Start Spreading the News in Las Vegas
February 08, 2008
Las Vegas embarks on a $40 billion "Manhattanization" makeover
By Alex Palmer
Las Vegas has long been hailed as the goliath of getaways. Not only is everything here bigger, shinier and more likely to come with a souvenir cup than almost any other destination, this is a place that takes its "getaway" status very seriously. Las Vegas is a "Disneyland for adults," or, as the Las Vegas Conventions and Visitors Authority's slogan slyly puts it, "what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas." Setting aside that phrase's less proper suggestions, it remains that Las Vegas' vast offerings of entertainment and excitement are to be considered distinct from, or actually antithetical to, everyday life. People come here for something spectacularly unlike the real world.
The branding of this city as the place for the ultimate vacation has turned it into an ideal choice for incentive planners. Named one of the three most popular incentive travel destinations in the Incentive Research Foundation's 2005 "Survey of Incentive Travel Program Business Strategies," Las Vegas' city-wide "wow factor" suits it to offering incentive winners a dazzling experience.
"Las Vegas is an over-the-top destination, and that's what incentives are about," says Angela Allen, project account manager for Maritz Travel. "It's about what you can't experience on your own vacation." Allen is currently planning a 200-person incentive trip for a travel client in May.
But as it continues to draw ever larger numbers of visitors, this epitome of over-the-top is having to balance the realities of $30-million-an-acre land costs and the environmental and logistical pressures of an annual visitor volume nearing 40 billion. As can only be expected from a destination synonymous with reinvention, Las Vegas is turning these potential lemons into lemonade—or expertly poured Blue Dolphin cocktails—as its condo-heavy construction, entertainment offerings and changing cityscape are transforming the city into a hip, urban metropolis, resembling New York more than Disneyland.
Since the 1989 opening of the Mirage, which ushered in the era of Vegas mega-resorts catering to a wider range of visitors and interests, the city has experienced cycles of major builds every few years as newer, distinctive towers, casinos and sights replaced those that had become not quite spectacular enough. Las Vegas is now in the midst of another wave of development, its biggest yet, with $30 billion to $40 billion being spent in the upcoming months on new properties and the creation of almost 40,000 new rooms.
The largest of these developments is CityCenter, by MGM MIRAGE. Slated for completion by the end of 2009, this $7.8 billion project includes a hotel-casino, two boutique hotels, more than 2,500 luxury residences and a 500,000-square-foot retail and entertainment space. Travelers roaming through the center's vast courtyard, surrounded by manicured vegetation, glassy skyscrapers and an array of shops and galleries, will feel as if they're walking through the downtown of a futuristic metropolis. The main entrance has even been modeled after New York's Park Avenue, according to Gail Fitzgerald, the vice president of hotel sales and marketing for CityCenter.
"A lot of thought was given to 'what would be the best use of the property?'" says Fitzgerald. "We had this land and fabulous location on the Las Vegas Strip, and we knew we could build another sprawling resort or we could be a little more environmentally conscious and make it more dense. Therefore, there's multiple buildings and [it is] built vertically."
Following the opening of CityCenter will come Echelon, a similar, if slightly less massive, city-within-a-city development, slated to open in 2010. Echelon also brings a multi-building urban aesthetic with four hotels, a casino and the 175,000-square-foot meeting and convention space, the Las Vegas ExpoCenter, on the 63-acre property.
"They're trying to utilize the property that they have to its fullest and provide the customers basically all of the amenities that they're looking for within that area," says Jeremy Handel, spokesman for the LVCVA.
Handel points to the newly opened Palazzo Resort Hotel Casino as offering a similarly comprehensive menu of services, if less consciously "city-like." A sister property of, and adjacent to, the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino, the resort includes restaurants from chefs including Mario Batali and Wolfgang Puck, sports bar The 40/40 Club from music mogul Jay-Z, retail and convention space, and a Canyon Ranch SpaClub featuring Aquavana water massage treatments.
 The Best the Big Cities Have to Offer
Including a Batali- or Puck-branded restaurant on-site is practically required in Vegas these days. Chefs have become a new type of rock star in Vegas, as the city has capitalized on America's heightened interest in high-end dining, turning the Vegas food scene into one of the city's biggest draws. Restaurants from Food Network stars like Emeril Lagasse and Batali as well as established, but not quite household-name, chefs like Michael Mina and Tom Colicchio, all offer a range of quality dining options for visitors.
