PRICE:
Frommer's Very Highly Recommended

Now, for all our heartfelt rhapsodizing above about the Ritz, do not think that we love Green Valley any less. It's not fair to this flat-out fabulous resort to compare the two -- they can't quite compete on the same playing field because Green Valley doesn't have the same pedigree as the Ritz, nor does it have the knockout physical positioning on the lake. But it makes up for that with earnest efforts and slightly lower prices (plus it's about half the distance to the Strip, which is visible from the pool area), and if you can't stay at the one, you won't be unhappy staying at the other. Two different experiences, but each will make you feel like a resort should. Anyway, it seems that Green Valley's designers took careful notes on places like the Ritz-Carlton when coming up with their design -- the interiors, rooms and public spaces both, feel completely influenced by the same, while the exterior pool area borrowed much from hip hotel concepts such as the Standard and the W. This sounds like a potentially risky combination, but it works smashingly. You can stay here with your parents or your kids, and every age group should be happy.

Inside, all is posh and stately -- a dignified, classy lobby, large rooms with the most comfortable beds in town (high-thread-count linens, feather beds, plump down comforters), and luxe marble bathrooms. A recent expansion by the pool added more rooms, some of which have grand views.

Outside is the hippest pool area this side of the aforementioned Hard Rock: part lagoon, part geometric, with shallow places for reading and canoodling, and your choice of poolside lounging equipment, ranging from teak lounge chairs to thick mattresses strewn with pillows, plus drinks served from the trendy Whiskey Beach. There is also a secluded topless bathing area for daring adults. The tiny health club is free, and the spa is also modern and hip.

At night, you can hang out at the ultratrendy Whiskey Bar, where more mattresses and pillows get strewn about, all the better to attract the most beautiful bodies in town (desperate souls try to get past the velvet rope -- you can pass with ease because you are staying here), or Drop Bar; or you can head over to the entirely separate (as in, an adjoining building) casino area, which offers a disappointingly old school-looking gambling area, plus a variety of restaurants and a multiscreen movie theater. A shopping area, The District, conveniently located next door, features a simulated street scene, where you'll find your usual mall and catalog favorites (Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn), plus still more restaurants. This addition does help alleviate the resort's somewhat isolated nature.

Facilities:Casino; movie theater; 10 restaurants plus a food court; lounge; beautiful outdoor pool; health club & spa; concierge; business center; shopping arcade; 24-hr. room service; in-room massage; laundry service; dry cleaning; executive-level rooms.

Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Las Vegas 2008, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.

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