Category Archives: The Strip

Caveat lector!

Posted on April 9, 2010 by David McKee

It appears that Harrah’s Entertainment‘s big buffet offer, encompassing seven Strip properties, isn’t quite as good as it sounded to us at LVA at first blush. A fellow staffer writes: “I have a feeling that the Harrah’s buffets are keeping … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Dining, Harrah's, Marketing, MGM Mirage, The Strip | 8 Comments

Harrah’s ups the ante

Posted on April 9, 2010 by David McKee

Yr. Humble Blogger is a fan of the Las Vegas buffet scene — and owns the waistline to prove it. Starting Monday, Harrah’s Entertainment ratchets up the temptation factor by keeping seven of its Strip buffets open round the clock. … Continue reading →

Posted in Columbia Sussex, Current, Dining, George Maloof, Harrah's, M Resort, Marketing, MGM Mirage, Planet Hollywood, The Strip | 2 Comments

Condos in Vegas … still? Manilow in Vegas … again

Posted on April 8, 2010 by David McKee

Undeterred by the complete tanking of the high-rise-condo market in Las Vegas, joint-venture partners Station Casinos and Fisher Bros. had still planned a pair of condo towers on or very near where Richfield Village currently stands (above). That’s probably the … Continue reading →

Posted in Cirque du Soleil, CityCenter, Current, Entertainment, Harrah's, Michael Gaughan, Station Casinos, The Strip, Wall Street | 4 Comments

An arena in every pot

Posted on April 7, 2010 by David McKee

A scrum of casino owners and would-be owners is swarming the Clark County Commission with proposed arenas. The Las Vegas City Council may be able to get into the act, as Cordish Cos. is studying the feasibility of a stadium … Continue reading →

Posted in Archon Corp., Cordish Co., Current, Downtown, Dubai, Economy, Entertainment, Gary Goett, Harrah's, Michael Gaughan, Oscar Goodman, Sports, Taxes, The Strip, Tourism, Transportation | 1 Comment

Could Steve Wynn jilt Philadelphia?

Posted on April 2, 2010 by David McKee

What’s Steve Wynn supposedly doing in Atlantic City this weekend and why is he allegedly kicking the tires on casino properties there? Well, it is a buyer’s market and half of Borgata is up for grabs (as would be Trump … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Colony Capital, Current, Donald Trump, Entertainment, International, Macau, MGM Mirage, Pansy Ho, Pennsylvania, Phil Ruffin, Pinnacle Entertainment, Politics, Regulation, Steve Wynn, The Strip | 10 Comments

The trio that ate Las Vegas

Posted on April 2, 2010 by David McKee

Attention all Vegas-friendly gourmands: Huntington Press has inked a pact with three of Sin City’s top food critics. Al Mancini (Las Vegas CityLife), John Curtas (KNPR-FM/KLAS-TV/Las Vegas Weekly) and Max Jacobson (Vegas Seven) have been signed to pen Eating Las … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Dining, The Strip | 2 Comments

Las Vegas is beaten at its own game …

Posted on April 2, 2010 by David McKee

Royal Casino SPA & Hotel Resort from Vivid Cafe on Vimeo. … by Riga? I want to hop the next plane to Latvia after seeing this extremely sexy short film (approx. 7 minutes) showcasing the Royal Spa & Casino, which … Continue reading →

Posted in International, M Resort, Marketing, MGM Mirage, The Strip, TV | Comments Off on Las Vegas is beaten at its own game …

A comment on “Comments”

Posted on April 2, 2010 by David McKee

Due to an as-yet-inexplicable malfunction in our blogging software, all comments, regardless of provenance — yes, even mine — are shunted directly into “Spam.” Since I no longer receive notification of the arrival of a comment that may require moderation … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Entertainment, Harrah's, Ohio, Station Casinos, Steve Wynn, Technology, The Strip, Tourism, TV, Wall Street | 2 Comments

Sands’ strength, weakness inseparable

Posted on March 31, 2010 by David McKee

Ka-ching! The price tag on Marina Bay Sands has just gone up again. According to a Singapore Press Club and Asia Journalism Fellowship panel discussion, the über-megaresort has now hit the $6 billion mark. One participant pegged Sands’ 12-month gambling … Continue reading →

Posted in Alex Yemenidjian, Current, Economy, Macau, Pennsylvania, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Singapore, The Strip, Wall Street | Comments Off on Sands’ strength, weakness inseparable

Confidence or desperation?

