One minor thing I'd suggest up front if you stay here and you sleep lightly -- try to get a room that doesn't face Flamingo Ave. The windows are double-paned, but even from the 9th floor, ambulances and "loud pipes" did wake me up a few times the first night.

I never would have considered this off-the-strip hotel if not for its rating here on TripAdvisor, and boy am I glad we checked with TripAdvisor, because this was the best hotel I've stayed in for this price (and for considerably more).

First, it's a suites-only timeshare. Before you stop reading, this is not a sales-pitch for a free stay kind of time share -- the units are already owned, and they're rented out like a regular hotel. Except the rooms are very spacious, they have full-size refrigerators, a small dishwasher (which housekeeping runs for you if you use any dishes), real hair dryers and irons... almost like home. We stayed in the smallest of their suites, the Solitaire. It was quite ample for me, my wife, and our four-year-old son, who slept on the pull-out sofa. You can check out the Solitair floorplan on the Platinum's Web site [---]
The staff is the friendliest I've experienced, and the on-site restaurant is excellent. We arrived Sunday night about 12 hours ahead of our bags, so when we showed up at the restaurants in rumpled clothing (me in a Tee Shirt), I didn't expect to be greeted with smiles and the most gracious and friendly service of our whole stay in Vegas. The food was marvelous, and we took our "doggie bags" upstairs to the fridge for a late-night snack.

The hotel is very close the the strip, but given the crazy Vegas traffic I was glad we had the rental car so we didn't have to manage crossing the intersections on foot. The hotel has valet-only parking, but they were always quick and courteous.

Anyway, we had a marvelous vacation and it was in no small part due to the Platinum and its great staff.

Pros - The room was HUGE and awesome (see photos). Separate bedroom, pullout sofa, full kitchen and a whirlpool tub with separate shower, balcony, "fireplace" (not real fire but still nice), and even a washer and dryer. It was nicer than my house! In fact they will sell you suite as condo. The concierge was always helpful and housing keeping was great. We also never had any problem with the valet even when it got a little crowded.

Cons - It is not on the strip and it really isn't within walking distance (well, we always drove).

Also my friend (who paid for the room) was harassed. There was a private party at the pool one night so they had people at the elevators in the lobby directing everyone. I came through and didn't show them a room key and the guy even push the elevator button for me. My other two friends didn't have any problems at all. Then the last of my friends showed up at the door with one of the employees from the hotel (not the same one I saw at the elevator) and asked if we could vouch for him since he didn't have a keycard (he had given them to us so we could get in the room ahead of him). We said yes but the man was very rude (I should have gotten his name) and came off as totally racist.

Then they charged us a different rate than we reserved the room for. My friend is still trying to sort that out.

Also just so you know, the PDF layout of the room on there website also shows a loveseat in the bedroom but we just got a chair (it wasn't that big of a deal to us).

I really wanted to like this hotel and loved the room but we probably won't be back because of the cons and that is just to bad.

The Platinum Hotel delivers a spa-like atmosphere and a focus on comfort and well being. It is still within walking distance of your strip nightlife and gaming, but allows travelers to escape to spacious guestrooms with shower and jetted tubs, spa toiletries, luxury linens, fully equipped kitchens and an indoor/outdoor pool with sundeck overlooking the strip. Get a room on the spa/fitness facility floor for a convienent workout!

We stayed at the Platinum for 4 nights in mid-September, and overall it did not disappoint. We booked a 2 bedroom suite on the 12th floor and were very pleased with its size. Not that we need a lot of space when we stay somewhere but this was definitely above and beyond. I would say more it's like a condo than a hotel room. This makes sense since half of the rooms in the building are for sale as condos.

The rooms were all clean but not spotless. The wireless internet worked well but was rather expensive at $13/day. The full size kitchen was a definite bonus with more cabinet space than any family would ever need. Strangely enough, the dishwasher was one of those half-size models so if you did use a lot of dishes and glasses you would be running many loads. Also annoying was the fact that the microwave appeared to work (i.e. the light came on, the fan blew air, the food turned), but trying to heat up left-over pancakes took about 8 minutes. I called maintenance and they said it's working properly but it's just a cheap model. Whatever.

The pool area is very nice being up on the 5th floor with a view of the Strip. The pool was heated which most people love. But if it had been a typical Vegas weekend with temps in the 90's+, I would have been quite upset. I mean who wants to jump in a lukewarm pool when it's blistering hot? Fortunately for us it was only in the 70's during our stay. The pool is an indoor/outdoor variety and you can swim between the 2 sections.

The food from the restaurant is overpriced (it is Vegas after all, so get used to that) but quite good. We had room service for breakfast once or twice and lunch by the pool once or twice. Each time was good.

As for location, I think it's great. It's exactly one block (a Vegas block, mind you, which is long) from the Strip. Easily walkable unless it was super hot outside. I like the fact that the Platinum doesn't have any slots or casinos. It lets you get out of that environment which if you spend any time on Strip you're definitely going to want to take a break from that craziness.