SAHARA Las Vegas

The Sahara is the kind of hotel that greets you with a reasonable room rate, shakes your hand, and then spends the rest of your stay checking your wallet to make sure it didn’t miss anything. To be fair, the place is generally clean, except for the elevator areas, which occasionally look like management lost a bet and agreed to stop caring. The rooms have been renovated, but they’re tiny. If you’re traveling with a spouse and two suitcases, someone’s sleeping vertically. The room prices can seem like a steal until the Sahara introduces its $67 resort fee. That’s when you realize the advertised rate was more of a suggestion than an actual number. The location is at the far north end of the Strip. Not “a little far.” Not “slightly removed.” I think when Lewis and Clark headed west, they passed the Sahara on the way. The monorail helps tremendously, and the nearby 24-hour Deuce bus is one of the smartest ways to get around Vegas. Now let’s discuss the Starbucks inside the hotel. If you’ve ever wanted to pay luxury-car prices for coffee, this is your moment. Walk six minutes to the regular Starbucks outside and save enough money to play a few slot machines. The Walgreens next door is equally important because buying water inside the Sahara requires the kind of financial planning normally associated with college tuition. The pool closes so early that it feels personally offended by sunlight. Vegas is a city where people eat breakfast at 2 p.m., yet the pool seems to operate on banker hours. Then there’s the coffee maker situation. The hotel removed them from the rooms because apparently guests making their own coffee was an unsustainable threat to the business model. Why provide convenience when you can create another transaction? The front desk is Vegas in human form. One employee will treat you like a valued guest. The next will treat you like you interrupted an important meeting by showing up to the hotel you paid to stay in. The Sahara’s biggest problem is that it keeps wandering into the same price range as MGM Grand. MGM has a lower resort fee, a lazy river, more amenities, and generally doesn’t make you feel like you’re participating in a live-action experiment called “How Much More Can We Charge?” Overall, the Sahara isn’t bad. It’s clean, updated, and has decent transportation options. But every time you turn around, there’s another fee, another markup, or another missing amenity. Staying here feels less like checking into a hotel and more like being slowly mugged by accountants.

I recently stayed at the Sahara and was disappointed by several aspects of my room experience. The room was consistently hot and humid throughout my stay, and the thermostat would not allow the temperature to be set below 71°F, making it difficult to get comfortable, especially at night. Unfortunately, the cleanliness of the room also fell well below expectations. Upon arrival, I noticed a visible stain on the bed sheets, and there were used contact lenses on the shower floor, which was particularly concerning and suggested the bathroom had not been thoroughly cleaned before my check-in. In addition, the mattress was placed on a platform bed but was not properly secured. Each time I sat on the edge of the bed, the mattress shifted noticeably. By morning, nearly half of the mattress had slid off the platform, leaving a significant portion unsupported. This made for an uncomfortable and unsettling sleeping experience. While the hotel's location and amenities may appeal to some travelers, the condition of the room and the lack of attention to basic cleanliness, comfort, and maintenance significantly detracted from my stay. For the price paid, I expected a much higher standard of quality and upkeep.

We recently stayed at SAHARA Las Vegas and had such a fantastic experience. The hotel has a really fresh, modern feel while still keeping that classic Vegas atmosphere. The rooms were clean, comfortable and beautifully presented, with great views and very comfortable beds. The staff throughout the hotel were friendly, welcoming and always willing to help, but the concierge team truly stood out. Every single one of them was absolutely beautiful ❤️ — so warm, kind and genuinely helpful, always greeting us with a smile and making us feel so welcomed throughout our stay. The location was also fantastic — close enough to the excitement of the Strip but far enough away to feel a little more relaxed and less chaotic. The pool area had a great vibe, the restaurants and bars were excellent, and the overall atmosphere of the hotel felt vibrant and enjoyable. Everything from check-in to check-out was smooth and stress free. A wonderful place to stay in Las Vegas and we would happily return again!

I had a negative experiencing at the Sahara and I would not recommend it for others. First of all, it is the north side of the strip, and if you go out the north entrance, it isn’t even safe to be outside. We witnessed drug transactions, people, disrobing, fights, and various other things. Also, more charges than we approved or knew about were charged to our card with zero accountability for the reason for these charges. We use a card on on check-in for a security deposit they said would fall off of $200. Our card was charged an additional $350 that we weren’t able to get back. When we called to try to resolve this and get clarification, no one could answer our questions. They told me that they couldn’t even bring up a record of the charges. Finally after a month, I got an email back stating that the $350 charge would not be refunded. Various issues! Would not recommend this hotel to anyone.

The STAFF are INCREDIBLE!! Jennifer, Robert, J.C., and Richard are ALWAYS great!! This has ALWAYS been my favorite hotel in Vegas for 15 years! PLEASE bring back the poker room. All We need is ONE table. Take a rake. We'll pay. I miss that.