Smart Meetings

View From Vegas: Up and Coming

Author: “Lucky Chuck” Kapelke
November 2007

Columns

Palazzo

While you may have heard that the real Venice is slowly sinking into the water, Venice in Vegas is on the rise. The Venetian has sprouted new wings, in its new $1.8-billion Palazzo Resort Hotel Casino.  A full-blown resort in its own right, the Palazzo is not your average hotel expansion. Slated to open in December 2007, this “towering” new property includes a 50-floor luxury hotel tower with 3,068-rooms,  including 375 concierge-level suites and six villas of up to 11,000 sq. ft. It also has a 105,000-square-foot casino; an enormous 250,000-square-foot pool deck with seven pools, gardens, sculptures, cabanas and fountains; and a 450,000-square-foot shopping, dining and entertainment complex with 80 retail stores. 

For meetings, the Palazzo also has a whopping 450,000 sq. ft. of conference space, which complements the vast acreage of meeting rooms available through the Venetian and Sands Expo and Convention Center (which is also slated to keep growing by another 800,000 sq. ft. by 2009). When finished, the center-strip complex owned by the Las Vegas Sands Corporation will have 7,074 hotel rooms and suites, making it the largest resort and hotel complex in the world. And it will have 3,350,000 sq. ft. of meeting space—more than 70 percent as much space as the entire Vatican City in Rome. Contact the Venetian’s group sales office for more information.  

On the Lake

MonteLago Village Resort, at Lake Las Vegas, has announced plans for the new Riva di Lago Events Center, a 3,829-square-foot lakeside facility that will bring the property’s total meeting space to around 10,000 sq. ft. Slated to open by March 2008, the Riva di Lago will include a 500-square-foot conference room and a dividable 3,329-square-foot meeting room. Groups may also take in the lakefront view from a 6,144-square-foot patio, which can be used for receptions and outdoor dining. 

Country Club

Got a honkytonk crowd to please? Stoney’s Rockin’ Country, a new western-style dance club on the south strip, claims to be the largest country dance club of its kind in the state of Nevada. Located about three miles from Mandalay Bay and 1/2 mile from the new SouthPoint, the 20,000-square-foot space includes a massive dance floor, BBQ, pool tables, bowling lanes, go-go dancers and the much-feared mechanical bull. For groups, it could be a good place for country-style dance lessons or other activities.  Harrah’s Goes LargeHarrah’s Entertainment and AEG are teaming up to build one of the largest sports and event arenas in Las Vegas. Slated to open in 2010, the $500-million, 20,000-seat venue will be used for concerts, awards presentations, big-league sports and other events; it will also be available for rent for large-group presentations or  functions. The arena will be located behind Bally’s and Paris Las Vegas, within walking distance of The Strip; spread across 10 acres, it will have private “hospitality centers,” luxury suites and more. 

New New York

New York-New York has redesigned and expanded its meeting and convention space, and now offers more than 21,000 sq. ft. of space for groups of 10 to 300. The new, 2,200-square-foot Park Terrace room overlooks the casino floor, while the Central Park overlooks the outdoor pool area.  Other venues range from the 6,500-square-foot Staten Island Ballroom, the 1,000-square-foot Midtown and the Brooklyn Bridge, which can host receptions of up to 1,000 and dinners for up to 600. Recent enhancements have also brought in such smart touches as new LCD reader boards, customizable directional screens, web access, a new sound system and more.  

NEW

Ay, There’s the Rub: RUB BBQ is next in the line of New York-based restaurants to make their way to Las Vegas, in particular to the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino. The 9,000-square-foot venue will feature championship barbecue created by Paul Kirk, a.k.a. The Kansas City Baron of Barbecue, a.k.a. The Ambassador of Barbecue, and will include live music.  

Bites & Bubbles: For a cool incentive prize or reception, Guy Savoy at Caesars Palace now offers a Bites & Bubbles menu, a sampling of the restaurant’s creative cuisine served up with wine and champagne in the so-called Bubble Bar, off the main dining room. The tasting menu will likely include such original creations as artichoke and black truffle soup, oysters in ice gelee, and beef tartar with “pommes dauphine.” 

Phantom Las Vegas: After celebrating its one-year anniversary, Phantom Las Vegas has begun to offer free behind-the-scenes tours of the Phantom Theatre, a re-creation of the 1,800-seat Paris Opera House, complete with a $5-million chandelier. If that’s not enough for the die-hard Phantom fan in your group, the newly created Phantom VIP experience includes one Golden Circle ticket, an elite backstage tour and a personal meet-and-greet with Phantom cast members, all for just $250 per person.