Las Vegas Redrawn With Outdoor Entertainment Zones and New Resorts

Change has always been the norm on the Las Vegas Strip, but even for a city that thrives on reinventing itself, this is a period of particularly intense renewal.

SLS Las Vegas, The Cromwell, and Delano. The LINQ and The Park. The High Roller. That's three new hotels, two unprecedented outdoor entertainment venues, and a 550-foot-tall observation wheel that has remade the skyline of the Strip this year.

 

That doesn't even take into account major changes like the recent rebranding of the Tropicana as a South Beach-themed DoubleTree by Hilton, the current transformation of the old LVH into a Westgate Resorts property, and Caesars Entertainment's pending reinvention of The Quad as The LINQ Hotel & Casino. Then there's the trio of new venues MGM Resorts International is working on: the expansion of the Mandalay Bay Convention Center to more than 2 million square feet, the construction of a 20,000-seat arena in partnership with AEG, and the imminent opening of the Rock in Rio outdoor music venue. And looming on the horizon is the $4 billion Resorts World Las Vegas mega-resort planned by Malaysian gaming giant Genting, which promises to further remake the north end of the Strip already reinvigorated by the SLS.

 

On the dining front, Las Vegas has finally turned the corner from "becoming" a serious dining destination to actually being one. Michelin stars and high-20s Zagat ratings are piling up. Celebrity chefs like Giada de Laurentiis and José Andrés have arrived, and Daniel Boulud has returned, to join the likes of Joël Robouchon, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Thomas Keller, Guy Savoy, Michael Mina, and Nobu Matsuhisa, to say nothing of the single-name television stars like Emeril, Bobby, and Wolfgang, some of who pioneered Las Vegas' fine cuisine.

Then there's the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority's (LVCVA) plan for a Global Business District that would involve a major expansion and renovation of the Las Vegas Convention Center if approved. Phase one would add 750,000 square feet of new exhibit space and 187,500 square feet of meeting space as part of a 1.8-million-square-foot expansion. Phase two would encompass improvements to the existing 3.2-million-square-foot facility, as well as the addition of a 100,000-square-foot general session space and another 100,000 square feet of meeting space. A later phase would improve public transportation in the resort area. The project would take five to eight years to complete.

Suffice it to say, Las Vegas is on a roll, baby.

Go North, and Grow Up With the Strip
The Strip's first major new resort since The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, which opened in 2010, is the dazzling and very hip new SLS Las Vegas. It was built on the bones of The Sahara, but there is nothing left of the physical structure of that stalwart of old Las Vegas, save for the steel frame.  

Built by sbe founder, chairman, and CEO Sam Nazarian, the property is the work of design firm Gensler in collaboration with Philippe Starck, and the visionary designer's unique touches are visible everywhere, from the lobby to the nightclubs to the very different rooms available in each of the three towers.

The two-year, $415 million renovation left SLS Las Vegas with more than 1,600 guest rooms and suites, a 60,000-square-foot casino, 10,000-square-foot Fred Segal shopping experience, 30,000 square feet of meeting space, a spa, and a collection of sbe's existing restaurant and nightlife brands. These include LiFE, a 20,000-square foot club with a vast LED wall and aerialists performing under the 60-foot ceilings, as well as a direct connection to the Beach LiFE rooftop pool; the Foxtail nightclub; and a reinvention of the popular L.A. nightclub The Sayers Club. Restaurants include The Bazaar by José Andrés, and Katsuya by Starck, as well as Umami Burger and 800 Degrees.

The all-suite LUX Tower's rooms come with a French influence, Starck-designed chandeliers, and "peek-a-boo" showers, whereas the World Tower rooms, designed with business travelers in mind, offer state-of-the-art technology as well as a very distinct look.  

The Story Tower is in many ways the design triumph, even though it will be the least used by business groups. The millennial-focused décor, which makes the bed double as a couch/seating area, grows from the fact that the old Sahara's bones kept the rooms no larger than 290 square feet (the other towers' rooms are much larger), so creativity was necessary. Despite the size, planners with a young, hip group should at least give the Tower a glance -- the rooms have a definite cool factor and are very unique.

