The Surprising Way I Spent My Las Vegas Vacation

It’s pretty hard to avoid having an all around unhealthy, overly indulgent stay in Las Vegas. The entire Strip, with its smoke-filled casinos lacking any hint of natural sunlight and fast-food courts around every corner, lends itself to that “I wasn’t very good to my body” feeling. That’s why I was amazed to come back from my recent trek into the city of sin feeling rested, cleaner and, yes, after a vacation, thinner!

The CityCenter—which includes Aria Resort, Vdara, the boutique hotel, and Crystals Shopping Center—is set up so you don’t ever have to experience the typical part of Vegas if you don’t want to. The City Center is a “mini urban community.” The tram and bridges winding through and connecting the diverse properties eliminates the use for a car even once during your stay. I loved that feature because usually everything feels SO far apart on the strip. I’ve spent too many late-night hours waiting for a bus that dropped me off 5 blocks away from my resort.

My friend and I checked into Aria, the only resort on the strip where you will find actual sunlight inside the casinos. I had to get accustomed to for once having some conception of what time of day it was in Las Vegas. But that was infinitely better than being spit out the revolving doors of one of the more conventional casinos to realize “I’ve been gambling for TEN hours!” Another aspect of the resort that was notably different from its neighbors—the clean air. That’s because in its efforts to cut down on air conditioning use, the property cools from the ground up with tubes that run through the floor. This means no losing your friends in a cloud of cigarette smoke. Most hotels and resorts put their ventilation systems in the ceiling—which can often be a few hundred feet above our heads—so an immense amount of energy is required just to get that air from up there to down where we actually do our gambling, dining and drinking.

Photo: CityCenter Julian Serranos Tapas restaurant

Photo: CityCenter Candy Store

A few other components that reduce the artificial, Disneyland feel of other resorts: the plant life around the property is native to the desert, most of the restaurants offer expansive outdoor seating (whether that be actually outdoors or simply protruding into the casino) making it feel more like a promenade in a quaint town, and the pocket park between Aria and Crystals, with large art sculptures and benches located strategically under the trees to protect form the desert sun.

My friend and I made dinner reservations for the weekend at Sage and American Fish. Both restaurants use seasonal produce retrieved locally. Chef Richard Camarota of Sage sneaks some international influences into his traditional American dishes. No dish left us feeling heavy but each was bursting with distinct flavors. A few of our favorites: the oyster shooter with piquillo pepper, Tabasco and aged tequila mignonette (not a hint of fishiness), the foie gras custart “brulee” (toasted on top like a crème brulee”, the 48-hour Beef Belly with fig glaze, and the crunchy chocolate and peanut butter tart. When it comes to cocktails I’m always on the look out for interesting cocktails with unexpected ingredients, so I ordered the Tahona, made with Sombra Mescal, Green Chartreuse, Smoked Grapes and Lavendar Bitters.

Photo: Julia Austin Tabasco Oyster Shooter & Smoked Grape Cocktail at Sage

Photo: Julia Austin Crunch Chocolate & Peanut Butter tart at Sage

Yes, it was a lot of food, but light and fresh enough to leave me free of a food-hangover the next morning and ready for my indoor hike around Aria. That’s right—exercise in Las Vegas. I think it’s a shame to be cooped up in a gym while on vacation. I want to explore constantly. Luckily the fitness center offers the indoor hike, during which one of the instructors will tour you around the property, showing sides of the resort most guests usually miss out on, and using the space to stop for drills. I did sprints, lunges and squats in the convention center, jumping jacks in front of Haze, the resident nightclub, and pushups near the pocket garden. The tour distracted me from the fact that I was actually getting a workout, but I felt it the next morning.

My workout prepped me for round two at one of Aria’s five-diamond eateries, American Fish. I rarely order fish, but every dish is prepared with entirely unique garnishes, glazes and sauces, that I forgot I was eating FIVE seafood dishes. Here were some of the highlights: Diver scallops with creamy cucumber sauce, quail egg, caviar and purple potato, Tuna Tartare with wild arugula and pine nuts, and the evil (but blissful) desert platter consisting of coconut rice pudding, mascarpone cheesecake, Valrhona Chcolate custard and Farmers market strawberries with pistachio streusel. Defintely had to change into one of my tummy-tucking dresses after that!

Photo: Julia Austin Diver Scallop with Cucumber Sauce & Caviar at American Fish

Photo: Julia Austin Dessert Platter at American Fish in Aria

I ate healthy(admittedly in exuberant amounts), I squeezed in a workout and my cocktails actually consisted of some fat-burning, detoxing ingredients. But what really left me feeling like I spent the weekend at a spa rather than American’s playground was my Indian Jasmine Flower skincare and massage treatment at Vdara spa, the only Nevada spa that partakes in the Green Spa Network. Each treatment incorporates organic and natural ingredients and takes an holistic approach. In this 90-minute treatment, I was gently exfoliated with organic sea salt and a blend of jasmine sambac, neroli and Indian Jasmine. Following the exfoliation I rinsed off in the in-room shower and lay back down for my full body massage including the scalp massage with organic flowers enriched with honey. My skin felt and glistened like butter after. Basically, I felt like an Indian princess. Not a bad feeling.

Photo: Julia Austin Hot Tub & Relaxation Room at Vdara Spa

Photo: Julia Austin Meditation Room at Vdara Spa

If you’re looking for a new “spa weekend” type of getaway, or if you just want to squeeze in some healthy, clean experiences between your clubbing and yard-long cocktails, The City Center allows you to escape from the giant M&M stores and smoke-filled casinos for a surprisingly sin-less visit to the city of sin.

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