HotelChatter

Tags: Killer View / Hard Rock Hotels / → All Tags

Hard Rock Biloxi Views Remind Us of Smooth Jazz

Where: 777 Beach Blvd. [map], Biloxi, MS, United States, 39530

We are suckers for a room with a killer view.  We find that we are even more likely to forgive some minor hotel inconveniences if we can stare out the window at something pretty--yeah we are that shallow. Let's help out our fellow hotel mavens by uploading rooms with killer views to the HotelChatter/Flickr photo pool, or by sending the photo along to us. We will feature our favorites in this space from time to time. Remember to tell us the name of the hotel and the room number of the hot view.

Casino Jones stopped by the brand new Hard Rock Biloxi in Mississippi this fall and snapped this shot of the surprisingly breathtaking sunset view from a deluxe suite at the casino hotel.

We've gotta agree that looking out at the Gulf of Mexico lookin' like this sounds a bit more appealing than catching views of the neon-y Vegas Strip, and a view like this is more likely to bring the sort of Sunday (evening) rehab needed after spending a whole weekend at a casino — and that's definitely not offered by insane pool parties and scuzzy tattooed celebrities offered by its older Vegas cousin.

In order to keep anything from tainting our enjoyment of this view, we're going to go ahead and pretend that we forgot Kid Rock played the opening of the hotel last year. This soothing view reminds of a slow jam or a lil' smooth jazz.

[Photo: Casino Jones on Flickr]

Tags: Jimmy Buffett / Margaritavile Hotels / Hotel Hype / Harrahs Hotels / Hotel News / → All Tags

Harrahs To Rolls Out Buffett's Margaritaville in Biloxi

Where: U.S. Hwy. 90 [map], Biloxi, MS, United States

The other week we found out that the Trump Marina Hotel would turn into a Margaritaville Hotel & Casino which we thought would be the first one to open. Yet Hotel Maven PalmettoSon pointed us to the Margaritaville already in the works in Biloxi, MS.

Jimmy Buffett and Harrah's have paired up to build a massive hotel down there, one of the metro areas in Mississippi hardest hit by Hurricane Katrina.

The hotel chain plans to spend more than $700 million this summer building the hotel, casino, restaurant, and cabanas, with a final budget of more than $100B. (Thassright, billion.)

The hotel will have 420 rooms in addition to the 378 rooms from the existing Casino Magic property which will be fully renovated. A full-service spa will be included (we foresee a Margarita salt scrub treatment happening here) and of course, a state-of-the-art Margaritaville Restaurant that anchors the entire property.

The hotel won't be completed until 2010 but for fanatics and parrotheads, check out the hotel's Construction-cam.

Tell us: Would you stay in a Margaritaville Hotel & Casino or are you Hooters all the way baby?

Tags: Hotel Openings / Hard Rock Hotels / → All Tags

Hard Rock Biloxi Opens for Business Ahead of Schedule

Where: 777 Beach Blvd. [map], Biloxi, MS, United States, 39530

What is going on today? First Andre Balazs pulls the inverse of hotel hype, now we hear the Hard Rock Biloxi has reopened six days ahead of schedule. Incredible!

The hotel casino which was heavily damaged during Hurricane Katrina opened last Saturday and Eric Claption's infamous guitar even flew in for the early opening. Yet also thrown into the mix of rock n' roll relics are the ones that were previously shown in the casino hotel after getting swirled around in stormwater. So it goes something like this:

Behind thick glass is a large black and white photo that stretches perhaps 12 feet, depicting what the resort looked like a few days after Katrina. Also behind the glass are water-damaged and mud-covered pieces that were recovered. Some were returned by residents, others washed back up near the building.

So it's almost like a mini-Hurricane Katrina museum.

As for the hotel rooms, the Hard Rock has 318 guest rooms, with 42-inch plasma screen televisions, touch-screen phones, Bose music systems, wireless internet and Aveda bath products. There's also a Ruth's Chris Steakhouse, an Aveda spa, a 12th floor lounge, and a Ben & Jerry's ice cream shoppe inside.

Meanwhile, the opening weekend concerts are still on, starting tonight with a performance by 3 Doors Down and culminating with Kid Rock's show on 07-07-07.

When we checked, rooms were sold out this weekend and next but we did find a room on July 12 for $269 a night.

[Photo: Anna_Bencze]

Related Stories:
· Rock relics: Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Biloxi boasts thousands of pieces of memorabilia from music legends past and present [Press-Register]
· Kid Rock to Rock Hard Rock Biloxi [HotelChatter]

Tags: Hotel Hype / Hard Rock Hotels / Biloxi Hotels / Kid Rock / → All Tags

Kid Rock to Rock Hard Rock Biloxi

Where: 777 Beach Blvd. [map], Biloxi, MS, United States, 39530

Looks like San Diego won't be having all the rock'n'roll fun. The Hard Rock Biloxi is scheduled to open this July, almost two full years after Hurricane Katrina destroyed it--and just two days before it was originally scheduled to open. After rebuilding, the hotel is set to have heaps of casino games, including a poker room, a steak house and a full service spa. (So you can turn it up to 11 while getting a seaweed wrap?)

Though the reservations line isn't yet open--that happens on June 1--we're fairly confident the place will open on time. After all, they've got Kid Rock, Cheap Trick and even Poison lined up to play this summer. The former Mr. Pam Anderson even gets the honor of christening the hotel: His show is slated for 7/7/07--opening night. And that's not the only batch of 7s in this joint. The address is 777 Beach Boulevard. So let's hope this place brings guests some luck.

[Photo: Anna_Bencze]

Tags: Hotel Closing / → All Tags

Harrah's Tries Something New

The Grand Casino Island View Hotel in Biloxi, MS, was demolished over the weekend and the site's new owner Harrah's plans on building a brand-spanking-new resort worth $1 billion.

The 11-year-old building had been damaged by Hurricane Katrina but was still salvagable. However, Harrah's had other ideas in mind. The new hotel will take at least a couple of years to build but Harrah's may have the casino part ready on another part of the site later this summer.

One of our tipsters weighs in on the developments:

It's highly likely that Harrah's will implode the adjacent Casino Magic tower as well.  They just swapped a couple of dowdy riverboat casinos in Louisiana for the Casino Magic property in Biloxi.

Either way, Biloxi is making a slow comeback from Hurricane Katrina. The area was home to 12 casinos before the storm. Since then, three have reopened with five more expected before the year is out.

Related Stories:
· Skyline changes as hotel crashes down [Sun Herald]

Tags: Hotel News / → All Tags

Suspected Deep Throat Deep Sixed -- Final Resting Place Finally Revealed!

Where: 780 Beach Blvd [map], Biloxi, MS, United States, 39530

After days and days of intrigue, the motel in which a maid discovered the corpse of 75-year-old Fred LaRue -- former Nixon Watergate "bagman" and quite possibly Woodward and Berstein's Deep Throat -- was revealed: Biloxi's very own Sun Tan Motel.

But it wasn't a Deep Throat source of our own -- in fact it was a small New Zealand website that broke this story wide open...follow the money, and this link to tvnz.co.nz

Just for the record, LaRue had recently denied being the secret rat that brought down Tricky Dick's Reich:

"Who in the hell would it have been? There were not that many people who knew the inside and out of what was going on. I don't think it would have been Magruder. It wasn't me. I don't think there was a Deep Throat. I think Deep Throat was an amalgamation of a lot of people. I think it was something to sex up the book [All the President's Men], you know. I just don't think there was one."