP access.
Mufson tells T+L that the property has plans to join both Virtuoso and American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts programs soon, which offer guests early check-in, late check-out, room upgrades based on availability, breakfast, and a $100 experience credit.
