OH, Las Vegas. Love it or hate it, that’s where everyone always finds themselves talking about. That makes sense considering it’s one of the entertainment capitals of the world, a hub for bachelor and bachelorette parties, and a city that’s constantly evolving.
The reality is that Sin City is hard to keep up with. The big resorts are constantly changing owners and loyalty programs — or being torn down to build something bigger and better. The world’s biggest stars continue to add (or rearrange) residences. Major sporting events keep popping up and exciting attractions seem to be announced daily.
Speaking of sporting events, expect the city to change dramatically like never before this year since Super Bowl LVIII will take place at Vegas’ recently opened Allegiant Stadium – a huge win for the city and its plethora of resorts and entertainment outlets.
To help cut through the clutter, we’ve rounded up some of the biggest developments that changed the Las Vegas landscape to help you plan your next trip.
Fontainebleau Las Vegas will finally, perhaps, open
If you’ve spent time in Las Vegas over the past two decades, you’ve probably noticed a giant unfinished blue tower rising out of the ground in the northern part of the Strip. That building is the Fontainebleau, a resort project that started in 2007 and fell victim to the 2008 financial crisis. It bounced between multiple developers and stalled again and again.
At one point, the project was planned to accommodate multiple Marriott Bonvoy participating hotels, including the Las Vegas Edition and the JW Marriott. However, Marriott withdraw from the agreement in 2021.
Now, it looks like the seemingly endless construction project that has begun to have a grand opening date of late 2023 is simply… FontainebleauLasVegas. Once completed, the 67-story resort on 25 acres will feature 3,700 hotel rooms, games, restaurants, shopping, multiple pools, and 550,000 square feet of conference space — essentially is a shiny new version of what you’d expect from every megaproject in the world. Strip.
Earlier this year, Fontainebleau Development and Koch Real Estate Investments shared in a statement that they had secured a $2.2 billion construction loan to “keep construction on schedule and pave the way for Fontainebleau.” Las Vegas launches globally in the fourth quarter.” of 2023.”
We certainly hope it succeeds as this hotel reporter can’t wait to visit for a review.
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All the same with The Cosmopolitan — present
We could really go into the details of MGM’s acquisition of Marriott-affiliated The Cosmopolitan resort, but why not get straight to the point? At least for now, things are still the same. This means that The Cosmopolitan will remain part of the Marriott Bonvoy ecosystem and will continue to use Identity Memberships & Rewards.
A spokesperson for MGM said: “The Cosmopolitan Identity Program remains affiliated with the Marriott Bonvoy. “They are continuing to work on integrating The Cosmopolitan into MGM Rewards and look forward to sharing details later this year.”
That said, the Marriott Bonvoy calendar for The Cosmopolitan suggests that neither reward availability nor cash advance rates will be available after November 1, which could signal an integration timeline. of the resort to MGM Rewards — the latest iteration of the show debuted early last year.
For now, we know that Guests at The Cosmopolitan, Aria and Bellagio have reciprocal room rates. Stay tuned and we’ll update you as we hear the latest.
A new casino resort is opening out of the Strip
While full details are scarce, Station Casino (the team behind Red Rock Casino Resort & Spa and Palace Station) is opening a new luxury casino resort off the Strip in Spring Valley. After opening in late 2023, Durango . Casino & Resort will add 200 rooms to Las Vegas’ inventory as well as 83,000 square feet of sportsbook and gaming space, four restaurants, a dining room, meeting space and a swimming pool.
A cannabis-friendly hotel to open this spring
a little north of resort world, Artisan Hotel Boutique is receiving a multi-million dollar transformation from Elevations Hotels and Resorts to become Las Vegas’ first cannabis-friendly hotel, The Lexi. According to the developers, although the hotel will have 64 rooms, only the rooms on the fourth floor will be cannabis-friendly and feature “a state-of-the-art RestorAir filtration system using Advanced Oxidation Cell (AOC) technology) “.
In Nevada, “Cannabis can only be consumed on private property,” prescribed by state; Casino resorts, subject to federal law, are not allowed to use marijuana at all.