One of the newest names on the Strip is Westgate Resorts, which purchased the former LVH - Las Vegas Hotel & Casino in June. Last month, the luxury timeshare company announced that 1,200 of the nearly 3,000 guest rooms will be renovated and 300 will be converted into 100 timeshare villas. It has also embarked on a property-wide renovation encompassing the 200,000 square feet of meeting space, 95,000-square-foot casino, pool, spa and health club, sports book, and restaurants. The room renovations are scheduled for completion by Christmas, while the rest will be finished within six to eight months.

Westgate Resorts Founder and CEO David Siegel noted that the property would not be taken over by timeshares. "Although a selection of our rooms will be converted into timeshare villas, it is important to know that our resort hotel and legendary luxury suites will remain open to Las Vegas visitors and tourists for vacations and conventions," Siegel says. "We will be providing the best of both worlds on our resort property."

While it's at least a couple years down the road, a new whale will be coming to the Strip's northern end. This past May, Malaysia's Genting Group announced details of its massive, $4 billion Resorts World Las Vegas project on the north end of the Strip, on the site of the old Stardust.

Best known for its massive Resorts World integrated casino resorts in Malaysia and Singapore, the Las Vegas properties will initially include a 1,000-room hotel tower and 22 villas; a 100,000-square-foot casino; a "retail village" with more than 15 outlets; more than 30 restaurants, bars, and other dining facilities; an aquarium; a main bar featuring live entertainment; a main showroom; a 4,000-seat theater; and an observation deck with view down the Strip. Work on the north-end property has yet to begin, and will take 24 to 36 months. A subsequent phase of the project will include the construction of a convention center of about 1 million square feet.

The Asian-themed complex will eventually consist of more than 3,000 rooms spread across four hotel towers, more casino space, a water park, a movie theater complex, a bowling alley, the convention center, and a "new, still-to-be-determined large-scale attraction." Considering that the Resorts World Sentosa resort includes the 49-acre Universal Studios Singapore and an aquarium, that's not a statement to be taken lightly.

The Middle of the Action
The May opening of The Cromwell by Caesars Entertainment brought the first stand-alone boutique hotel to the Strip. The 188-room property across from Caesars Palace features the 65,000-square-foot Drai's Beach Club and Nightclub venue -- which has huge LED screens and some of the best views on the Strip -- and GIADA, the first restaurant by Food Network star Giada De Laurentiis, one of the hottest new venues on the Strip.

The former Bill's Gamblin' Hall & Saloon underwent a $185-million renovation in 2013. The Cromwell now has guest rooms inspired by Parisian loft-style apartments -- each has hardwood floors, vintage furnishings, and bathrooms with steam showers, as well as a 40,000-square-foot casino, a hotel lobby bar, a lounge, a rooftop pool, and a 24-hour fitness room.

Caesars Entertainment has settled on a final incarnation of the former Imperial Palace/Quad that makes up one side of The LINQ outdoor entertainment area. After a $223-million, top-to-bottom renovation, the new LINQ Hotel & Casino will offer 2,256 completely redesigned, urban-inspired, modern rooms, including 204 suites (29 of them cabana suites with private access to the pool), and a new automated guest-arrival experience centered on an automated check-in process and optional touchscreen concierge. High-speed Wi-Fi will be available throughout the resort in all common areas, hotel rooms, and the casino, with guests able to stay connected seamlessly when moving between the hotel and LINQ promenade.

Other features include a new entrance built around a signature lobby bar, new retail outlets and a new pool deck, as well as several restaurants including Guy Fieri's Las Vegas Kitchen & Bar, his debut in the city. It will also greatly expand access to the LINQ's 12 restaurants, eight bars, 14 retail shops, and two concert venues, and of course the High Roller. In spring 2015, the hotel will open a new pool area with two pools and a day club, a new 15,000-square-foot spa and fitness center, the Vortex Roof Deck, more retail stores, and the all-new Living Room bar.

