Checking into a Vegas hotel usually means dragging your bags through a maze of slot machines, crowds, and flashing lights before walking what feels like forever just to find the elevators.

This time, I skipped all of that.

The Reserve at Park MGM (previously NoMad Las Vegas) is a boutique hotel-within-a-hotel on the top floors of Park MGM, complete with its own private lobby. The design leans European, with original artwork, quiet color palettes, and a sense of calm that's rare for the Strip, right down to a restored Tiffany glass ceiling left over from the building's days as the Monte Carlo. Plus, the entire property is completely smoke-free.

A dedicated elevator took me straight up from there, and the doors opened onto 2,000 square feet of oak hardwood floors, leather headboards, and a vintage pool table sitting in the middle of it all. I'd stumbled into the Upper East Side apartment of my dreams, only it was sitting a few hundred feet above the Las Vegas Strip.

Standard rooms run roughly $150 to $300 a night. MGM has a partnership with Marriott Bonvoy so you can earn and redeem points here. Award nights are priced dynamically — we've seen them run as low as 23,000 points a night, though 30,000 or more is more typical.

I booked through The Edit by Chase Travel instead, which is available to Chase Sapphire Reserve® Credit Card members. It usually gets you early check-in, late checkout, a room upgrade when available (typically just one category up), and a $100 food and beverage credit.

The daily resort fee runs $50 unless you book directly through MGM Rewards and hold Gold tier status or higher. Unfortunately, Marriott Bonvoy status alone won't get you that waiver.

Here's what it covers:

There are 293 rooms and suites, all decorated with oak hardwood floors, custom furnishings, and original artwork.

As mentioned, The Edit usually gets you just one category up from whatever you booked. However, the hotel happened to be almost fully booked during my stay, and the check-in agent hooked me up with an epic upgrade way bigger than the usual one tier.

For the record, this stay wasn’t sponsored and I didn’t slip a $100 bill across the check-in desk. I just somehow ended up in the Suite Royale Premiere... the hotel's top-tier suite (!!!).

I kept pinching myself, and I may have checked my credit card statement more than once to make sure I hadn't accidentally signed up to pay for it.

We're talking 2,000 square feet, two bedrooms, two full bathrooms plus a powder room, a full dining room, a living room, a bar, and a pool table that acted as the centerpiece of the whole suite, separating the living room from the dining room. It was the kind of suite where you could imagine a high roller having private gaming tables set up for the night.

I almost texted my friends to book a last-minute flight and join me. There was so much room in the suite, it felt rude not to fill it.

The living room had plenty of seating and warm lighting that made it feel more like an apartment than a hotel suite. The sofa in the living room pulled out into a sofa bed, and it was cool to see that the books lining the shelves were real books, not just décor.

Just beyond that sat a full dining room, big enough that I almost wanted to skip my dinner reservations and just order room service instead.

The primary bedroom had a comfy king bed, a desk, and a pair of hidden closets.

But the highlight might’ve been its ensuite bathroom with a freestanding bathtub.

The bathroom was gorgeous, finished with a walk-in shower lined in Carrara marble, and came stocked with Argan toiletries that do a nice job fighting off the desert air.

The second bedroom had two queen beds and a separate full bathroom with an accessible walk-in shower.

There was also a full pantry and wet bar with a full-size fridge. Just know that the minibar sensors are extremely sensitive, so don't move anything around in there or use the shelves to store your own snacks. We ended up with a few accidental charges from doing exactly that, though they were removed once we flagged them at checkout.

It felt more like a classic Upper East Side pied-à-terre than anything you'd expect to find above a casino floor. Honestly, the whole thing felt more New York than the New York-New York next door. This might be the most un-Vegas suite in Las Vegas, in the best way.

Since The Reserve sits inside Park MGM, there are plenty of restaurants and cafes just an elevator ride away.

There's a Starbucks for your morning fix, and Eataly covers everything from morning pastries and coffee to sandwiches, pizza, and salads later on, with some of the kiosks even running happy hour specials. Everything there was delicious, and it felt like its own little escape from the Strip too.

Primrose sits right by the pool with a nice outdoor seating area and is a solid pick for breakfast, and Bavette's has built a reputation as one of the better steakhouses on the Strip if you want something more upscale for dinner.

If you'd rather stay closer to home, The Reserve has its own dining too. The Library is a book-lined dinner spot serving American classics, while The Reserve Bar handles cocktails, dinner, and late-night bites, both just off the lobby.

The Terrace Pool is reserved exclusively for Reserve guests, a rooftop retreat with a Moroccan feel, inspired by the Majorelle Garden in Marrakesh, with its own poolside bar and hot tub.

If you want more options, Park MGM also has three pools on its own garden-style pool deck downstairs, one adults-only and the rest family-friendly. There's only one hot tub down there, and it's pretty much always packed with kids.

Park MGM also has a spa and salon on the second floor. Just past that is the fitness center, which is open 24/7 and covers all the basics: free weights, ellipticals, bikes, treadmills, and a bunch of other machines, plus a separate yoga room.

Although my dog, Pretzel, didn't join me on this trip, the property is pet-friendly.

If you decide to leave the property, getting around isn't too bad.

The Reserve has its own valet drop-off and entrance just before you reach the main Park MGM entrance, which is a nice touch, but annoyingly, you can only request an Uber or Lyft pickup from the main Park MGM pickup area, not directly from The Reserve's entrance.

Location-wise, you're connected to a lot without ever stepping outside. Park MGM links up with Aria, Vdara, and Bellagio through the tram and indoor walkways, including the free Aria Express Tram, which makes getting around that stretch of the Strip easy. It's also a short walk to T-Mobile Arena and Dolby Live if you're catching a show.

Zoox, Amazon's self-driving robotaxi, has been offering free rides and makes stops nearby, including the New York-New York right next door. Uber and Lyft are plentiful otherwise.

The Reserve feels like a more grown-up way to do Vegas. It's calmer, more tucked away, and proves that the Strip can actually do small-scale luxury right, all while keeping Park MGM’s casino, restaurants, and pools just downstairs.

Between the Marriott Bonvoy partnership and cash options like The Edit, it's actually incredibly easy to make the math work for a stay here. If the upgrade gods are ever going to smile on you in Vegas, let it be here.