Posted on March 31, 2010 by David McKee

Casino operators must be feeling very bullish about recent, incremental increases in visitation to Las Vegas, even though customers continue to spend less. (This is the new business model which the industry as a whole is loath to acknowledge: being … Continue reading →

Posted in Cirque du Soleil, Current, Donald Trump, Economy, Entertainment, Harrah's, Marketing, MGM Mirage, Pennsylvania, Phil Ruffin, Planet Hollywood, Sahara, The Strip, Tribal, TV | 2 Comments

Solitude at Trump

Posted on March 30, 2010 by David McKee

As the old saying goes, I have so much to do that I am going to bed. Actually, no, but I’m still wrapping my feeble brain around the double-whammy of the Station Casinos bankruptcy proposal and the brewing triads-at-Sands Macao … Continue reading →

Posted in Donald Trump, Economy, Macau, Pennsylvania, Phil Ruffin, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Station Casinos, Steve Wynn, The Mob, The Strip, Tourism | 7 Comments

$290 million for Borgata

Posted on March 29, 2010 by David McKee

That’s what MGM Mirage’s half is expected to bring and it won’t happen until next year, according to J.P. Morgan‘s latest set of estimates. We could debate whether or not MGM should have started shopping the place a year ago, … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Current, Economy, Harrah's, International, Macau, MGM Mirage, Pansy Ho, Regulation, Station Casinos, The Strip, Tourism, Tropicana Entertainment, Wall Street | Comments Off on $290 million for Borgata

Now this is different …

Posted on March 29, 2010 by David McKee

Conventional wisdom in Las Vegas held that big fights drove big business. But who ever heard of a marquee boxing match being offered as a loss leader. That’s how MGM Mirage is promoting “The Rivals: Hopkins vs. Jones.” I’m not … Continue reading →

Posted in CityCenter, Current, Economy, Entertainment, MGM Mirage, Sports, The Strip, Tourism | 4 Comments

Quote of the Day

Posted on March 29, 2010 by David McKee

“At Bellagio, MGM is offering no promotions.” — from this week’s J.P. Morgan “LV Strip Room Rate Survey” … and from every week’s such survey seemingly since time immemorial, making Bellagio the only MGM Mirage Strip hotel of which this … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Economy, MGM Mirage, The Strip, Tourism | 3 Comments

Dept. of Wishful Thinking

Posted on March 26, 2010 by David McKee

Whatever became of Elad Properties‘ metaresort-sized Plaza project, built upon the ruins of the New Frontier? Reed Construction Data Project Research claims it’s on. Never mind that Elad’s not put so much as a shovel into the ground … or … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Economy, Environment, Gary Goett, Harrah's, M Resort, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New York, Phil Ruffin, Plaza, Racinos, The Strip, Tribal | Comments Off on Dept. of Wishful Thinking

A clarification, a continuation & a poll

Posted on March 25, 2010 by David McKee

Firstly, in defense of both LVA and our research department, they’ve been following the subject of resort fees since the June 16, 2007 Question of the Day. These past couple of weeks we’ve been trying to get a handle on … Continue reading →

Posted in Cirque du Soleil, Current, Dining, Economy, Encore, Entertainment, Harrah's, MGM Mirage, Steve Wynn, Technology, The Strip, Tourism | 1 Comment

Mystery solved (sorta)

Posted on March 24, 2010 by David McKee

It would seem that all your comments, dear readers, have been getting shunted straight into “Spam” without so much as a by-your-leave to me as to whether they should be approved, edited, moderated or whatever. I’ve liberated approximately messages from … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Downtown, Economy, Station Casinos, The Strip, Tourism | Comments Off on Mystery solved (sorta)

The Roman empire strikes back

Posted on March 24, 2010 by David McKee

@CaesarsPalace Ask yourself: would a Caesar pay resort fees? Why should you? Twitter follower rates from $100. http://bit.ly/aA2Qcm 4 minutes ago via Seesmic @ParisVegas Resort fees are a sucker bet. That’s why we don’t charge them. Twitter follower rates from … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Economy, Harrah's, The Strip, Tourism | Comments Off on The Roman empire strikes back

Aria wants your business, Las Vegas

Posted on March 24, 2010 by David McKee

From the Twitter feed of Aria: Every Wed night at The Deuce @AriaLV open champagne bar from 10-11pm and half price bottles for #LVlocals! Showing the locals some love! They’ll probably be hanging out here instead.

Posted in CityCenter, Current, Economy, Entertainment, MGM Mirage, Phil Ruffin, The Strip | 3 Comments

Wishful Thinking 101

Posted on March 24, 2010 by David McKee

“[Applied Analysis principal Jeremy] Aguero says the local economy will start recovering as soon as people across the country start spending money like they used to.” Yes, when they start having easy credit like they used to … which will … Continue reading →

Posted in Boulder Strip, Current, Downtown, Economy, North Las Vegas, The Strip | Comments Off on Wishful Thinking 101