The Sahara has become the latest Las Vegas Strip resort to embrace the hotel-within-a-hotel trend. The Alex, a top-to-bottom reimagining of the Alexandria Tower, will offer 300 renovated rooms and suites and a range of premium amenities, including a private entrance, dedicated check-in, exclusive lounge access, and personalized concierge service.

The project will also introduce the Alora Spa and Sahara Athletic Club to the 75-year-old resort.

“The Alex represents a bold new chapter for Sahara Las Vegas and reflects our vision to continually redefine the guest experience,” read a statement from Alex Meruelo, founder and chair of the Meruelo Group, the Sahara’s current owner. (The “Alex” branding appears both to abbreviate “Alexandria” and reference Meruelo’s first name.)

“As we approach our 75th anniversary, there is no better moment to honor the legacy that has made this property an iconic Las Vegas destination while investing boldly in its future,” Meruelo added.

Reservations for The Alex are now open for stays beginning Jan. 1, 2027. More information is available at saharalasvegas.com.

Hotel-within-a-hotel concepts have become increasingly popular on the Strip as operators chase wealthier guests seeking greater privacy and personalized service. Existing examples include Sky Suites at Aria, Tower Suites at Wynn Las Vegas, and Crockfords at Resorts World.

Just last month, The Venetian announced that the top seven floors of its Palazzo Tower would reopen as the ultra-lux Milano come March 2027.

This isn’t even the first time this particular Sahara tower sported a hotel within a hotel. From 2016 through 2018, when the property operated as SLS Las Vegas, the tower (briefly renamed Lux) housed W Las Vegas, a separately branded luxury hotel run in partnership with Marriott.

Scandalous History

The 24-story Alexandria Tower, designed by architect Martin Stern Jr., opened May 24, 1963. It was the tallest building in Nevada at the time.

Elvis Presley and Ann-Margret carried on an affair behind the back of his live-in girlfriend, Priscilla Beaulieu. The two stars cavorted in the tower’s Presidential Suite, Room 2542, while filming Viva Las Vegas later that same summer.

The following year, the Beatles made their own mark on the Alexandria Tower when they stayed in Room 2344 ahead of their two concerts at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Their suite was also the setting for a potential scandal that could have ended their career then and there.

Their visit on Aug. 20, 1964 nearly became a public-relations disaster after underage twin girls were discovered in John Lennon’s bedroom. The girls’ mother had gone to the hotel claiming her daughters had been kidnapped by the Beatles.

The girls were found watching TV as Lennon lay asleep in a separate bed. According to British journalist Ivor Davis, the Beatles’ management paid the girls’ mother $10,000 to keep quiet and it never made the news.