And this doesn't mean just marquee names are opening restaurants there. Last year Caesars brought in Rao's, a famous Italian restaurant from East Harlem, known for its delicious menu and exclusivity. They brought out the owner and duplicated the menu verbatim, trying to create the exact same New York Italian experience in Vegas. Such efforts, which have intensified recently, have helped Las Vegas create an image as an authentic dining city, mentioned in the same sentence as New York or San Francisco.
As Incentive recently reported, in November, Michelin released its first Las Vegas guide (making it only the fourth American city to be Michelin-rated), granting French restaurant Joël Robuchon at the MGM Grand the rare honor of three stars. Earlier in 2007, AAA awarded four restaurants its prestigious Five Diamond Award: Alex at Wynn Las Vegas, Joël Robuchon, as well as Le Cirque and Picasso at Bellagio.
In addition to its celebrity chefs, Vegas is now home to more Master Sommeliers than any other American city, which makes wine tastings a consistent option for incentive travelers. Bon Appétit magazine has begun hosting the annual "Vegas Uncork'd" culinary event on The Strip each May. Many planners are finding that these serve as alternatives to the traditional golf or spa options, since they bring together a broad range of demographics, both young and old, male and female.
SEI Meetings and Incentives recently brought a group of 89 from a financial services company to Lake Las Vegas for a wine tasting. Since the group included winners from several different offices and the members were just getting to know each other, the company wanted a more social outing than a spa treatment or round of golf could provide, and they found the tasting to be a perfect solution. Besides a resort setting for a wine event, many of the restaurants can treat groups to extensive wine menus and arrange tastings. For those looking for something a little bit different, Noir Bar, a neo-speakeasy hidden below the LAX nightclub in the Luxor, offers "designer cocktails" custom made to individual tastes.
 Manhattanization and Its Discontents
The Palazzo's opening also marks the arrival of one of the most Madison Avenue of brands: Barneys New York, with only nine locations in the United States. The inclusion of Barneys at The Shoppes at The Palazzo completes Las Vegas' collection of top-tier New York retailers, from Tiffany & Co. to Manolo Blahnik, that have arrived at The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace, Mandalay Place or one of the other Las Vegas shopping centers. Incentive travel visitors will find plenty of big city buys during leisure periods in the itinerary. Asked which other major retailers were slated to open on The Strip after Barneys, the LVCVA's Handel paused and responded, "You know, I don't think there are any more that could. I think they're pretty much all here now."Besides the mini-cities and the Palazzo, several other major developments are in progress. Donald Trump is bringing his signature style of metropolitan luxury and New York pluck to Las Vegas with the opening of Trump International Hotel & Tower in May (a second tower is scheduled to open in 2010). Offering both hotel and condominium spaces, the property has eye-catching 24-carat-gold-tinted windows, but more emphasized is that the property brings "the comfort of home"—granted, a very upscale home—to visitors and residents.
Steve Wynn is building Encore, the follow-up to Wynn Las Vegas, slated for early 2009. With over 2,000 suites and at 653 feet high, it will barely beat out both Trump and the Palazzo as the tallest building in Vegas (though with Encore's later opening, each of those properties will also enjoy that title for at least a few months). This rise in building heights and densities is being referred to as Las Vegas' "Manhattanization" and has raised some concerns that the drawbacks of urbanization, including traffic and pollution, will become worse in a city already known for its sprawl and heavy use of natural resources.
Though a long-term answer to these questions is probably still a few years away, and specific solutions to these potential transportation issues have yet to come forward, there is clearly an awareness from developers that environmental responsibility must be placed as a higher priority than in past builds. CityCenter is leading the pack in this respect. It hopes to receive Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, which would make it the largest property to receive this award for green design and construction. Eighty percent of the Boardwalk Hotel, which the property is replacing, has been recycled and sent elsewhere for reuse (bathroom fixtures went to other countries to be installed and used again, whole and broken glass will be used at CityCenter in months and years to come) and the design is also building in energy- and water-saving measures.
There is also the 180-acre Springs Preserve, about 10 minutes off The Strip. The Preserve is a monument to the often-overlooked natural life of Southern Nevada. But with desert botanical gardens, museum galleries and walking trails through the area's wetland habitats, it also serves as an excellent half-day outing for incentive groups interested in experiencing the other side of Vegas. It includes a huge outdoor amphitheater where several thousand people can attend a concert (Jewel and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy recently performed there) or see a speaker. And, of course, the Preserve has its own Wolfgang Puck restaurant (the Springs Café, with a focus on organic and local ingredients). Using reclaimed water and local materials for its construction, the facility is in the final stages of receiving a Platinum LEED certification.