Southern Style
The South Beach, Miami, aesthetic has been seeping out of Florida for years, and that signature rhythm seems to have reached Las Vegas, with the opening of the AAA-four-diamond Delano Las Vegas, which replaced THEHotel at Mandalay Bay, and last year's $200-million overhaul and reflagging of the storied Tropicana Las Vegas -- a DoubleTree by Hilton.

 

The lobby of the Delano definitely is built on its southeastern namesake's style -- the signature flowing draped columns are there, for example -- but there is also a distinct desert influence, immediately noticeable in the 63-ton local boulder the designers cut in two and used to frame the entrance, as well as the Colorado River-themed carpeting. The all-suite Las Vegas hotel's guest rooms show it much more clearly, with white leather and gold accents, as well as the brand's signature sheer curtains.

Located next to Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, the pet-friendly Delano (a tribute to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt) is a collaboration with Morgans Hotel Group and has 1,117 suites with an average size of 725 square feet, including full-size bathrooms and powder rooms, and a 14,000-square-foot Bathhouse Spa with 13 treatment rooms. Its rooftop restaurant and nightclub, miX, will become the French-Italian Rivea in 2015, although it will continue under the direction of three-Michelin-starred chef Alain Ducasse. Also next year, the hotel's Delano Beach Club pool will open next to the Mandalay Bay Beach.

The non-gaming property has 20,000 square feet of meeting space, including 31 meeting rooms and four boardrooms. Groups of 100 fit well in its facilities, while larger groups can use the facilities connected to Mandalay Bay. The lobby bar, Franklin, features premium liquors (from small-batch bourbons to a $4,700 glass of '69 Macallan whisky) and specializes in creative, "curated" cocktails (the bartender's choice punch of the day is worth trying) as well as creative and delicious small-bite plates. The locavore Della's Kitchen offers excellent breakfast and lunch, along with Ethiopian coffee.

At the two-year-old (as a DoubleTree by Hilton) Tropicana Las Vegas, the big news is the expansion of the meeting facilities, which will grow from 72,000 square feet to 100,000 square feet when the project is completed in March.

The heart of the project is an expansion of Tropicana's pillarless ballroom, Tropicana Pavilion, which will receive a 26,000-square-foot addition, bringing its total size to 55,000 square feet, divisible into as many as 11 separate breakout rooms.

This comes on the heels of the unveiling of the Tropicana's Paradise Tower Sky Villa Suites earlier this year, which feature the type of luxury, amenities, and attention to detail that were once reserved for high rollers. That comes on top of a recent $200-million renovation that included all 1,467 rooms, the casino, pool, and restaurants, and the Tropicana Theater, as well as the addition of Glow, a Mandara Spa.

Thinking Outside the Box
The two biggest companies on the Strip, MGM Resorts International and Caesars Entertainment, have created outdoor entertainment venues that seek to bring guests out into the sunshine, a first for Las Vegas, but a trend that more resorts will likely embrace.

This is certainly part of MGM Resorts International's long-term plans, says Mike Dominguez, its senior vice president of corporate sales. "Because we own so much of one side of the Strip, we are putting a lot of thought into moving pedestrians around," he says. "It is important for us to look at doing things outside." That said, Las Vegas was designed with the purpose of never letting people out of the casino resorts, so creating enticing open-air entertainment spaces will take some doing.

The first out the door was Caesars Entertainment, with the April opening of the Las Vegas High Roller, a 550-foot-tall, illuminated observation wheel located at the end of the LINQ, an open-air "street" lined with dining, nightlife, and retail venues, nine of which are available for hire by groups. These include Brooklyn Bowl, with a 2,000-person performance space and 32 bowling lanes; the F.A.M.E. (Food, Art, Music and Entertainment) bazaar featuring Asian night-market cuisine, and room for 300; and the High Roller Wheel House, which has more than 4,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space.

The High Roller itself is illuminated with 2,000 LED lights that run in a shifting color pattern beginning at dusk. Its 28 glass-enclosed cabins each hold up to 40 passengers, and groups can arrange private cabins with drinks and hors d'ouerves (slightly reducing capacity). Video screens in the cabins allow for corporate branding and even custom messages, while the entire wheel can also present company colors.

