Caesars Pool To Get Makeover, Frozen Towels
Desert Passage Mall To Become Miracle Mile
POSTED: 10:54 am CDT May 23, 2006
The Caesars Palace pool area, already one of the nicest and most luxurious in town, will get a "hip" makeover this summer and then be known as the Venus Pool Club.Created by the same folks who do the super-trendy nightclub Pure inside the hotel, the pool area will feature luxury cabanas; oversized chaise lounges; air-conditioned bars with flat-screen televisions, Evian face spritzers and body massages; a traveling drink cart, a high-end pool menu (lobster sandwiches); and frozen towel service.Yes, frozen towels.A DJ will even pump tunes into the crowd if you feel like getting your inner J.Lo on in the pool.
As the Aladdin gets converted to its new Planet Hollywood theme, many had been wondering what was going to happen to the desert-themed Desert Passage mall, which is owned by a different company.Now we know: Say goodbye to the Arabian nights and say hello to the Miracle Mile.That's the new name for the mall, which will receive a $50 million makeover to strip out the Middle Eastern detail and replace it with a swanky, upscale, Madison Avenue-style flavor.The front entrance is already being torn apart to replace it with a Times Square-style entrance with giant television screens and water features outside and three new outlets just inside: Urban Outfitters, a remodeled and expanded Sephora, and an outlet of the famed Los Angeles restaurant Trader Vic's. The last of those will get a two-level outdoor dining patio facing the Strip.The exterior changes are expected to be done by the end of the year, to coincide with the Planet Hollywood launch. Interior changes will continue throughout 2007.
R&B/soul singer Toni Braxton has inked a deal to headline in the Flamingo showroom starting in August. The deal runs for the next year or so.The Grammy Award-winning Braxton is best known for her string of hits in the 1990s such as "Breathe Again," "Un-break My Heart," "You're Making Me High" and "Another Sad Love Song." Her Vegas show will incorporate her hits, with covers of music new old, replete with the kind of staging and costume changes that seem to be required of a Sin City extravaganza, although perhaps not quite to the level that the standard-bearer of the genre, Celine Dion goes to.Braxton's show will debut at the Flamingo Aug. 3 and run in six week intervals through spring of 2007.
Madame Tussaud's Las Vegas is featuring two new wax figure arrivals tied to the upcoming Vegas shows "Phantom of the Opera" and Cirque du Soleil's Love.Michael Crawford is the latest inductee into the facility's Vegas legends section, wearing a tux and holding the "Phantom" mask he made famous during the show's Broadway run. No, Crawford won't be in the Vegas version of the show, but you may remember that Crawford made a splash in Sin City as the lead of EFX for several years.Since the Cirque show features music from The Beatles, what better way to mark the occasion than to bring in wax versions of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr? The Fab Four (circa 1964), on loan from the London original, arrive at the Vegas location on May 31 and will remain on display until July 4. Fans can pose for photographs with the figures and also activate recordings of Beatles music.The General Manager of the facility, Adrian Jones, also noted a certain symmetry with the Beatles show running and the figures on display on June 18, which happens to be Sir Paul McCartney's 64th birthday."Madame Tussauds wax figures were used on the iconic Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Band album cover in 1967, which features the song 'When I am 64' and the lyric, 'Will you still need me when I'm 64?' On June 18, we can finally answer the question with a very big yes," Jones said.
One wing of the Terrible's Hotel and Casino hotel tower has already been torn down and construction has been going on for months now, but trying to figure out exactly what is happening there has been a challenge, to say the least.Last week the hotel sent out a press release with the headline: "Terrible's Hotel and Casino Unveils Expansion Plans."Here are the details: "Improved features of this project will include an expanded casino floor, a new hotel tower with luxury rooms and suites, a conveniently located 500-space parking garage, state-of-the-art kitchen facilities, and all-new full-service support areas throughout. A celebratory grand opening is expected this summer."How many rooms? How much additional casino space? When this summer? All excellent questions that were not answered. I'll get back to you.
Having worked for more than one corporate executive in my life, I'm not a fan of that class of guy. But when one of them does something cool, you gotta give him credit.Every year MGM Mirage has a fundraising drive benefiting the Voice Foundation, a nonprofit, philanthropic entity that collects and disperses employee donations to deserving charities and causes where its employees live and work. Each hotel in the company's portfolio organizes its own efforts, and apparently it turns into a bit of a competition to see who can do the best.This year Treasure Island President and COO Tom Mikulich said that if employees exceeded their fundraising goal he would jump off the mast of the pirate ship in front of the hotel.They dove in, raising more than 21 percent more than last year, and last week Mikulich dove in too. Good for him.