Artisan will also offer cannabis-free zones, a European-style pool (wink, wink), a Cajun restaurant, and more dining outlets.
More real estate shocks
In a personally heartbreaking moment for me in 2021, it was announced that Mirage will be sold to Hard Rock International with a plan to tear down the iconic volcano and replace it all with a guitar-shaped Hard Rock resort. In December, that deal was completed, Las Vegas Review-Journalalthough it will remain The Mirage for a while longer, and plans for a full-scale construction and overhaul will be announced by the end of 2023.
Until then, read My ode to The Mirage — hotels made me fall in love with hotels, ultimately inspired my career decisions and introduced me to the travel media industry in the first place.
An announcement in late 2022 said that MGM had closed the sale of the land lot where the horrific shooting took place during the Route 91 Harvest Festival in 2017, which claimed the lives of 58 people.
In the agreement, the majority of the 15-acre lot, facing Luxor, was sold to the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, according to Las Vegas Review-Journal. In 2020, the Three Affiliated Tribes also purchased an 8.7-acre parcel of land adjacent to a new purchase, or more than 20 acres, to develop, rent, or sell. No specific plans have been announced.
However, two acres of the original site were devoted to the construction of a memorial to the victims of the 2017 shooting.
A wider field of entertainment than real life is on the way
If you don’t already know, Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. is building a giant globe at The Venetian, which will be one of the world’s most technologically advanced entertainment venues.
Inside the sphere that can hold up to 20,000 people, a state-of-the-art screen will completely cover the audience from all directions and include programmable seats to make performances, concerts and concerts possible. Other actors become more immersive than ever. In fact, they can even manipulate wind and scent to create an experience like never before.
Outside of the 300-foot-tall structure, billed as the largest spherical structure on the planet, a 580,000-square-foot LED screen will likely redefine the Strip’s nighttime appearance when it (hopefully) opens its doors. Last year.
Sin City is turning into a race track – literally
In November, get ready to hear the roar of Las Vegas with the sound of Formula 1 racing cars speeding past Bellagio’s iconic fountain and Paris Las Vegas replica Eiffel Tower, at lightning speed. temperatures up to 212 miles per hour.
The incredible spectacle will take place November 16-18, and tickets (starting at $500) for Formula 1 Heineken Silver Las Vegas Gran Prix currently on sale to officially designated regions. However, many packages were sold out.
Fret not — some of the best views of the races are found in rooms facing the Strip from the casinos along the track. Bellagio is actually setting up a grandstand viewing area that will be built on the lake and open to guests Book a special race pack starting at $2,827 per person.
And some other news you may want to know
Last year we reported that it was it’s time to say goodbye to Bally’s as it will be replaced by Las Vegas Horseshoe. Those changes are now in full effect and the newly rebranded casino will eventually play host to the World Series of Poker. It will also soon be home to two celebrity restaurants and entertainment venues: Guy Fieri’s Flavortown Sports Kitchen, which opens this summer and Blake Shelton’s Ole Red.
On the topic of celebrities, Lisa Vanderpump opened a new restaurant, Vanderpump in Paris, in Paris Las Vegas. Martha Stewart joined the same casino by opening Bedford by Martha Stewart. Even the Jonas Brothers got into the Vegas restaurant game with their opening last year Nellie’s Southern Kitchen at MGM Grand.
Speaking of Jonas Brothers, the trio announced new performances this year at Park MGM. Other artists making headlines for neighborhoods across Las Vegas this year include Bruno Mars, Usher, Maroon 5, Miranda Lambert, The Chicks, Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, Rod Stewart, Santana, Keith Urban, Sting, Garth Brooks and, of course, the long-awaited residence from Adele, among others.
The Las Vegas Dream, that will be part of Hyatt, is now scheduled to open in 2024 — and we can’t wait to see it. We’ll have to wait a little longer for Rio to convert to more Hyatt properties as it doesn’t look like the news won’t be announced until near the end of the year.
As always, we’ll keep you updated because there’s a lot going on — and what happens in Vegas never really stays in Vegas.
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