While many visitors come to Wynn Las Vegas chasing jackpots on the casino floor, I recently arrived in search of a different kind of win: learning something new. Like many New Year’s “resolvers,” I set out to pick up a fresh skill, and Wynn turned out to be an unexpectedly ideal classroom.
Hidden behind closed doors and accessible via discreet elevators, the resort offers a slate of immersive, behind-the-scenes workshops known as the Connoisseur Series. Taught by the award-winning professionals who make Wynn one of the world’s most celebrated luxury resorts, these bespoke classes invite guests to step into roles usually reserved for insiders. Throughout 2026, travelers can book experiences ranging from baking and cocktail-making to floristry and cake decorating.
Anyone who has lingered in Wynn’s flower-filled lobby knows the visual impact of its thousands of fresh blooms. Now, guests can learn how to create those arrangements themselves in a class led by the resort’s Director of Horticulture. And for diners who still dream about the flaky Pane Sfogliato—Wynn’s pull-apart puff pastry bread—the recipe can be learned directly from the resort’s head baker.
I sampled several of these classes, each designed to be intimate, hands-on, and deeply personal. During my visit, a host escorted me through off-limits corridors and underground tunnels that keep the massive resort running smoothly. Our destination: the Wynn Bread Shop, where Master Baker Johann Willar and his team produce up to 20,000 baked goods daily.
The Bread Shop is exactly what you’d expect from a world-class operation—spotlessly clean, industrial in scale, and filled with the comforting aroma of fresh bread. Willar, a third-generation baker, was quick to point out that baking is a physical craft. As I began pressing, rolling, and shaping dough, it became clear this was less a demonstration and more a workout.
Because the bakery avoids preservatives, fresh bread is made constantly, supplying everything from croissants at the Tower Suites Bar to the signature Pane Sfogliato at the newly opened seafood restaurant, Pisces. Willar gestured toward crates of premium ingredients, including French butter just delivered that morning. The secret to bread that’s both flavorful and easier to digest, he explained, is a long fermentation process without additives.
“People come in and they learn differently than what they’ve been taught on television,” Willar told Travel + Leisure. “And this is absolutely more behind the scenes than what television will show you, because you’re actually doing it, you’re hands on, you feel the dough directly.”
That openness is also what Willar values most when hiring his 35-plus-person team: curiosity and flexibility. It’s the same mindset required of students stepping into the heat of his kitchen. I was surprised by how quickly my technique improved under his watchful eye. With decades of experience, Willar knew exactly how to guide me as I kneaded and shaped pretzel bread into its final form.
Over several hours, his passion for the craft was unmistakable. He even shares his contact information with guests, noting that former students often send photos of breads they’ve baked at home. By the time I left—full of warm crackers and pretzels—it felt less like a class and more like an initiation.
Next came cocktails. Across the property, down another back-of-house elevator inside the kitchen of Sinatra restaurant, Master Mixologist Mariena Mercer Boarini welcomed me into her mixing lab—a technicolor wonderland that would make Willy Wonka proud. She handed me a welcome drink called the Sirena, a bright blend of pineapple, Amalfi citrus, and Grey Goose Strawberry Lemongrass Vodka.
“My big mantra always is cocktails should be fun,” Boarini told me. “They should be fun making, and you should enjoy them when you’re drinking them.”
Her goal, she explained, is to demystify high-end cocktails so guests can confidently recreate them at home, bringing people together through shared experiences. When building a drink, she focuses on “flavor, layer, and nuance.” One of her essential home-bartender secrets? A bottle of St-Germain elderflower liqueur, which she calls an instant upgrade for almost any cocktail.
As with the baking class, the lesson was peppered with insider details: the sheer volume of Bloody Mary mix Wynn produces annually, or the hundreds of watermelons juiced each month for cocktails—watermelon juice being a Wynn staple. Mercer Boarini and her team also collaborate closely with executive chefs, designing new drinks for restaurant openings and seasonal menu changes.
Beyond bread and cocktails, Wynn’s Connoisseur Series includes experiences such as The Cheese Connoisseur, Pizzaiolo for a Day with Chef Enzo Febbaro, Decorate Cakes Like a Pro with Master Cake Artist Carlos Pena, and Florist for a Day with Director of Horticulture Evelyn Herrera. Tickets start at $175 and can be reserved through Wynn’s website.
“These classes offer something for everyone – combining a touch of exclusivity with the excitement of learning something new in an elevated environment,” Brian Gullbrants, Wynn Resorts North America Chief Operating Officer, shared in a statement to T+L.
A 2025 Nature Communications study of 1,400 people found that taking up new hobbies significantly improved cognitive function, with brain activity resembling that of individuals seven years younger. Although the research focused on activities like tango and painting, it concluded that creative learning broadly helps slow brain aging. Travel may further enhance those effects: a 2018 study showed that a four-night vacation reduced stress and boosted well-being, with benefits lasting more than 30 days—and in some cases up to 45 days.
For me, the hours spent baking and mixing flew by. I left satisfied both intellectually and gastronomically, energized by the fellowship that comes from learning alongside others. That sense of accomplishment lingered long after I left Las Vegas.
From a business perspective, these experiences are equally impactful. Wynn reports that many Connoisseur classes sell out quickly, with waitlists and guests booking trips specifically around new offerings. As Cornell University Professor Chekitan Dev told T+L, experiential programming helps luxury hotels stand out in an increasingly crowded market while generating valuable ancillary revenue.
On the morning I checked out of Wynn—now a newly minted amateur baker and mixologist—I couldn’t resist telling a fellow guest at the lobby café that his croissant had been baked on-site just hours earlier. No trucks, no shortcuts.
In a world increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence, there’s something grounding (and powerful) about getting your hands messy and learning a craft the old-fashioned way.
