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The Stratosphere is 'Fine', But Noisy

August 5, 2009 at 6:21 PM | by Jenna | 0 Comments

Our newest baby sibling (they grow up so fast!) VegasChatter has sent a correspondent into the Stratosphere. And it wasn't that bad! Seriously! But really, it wasn't all that cheap, either (especially considering the place was going for $25 not too long ago): at a price of $80 for a Friday night and $115 for a Saturday, VC opted to go for the Strat through the Hotwire route — and ended up paying $54 on Friday and $75 on Saturday.

The official verdict: "Although it won’t be making it onto our list of great hotel rooms, for the price, it was fine." Oh, also: it was a bit noisy. But head on over to VC to check out the video tour of the room and the full rundown of the Stratos-perience.

Other hot highlights outta Sin City this week:

· The Golden Nugget's New Tower is Taking Rezzies
· Prepping for the Premiere of Top Chef Las Vegas
· The 'Purple Reign' Show at Mandalay Bay is All Kinds Of Awesome
· All the Vegas CityCenter Coverage You'll Ever Need

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Hard Rock Las Vegas Opens Its Fly New Tower

Go To The Hotel's Web Site Where: 4455 Paradise Road [map], Las Vegas, NV, United States, 89109
July 29, 2009 at 12:50 PM | by Jenna | 1 Comment

Our baby sibling tipped us off to some hot Vegas gossip this week: the brand spankin' new Paradise Tower at the Hard Rock Las Vegas will be opening officially tomorrow (July 30th), about a week ahead of schedule. According to a hotel rep, some guests have already been staying in some of the tower's 490 rooms — but the official opening isn't til tomorrow.

According to VC, rates look like this:

A mountain view king room at the Paradise Tower was open but only for Friday night at $309 a night. Saturday night was sold-out. Sunday night, however, dipped down to $165. A pool view king was going for a hefty $399 a night on Friday.

But this is what you're paying for: modern amenities — think iPod docking stations, 42" plasma TVs, Bose CD stereos, minibars and wireless internet (but not free; thanks, Vegas). These spaces have more of a "rock and roll"-ish feel to them than other rooms on the property — right down to a faux fur blanket on the bed.

As is standard for the types of Vegas hotels that are hosting the mid-life-crisis-ers, the Entourage-wannabe types and the straight-up high-rollin' bachelor parties, the tower has 10 pool suites and an Entourage-inspired penthouse suite.

Check out VegasChatter's details here.

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The Cosmopolitan Resort in Las Vegas is Alive!

July 28, 2009 at 10:29 AM | by Jenna | 0 Comments

The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas has had a rough go of it. It was rising, then Hearst Communications came in and slapped their wrist for using the name of the ladymag — but that didn't matter much, because Deutsche Bank had to come in and buy the half-finished building in a foreclosure sale, then rumors of the place becoming a Denizen started circulating and we all know what happened there — but the $3.9 billion hotel-condominium-casino project continues to forge ahead.

The Las Vegas Review Journal printed an interesting little snippet about the Cosmo this week, though: the owners of the building have hired former Caesars Palace general manager John Unwin to be the resort’s chief executive officer. The owners are "rumored to have an agreement with Hilton Hotels Corp. to operate the property under the Conrad and Hilton brands," though that's still unconfirmed — and no applications had been filed with Nevada gaming regulators as of last week, so we're not too sure what the plan is here.

The LVRJ article says the Cosmo — whatever it ends up being called — is still slated to open in September 2010. Hmmm...

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What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas. Especially If You Get Arrested.

July 1, 2009 at 6:19 PM | by Jenna | 0 Comments

Have we bragged about our baby sibling lately? Allow us to remind you: we recently birthed a younger brother or sister (or brother dressed like a sister! It's Sin City — anything goes!) who enjoys sequins, bright lights and late nights: VegasChatter, doing a kickass job of covering all things Vegas.

This week, the Sin City experts at VC are giving you their take on the new Vegas ads (yes, the "What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas" ones), except this year the ol' Visit Las Vegas folks have put a new spin on the ads by sarcastically applying the "What Happens Here, Stays Here" slogan to other places and events. Like, "What Happens in Billups County, Stays in Billups County" or "What Happens at the Caribou Lodge, Stays at The Caribou Lodge." Ha! Story here, video above.

