When our Sales Executive suggested that we consider purchasing New Year's week in Las Vegas, also known as owning an "Event Week," I had my doubts. I wondered if we would go to Vegas every year for New Year's Eve. That was about six years ago, and except for pandemic-related interruptions, we've gone every year. Not familiar with how a Hilton Grand Vacations Event Week works?
Keep reading.
Here's How it Works
Owning an Event Week isn't that different than owning a non-event week — except every year, you automatically have a reservation for the resort where you own the event week. You can cancel the reservation without a penalty or extra fees; it's just booked for you a few years in advance.
When we first considered it, my first thought was: do I need to own New Year's week?
Couldn't I just book it in advance? Well, I found out that's easier than it sounds. It's much harder to book New Year's Eve than I could've imagined, so I determined it was a good purchase.
Suppose you're one of the many people who prefer Vegas in increments of three or four days and wonder how we spend a week in Sin City. My answer is that you've never experienced New Year's in Vegas. One major occurrence in Vegas for New Year's is that most of the Strip — yes, Las Vegas Boulevard, shuts down and turns into a pedestrian walkway.
Those who have witnessed it can attest that it's not a minor task. Casually strolling down the Strip is not an experience you can have any other day of the year.
We're Owners at The Boulevard, a Hilton Grand Vacations Club, and a little older. So we enjoy watching the fireworks display from the Strip from our room. Considering that festivities get a little crazy, we like to enjoy the shutdown of the Strip early in the night. We start at the south part of the Strip and walk up to the Boulevard.
We end up going against foot traffic, but it's our thing. The fireworks displays from the Strip's various hotels are amazing, and all the rooms facing the Stratosphere get a top-notch view of those fireworks.
We also always attend a Membership and Portfolio Review, an hour-long presentation to learn about Hilton Grand Vacations' newest resort offerings, complete with some cool gifts for attending. Our most recent Membership and Portfolio Review ended up being shorter than an hour, and I still got my gifts.
Insider tip: Membership and Portfolio Reviews are only at the Elara, a Hilton Grand Vacations Club, so make sure you get your parking validated by your Sales Executive if you stay at another resort.
Be sure to save time for a trip to the Las Vegas Hilton at Resorts World, which is new and just a short walk from The Boulevard. It was a pleasant surprise for us and, in my opinion, is a game-changer for this section of the Strip.
We spent a big part of our vacation there. This Hilton resort brings a food hall, a steakhouse, a new casino and more to this part of the Strip. Don't forget to use your Hilton Honors American Express Aspire card; I received 14x Hilton Honors™ Points at many restaurants without even staying at the resort. We can't wait for New Year's eve next year, and Hilton Grand Vacations already has my vacation booked for me.
Read How to “Using Hilton Grand Vacations Timeshare Plus Hilton Honors Points as a Retirement Travel Plan” to discover more benefits of timeshare.