"[The Springs Preserve] is so new that we're only showing it to groups at this point," says Linda Miyoshi, senior sales manager for PRA Destination Management. "We're trying to put the message out to the world that Las Vegas' green isn't all about money." One of the groups that they have interested is a perfume company from France.
Harrah's Entertainment has started energy- and water-conservation projects across its portfolio of properties, and reports having 25 major conservation projects currently under way. The company recently created an executive "green team" to focus on these efforts.
They Say the Neon Lights Are Bright
 Like its retail and dining industries, Vegas is hosting plenty of exports from New York in its entertainment venues. Broadway shows including Spamalot, Phantom of the Opera, and Mamma Mia! have proved strong draws for incentive groups, providing Big Apple shows with a Vegas twist (unlike on the East Coast, audiences are encouraged to bring drinks into the theater). In April, the Frankie Valli musical, Jersey Boys, will open at the Palazzo.
Most major acts (and plenty of smaller ones) make Vegas part of their tour, and big-name acts can be enjoyed at venues from the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay to the massive MGM Grand Garden Arena. Though Celine Dion, the big draw of Caesars' Colosseum, left at the end of 2007, Bette Midler begins this month, with Elton John returning with his acclaimed The Red Piano show in March and Jerry Seinfeld filling in dates throughout the year.
And of course the entertainment giant Cirque du Soleil continues to spread its acrobatic powers across the city. In addition to premiering a new Criss Angel–inspired show later this year at the Luxor, Cirque has an Elvis-themed show opening with CityCenter. While many Broadway shows rotate through the theaters, Cirque just keeps bringing Vegas additional shows without retiring any. Even Cirque-like shows, such as the Franco Dragone creation, La Rêve, have drawn large and consistent audiences.
While most incentive trips build in blocks of free time for winners to rest or shop, in Las Vegas these free times are almost a necessity in order to allow attendees to enjoy the vast array of options. Rich Weber, the CEO of Destination Vegas, a local DMC, is having the 100 to 150 travelers taking part in a March program choose their own entertainment for Saturday night.
"They just go online and see what shows they want to see, what they want to do, what their preference is," says Weber. "Rather than pick a show as a group, we've elected to let that be their choice. If they want to see a show, then we select a show. If they want to go gamble, they're on their own."
PRA expands this choose-your-own entertainment concept by offering "Show Arounds," taking smaller groups to different pairings of restaurants and shows. Visitors can go online prior to the trip and choose from several options: a meal at the Venetian's Aquanox followed by the Blue Man Group or dinner at Bellagio's fashionably casual Fix before a performance of Cirque du Soleil's O.
To make the event truly memorable, planners can consider getting groups fully involved in the activities through a themed evening. In the fall, PRA entertained a group of about 300 from a Houston food company by hosting a reception at the Mirage's Revolution Lounge before going to LOVE, featuring music from The Beatles' catalog, but guests were encouraged to dress as their favorite Beatle, any era.
The MGM Grand's Studio 54 nightclub (another New York clone) lends itself to getting winners involved in the action, both because of its lively '70s aesthetic and the trapeze and swing that hang from the ceiling.
"The CEO and two of his vice presidents all dressed up in costume and the CEO came down from the top in the swing," recalls Miyoshi of a 600-person group. "It was fun. People do like to dress up."
Dining, entertainment and…wasn't there
something else to do in Vegas? Read about
gaming’s new role in the city.
Planner Resources
Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority
www.lvcva.com
CityCenter
www.citycenter.com
The Palazzo Las Vegas
www.palazzolasvegas.com
Trump International Hotel & Tower Las Vegas
www.trumplv.com
Harrah's Entertainment
www.harrahs.com
Caesars Palace
www.caesarspalace.com
Wynn Las Vegas
www.wynnlasvegas.com
Springs Preserve
www.springspreserve.org
Activity Planners Inc.
www.activityplanners.com
PRA Destination Management
www.pra.com/epra/destinations/LasVegas/index.html
Destination Vegas
www.destinationvegas.com
Virgin America is now flying between Las Vegas' McCarran International Airport and San Francisco. Virtually all other major carriers, including JetBlue, American and many international airlines can also get your group into the city. www.mccarran.com
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