Other sparkling Vegas gems for your gawking pleasure:

· The Ten Surest Ways to Get Arrested in Las Vegas
· A Happy Hour Guide. You're Welcome.
· Fontainebleau? More Like Fontaine-Bust. Or Fontaine-Bummer, even!
· A Peek at the Four Seasons Pool
· The VegasChatter Flickr Pool — All the Hot Shots

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How to Get a Vegas Room Upgrade at Check-In

June 19, 2009 at 3:07 PM | by Jenna | 0 Comments

Our pals at VegasChatter have been doing a totally kickass job of keeping their hot little fingers on the pulse of Sin City, and this week they've got a whole lotta sweetness for hotel geeks, Vegas junkies and strip novices alike.

VC had a pow-wow with a top-secret Vegas hotel insider — that is, a seasoned front desker at one of Sin City's best and most prominent hotels — and "Mr. B." dished some super helpful tips on how to go about scoring a room upgrade at your Vegas hotel. His tips, combined with the experience of VegasChatter's LV-savvy crew of editors, were all pooled together to bring you this definitive guide to landing a room upgrade while you're checking in. Check it out.

And no, slipping the front desker a $20 doesn't always work. (But sometimes it does!)

And more tips to help you compile your very own Vegas survival guide:

· How to Get the Real 'Hangover' Room: Yeah, so that room from The Hangover? Here's how you can snag it. Er, the real one.
· How to Utilize a 'Leisure Concierge': What the F is a leisure concierge and how do you use one?
· Getting in to Vegas Clubs: How to navigate the Vegas club scene (and what to do with those "free passes" given to you by club promoters).

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What is Monte Carlo's Hotel32?

Go To The Hotel's Web Site Where: 3770 Las Vegas Boulevard South [map], Las Vegas, NV, United States, 89109
May 8, 2009 at 1:19 PM | by Jenna | 1 Comment

We love us a little piece of hot Vegas hotel goss, and today's comes from — of all hotels — The Monte Carlo. Seems ol' MC's got a bit of an ace up its sleeve.

On his blog, HotelsMag's Adam Kirby wonders about a semi-shady email he received from the Vegas hotel this morning:

MGM Mirage's Monte Carlo Las Vegas sent out a very ambiguous e-mail this morning referring to something called Hotel32. The e-mail includes no details or information on the project, save for a link to a slideshow of boutiquey-looking guestrooms.

Hmmm. Even though the rooms are dirt-cheap here (currently hovering around $60), we can't help but remember our last Monte Carlo stay — which was less than stellar. We're glad they're at least doing something along the lines of an update — or whatever this is.

Either the Monte C has a major renovation in mind, they're building a new property (very unlikely) or Kirby is onto something when he speculates that this might be the "latest incarnation of Monte Carlo's VIP 32nd floor, which was badly damaged in a fire last year" (most likely).

If you've got any hot goss on Hotel32, by all means, shoot it our way. Meanwhile, check out the whole Hotel32 slideshow here.

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Morgans Wants Out of the Hard Rock Las Vegas

Go To The Hotel's Web Site Where: 4455 Paradise Rd [map], Las Vegas, NV, United States, 33139
May 6, 2009 at 4:40 PM | by Jenna | 0 Comments

More bummer-ish hotel industry news for you today: because of the economy, Morgans Hotel Group "plans to reduce its ownership stake" in the Hard Rock Las Vegas in response to major first-quarter losses and tanking revenues.

The hotel group, which currently co-owns and manages the Hard Rock LV, is trying to "reduce exposure in Las Vegas." Er, we assume that means "stop the bleeding." Per the Las Vegas Sun:

The company said it expects to cut its ownership in the Hard Rock to 14 percent by the end of 2009. It had about a 20 percent stake at the beginning of this year. [...]

Morgans' Hard Rock brand was hit hard like the rest of the company's properties. Hotel room occupancy for the Hard Rock fell from 94 percent in the 2008 quarter to 89.3 percent in the 2009 period, while revenue per available room slid from $173.34 to $120.55.

This announcement comes right smack in the middle of the property's major revamp; Joint, the concert venue, just re-opened after a total overhaul, and the hotel's north tower is still, apparently, on schedule to open this summer while the casino renovation and south tower will supposedly open in late 2009 or early next year.

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Plumbing Problems Shut Down 560 Rooms at the Tropicana

Go To The Hotel's Web Site Where: 3801 Las Vegas Blvd S [map], Las Vegas, NV, United States, 89109
April 24, 2009 at 10:52 AM | by Jenna | 1 Comment

We're not really so sure we want to know the nitty gritty deets of what exactly makes up a tower-wide plumbing issue at a hotel — one that causes 560 rooms to be taken out of the hotel's inventory (really!) — so we're just going to relay this news without asking too many more questions.