As the Aladdin gets converted to its new Planet Hollywood theme, many had been wondering what was going to happen to the desert-themed Desert Passage mall, which is owned by a different company.Now we know: Say goodbye to the Arabian nights and say hello to the Miracle Mile.That's the new name for the mall, which will receive a $50 million makeover to strip out the Middle Eastern detail and replace it with a swanky, upscale, Madison Avenue-style flavor.The front entrance is already being torn apart to replace it with a Times Square-style entrance with giant television screens and water features outside and three new outlets just inside: Urban Outfitters, a remodeled and expanded Sephora, and an outlet of the famed Los Angeles restaurant Trader Vic's. The last of those will get a two-level outdoor dining patio facing the Strip.The exterior changes are expected to be done by the end of the year, to coincide with the Planet Hollywood launch. Interior changes will continue throughout 2007.
R&B/soul singer Toni Braxton has inked a deal to headline in the Flamingo showroom starting in August. The deal runs for the next year or so.The Grammy Award-winning Braxton is best known for her string of hits in the 1990s such as "Breathe Again," "Un-break My Heart," "You're Making Me High" and "Another Sad Love Song." Her Vegas show will incorporate her hits, with covers of music new old, replete with the kind of staging and costume changes that seem to be required of a Sin City extravaganza, although perhaps not quite to the level that the standard-bearer of the genre, Celine Dion goes to.Braxton's show will debut at the Flamingo Aug. 3 and run in six week intervals through spring of 2007.
Madame Tussaud's Las Vegas is featuring two new wax figure arrivals tied to the upcoming Vegas shows "Phantom of the Opera" and Cirque du Soleil's Love.Michael Crawford is the latest inductee into the facility's Vegas legends section, wearing a tux and holding the "Phantom" mask he made famous during the show's Broadway run. No, Crawford won't be in the Vegas version of the show, but you may remember that Crawford made a splash in Sin City as the lead of EFX for several years.Since the Cirque show features music from The Beatles, what better way to mark the occasion than to bring in wax versions of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr? The Fab Four (circa 1964), on loan from the London original, arrive at the Vegas location on May 31 and will remain on display until July 4. Fans can pose for photographs with the figures and also activate recordings of Beatles music.The General Manager of the facility, Adrian Jones, also noted a certain symmetry with the Beatles show running and the figures on display on June 18, which happens to be Sir Paul McCartney's 64th birthday."Madame Tussauds wax figures were used on the iconic Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Band album cover in 1967, which features the song 'When I am 64' and the lyric, 'Will you still need me when I'm 64?' On June 18, we can finally answer the question with a very big yes," Jones said.
One wing of the Terrible's Hotel and Casino hotel tower has already been torn down and construction has been going on for months now, but trying to figure out exactly what is happening there has been a challenge, to say the least.Last week the hotel sent out a press release with the headline: "Terrible's Hotel and Casino Unveils Expansion Plans."Here are the details: "Improved features of this project will include an expanded casino floor, a new hotel tower with luxury rooms and suites, a conveniently located 500-space parking garage, state-of-the-art kitchen facilities, and all-new full-service support areas throughout. A celebratory grand opening is expected this summer."How many rooms? How much additional casino space? When this summer? All excellent questions that were not answered. I'll get back to you.
Having worked for more than one corporate executive in my life, I'm not a fan of that class of guy. But when one of them does something cool, you gotta give him credit.Every year MGM Mirage has a fundraising drive benefiting the Voice Foundation, a nonprofit, philanthropic entity that collects and disperses employee donations to deserving charities and causes where its employees live and work. Each hotel in the company's portfolio organizes its own efforts, and apparently it turns into a bit of a competition to see who can do the best.This year Treasure Island President and COO Tom Mikulich said that if employees exceeded their fundraising goal he would jump off the mast of the pirate ship in front of the hotel.They dove in, raising more than 21 percent more than last year, and last week Mikulich dove in too. Good for him.
The Full Story
- Caesars Pool To Get Makeover, Frozen Towels
- Tropicana Bidding: And The Winner Is...
- Vegas Q&A: Which Strip Project Is Most Exciting?
In Next Week's Column
Next week: The latest from Las Vegas.Plus, don't forget to send your questions about Las Vegas. I've got room for more, so send them in today!Find the hotel that's right for you with Vegas4Visitors.com's reviews!And check out the new Moon Handbooks Las Vegas.Rick Garman is the head writer for Vegas4Visitors
