Classy Hotel Pool, Or Classy Death-Ray?

When in Vegas, it can be assumed that you’ll get a fair amount of sunshine, no matter the time of year you happen to be there. But as it seems, there’s a point when things can get a little too real. At the brand-new Vdara hotel, located amongst other classy offerings inside of the Las Vegas CityCenter, some patrons have been complaining about excessive heat in its pool area.

As it turns out, these aren’t customers simply complaining for the sake of it, but rather about a real issue, and one that’s actually emphasized by the design of the hotel. It’s tall, of course, and features a plethora of glass windows, and is curved inward by design. Sounds like many other hotels, doesn’t it? Well for this one, the rotation of the sun doesn’t work out to its favor.

In one example of a customer complaint, a man felt his hair and even his legs burning, and couldn’t figure out what it was. Even after backing under a large umbrella, it didn’t help. The boosted heat is so bad, that it even has the ability to melt plastic, and where a modest plastic bag was concerned, it was no match for the searing heat.

Due to the hotel’s design, and depending on the time of day and sun’s location, the temperature around the pool area can raise about 20°C, which is obviously quite a bit, and at no point would I consider 120°F+ to be that enjoyable. So what can be done? No one seems to be sure, but the hotel is doing research and trying to figure out the most sensible resolutions, which at the least might involve much larger umbrellas located around the pool.

There must be some good jokes floating around for this one. “I Vdara you to go into the pool!” There, I started things. You guys can continue on with more.

A reporter from the Las Vegas Review-Journal made two trips to the pool and saw the 10-foot by 15-foot hot zone. As the Earth rotates, the hot spot shifts across the pool area. During the summer, it was noticeable for about 90 minutes before and after noon, the reporter discovered from pool employee interviews. The ray can increase temperatures 20 degrees in the zone. Pintas said that polyethylene newspaper bags melt at between 120 and 130 degrees. A plastic cup melts at around 160 degrees.