Unlike the London Eye and other large observation wheels, the High Roller's cabins are on the exterior -- rotating on ball bearings rather than stuck hanging between two rims -- so nothing will impede the best views in town once it gets up high enough to clear the buildings.

 

In June, MGM Resorts opened The Park, the first segment of its new, open-air "neighborhood" between the Monte Carlo Las Vegas Resort and Casino and New York-New York Hotel & Casino. An outdoor park, dining, retail, and entertainment district, The Park currently includes an open-air plaza with community spaces; live entertainment, including a rotating roster of live bands, solo musicians, artists, and street performers; as well as six dining options ranging from Japanese street food to organic ice cream. When completed in 2016, The Park will cover eight acres, connect MGM's Monte Carlo and New York-New York properties, and house a 20,000-seat arena now under construction.

Work has already been done on the Monte Carlo, and the resort's entry plaza gives hints of what may be the future of Las Vegas -- a broad open space flanked by six restaurants, including Japanese Grill & Noodle House, a casual but very good restaurant specializing in Japanese street food and sake cocktails. The new space is as welcoming to exit as it is to enter -- a place to enjoy rather than a funnel into the casino.

When The Park was announced this spring, MGM Resorts International Chairman and CEO Jim Murren said, "To create this picturesque outdoor destination, we are literally taking down the walls and opening the doors at our resorts to develop a unique dining and entertainment district that complements its lush new surroundings."

The new, eight-acre "neighborhood" will also play host to the $375-million, 20,000-seat arena that MGM Resorts is currently building with AEG, which operates facilities including the Staples Center in Los Angeles and the O2 entertainment district in London.

"We are the largest entertainment company in Las Vegas, and to get to the next step, we need an arena as large as in any major city," says Dominguez. "It will have lots of natural sunlight, windows, and great views -- this is a stadium designed for the next generation...the [Los Angeles] Staples center 10 years later. It is designed to host meetings and be converted into meeting space."

There will also be 50 suites and several Tower Clubs -- sponsored suites -- as well as a lot of outdoor event areas and patios around it, Dominguez adds. An enormous LED screen will cover the front exterior of the arena. The company and city are pursuing a National Hockey League expansion team to anchor the arena.

Finally, there is Rock in Rio, a major music festival that MGM resorts is bringing to the U.S. A permanent, open-air concert venue being built on the north side of the Strip near Sahara Avenue, the City of Rock will take up 37 acres and have a capacity of 85,000, six stages, and a VIP area with room for 4,000. The venue will accommodate other events beside Rock in Rio, of course. After all, as Las Vegas moves its focus out of the casino, open-air events will become a more important part of the offerings.

A Whale of an Event Space
Las Vegas hoteliers have long been open about the fact that gambling no longer accouts for more than 30 percent of their revenue, whereas meetings, entertainment, and dining have all become big profit centers.

One of the clearest signs of this changing mindset was the decision last month by Caesars Entertainment to open a collection including extravagent high-roller suites that were not for rent at any prices.

 

The Anthology Suites & Villas offer spectacular settings for entertaining in an over-the-top, quintessentially Las Vegas setting that most people only see in the movies. Amenities include  movie-theater rooms with state-of-the-art sound systems, private pools and spas, and 24-hour butler service.  

Among the super-suites on offer are the Rio Presidential Suite at Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, which features a private pool overlooking the Las Vegas Strip from nearly 50 stories up; the Louis XV Suite at Paris Las Vegas, a Versailles-inspired two-bedroom, five-bathroom suite featuring ornate chandeliers, a European-style bar and lounge, and baby grand piano; as well as the Villas at Caesars Palace, which range from 9,500 to 11,200 square feet and feature elevators, custom-carved barrel vaulted ceilings, exotic fish tanks, state-of-the-art media rooms, and private outdoor spaces.



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This article appears in the November 2014 issue of Successful Meetings.