Apparently, a renovation to the Tropicana Las Vegas that happened in the 1990s (yes) had some plumbing issues that were not in compliance, and nobody noticed until now. Um, a decade later. So now the entire Paradise Tower of the Tropicana has been shut down, and current guests at the aging, perpetually-on-deathwatch casino hotel are being relocated to other rooms that aren't affected by the renovation or they'll be transferred to other resorts.

But, um, rooms are less than $50.00 there on most nights these days, so it's not like anyone is too outraged or upset. You get what you pay for, we suppose.

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Steve Wynn Works His A-Game On a Mystery Blonde at XS

Go To The Hotel's Web Site Where: 3131 Las Vegas Blvd S [map], Las Vegas, NV, United States, 89109
April 17, 2009 at 9:26 AM | by Jenna | 4 Comments

Fresh off his '60 Minutes' spotlight segment that aired on Sunday, Steve Wynn got dressed in his club-goin' outfit and stepped out for a night of excess at his very own XS nightspot inside the Encore Las Vegas. And, well... just look at these photos, captured by none other than TMZ. How awesome is this? Nobody can accuse the Wynnster of not knowing his clientele — he's out on the club floor with the ugly-shirted masses. Except he's wearing a goofy shirt cause, hell, he's Steve Wynn and he can do whatever he wants.

We wonder if he was working his A-Game on this hot blonde or if they were just hangin' together. Remember, he and wife (and professional colleague) Elaine filed for divorce just recently. Could he be hitting the dating circuit for another go-round?

Actually, we wonder what it would feel like to be approached by a tan older gentleman, catch a glimpse of his blindingly-white smile and listen to him introduce himself over the thumping bass by saying, "hey, I'm Steve. I own the place."

Swoon.

[Photo: TMZ]

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'60 Minutes' Gives 13 Minutes of Love to Steve Wynn

April 13, 2009 at 8:56 AM | by Jenna | 0 Comments

Last night, CBS' 60 Minutes aired a segment on Steve Wynn, aptly titled "The King of Las Vegas." We assume it was mostly supposed to focus on exactly how Wynn — "The Man With the Midas Touch — has kept his company afloat and has even managed to open up a new property (Encore Las Vegas, if you're just tuning in) during these tough economic times, but it was mostly a Steve-Wynn-is-awesome piece. Which we don't mind at all, because Steve Wynn is pretty awesome.

So: Charlie Rose attended the opening of Encore to interview the King of Las Vegas and to check out just how Steve Wynn — whom Rose has known personally and professionally for a number of years — operates. Naturally, one of the first questions he asked Wynn was why he opened Encore in such tough economic times, to which Wynn candidly replied, laughing: "If I had any idea that this [recession] was going to happen, I wouldn't have. We started this project four years ago."

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How BARE at the Mirage Advertises Their Topless Pool

Go To The Hotel's Web Site Where: 3400 Las Vegas Blvd S [map], Las Vegas, NV, United States, 89109
April 1, 2009 at 1:07 PM | by juliana | 2 Comments

If you're like us and the nudist hotel in Germany is not quite up your alley, then you can take baby steps at BARE at The Mirage, a topless pool for adults only. Topless is not mandatory (unlike that German hotel) but it is an option for gals who can't stand pesky tan lines — or you could do as this mannequin does and wear pasties.

We snapped this in the lobby of The Mirage. The showcase draws quite a crowd. While we can't say these gawkers actually end up going to BARE, anyone strolling through the Mirage definitely knows about this sexy pool option.

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Tropicana's 'Les Folies Bergere' Closes, Criss Angel Remains

Go To The Hotel's Web Site Where: 3801 Las Vegas Blvd S [map], Las Vegas, NV, United States, 89109
March 30, 2009 at 9:28 AM | by Jenna | 0 Comments

It's a sad day in Vegas today. This morning marks the beginning of the first week in almost 50 years without the Tropicana's "Les Folies Bergere," the classic French-import Vegas showgirl revue that had been running since 1959.

Due to thinning audiences and the relative unpopularity of showgirl-style entertainment on the strip (compared to shows like Cirque du Soleil and whatnot — and, um, we suppose the stiff competition posed by Criss Angel's tanking "Believe" at The Luxor), "Folies" had its very last show on Saturday night after a whopping 29,000 runs since Christmas of '59.

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