Las Vegas Vacation Blog Blog

Hailed as the most ambitious private project conceived in North America, the $8.5 billion dollar CityCenter in Las Vegas is a sublime amalgam of captivating architecture, modern art and sophisticated gaming. The sprawling metropolis, emblazoned with monolithic towers and an overall ultramodern feel, is the supreme mecca of sin.

The 67-acre CityCenter is the brainchild of a tenacious team of world-renowned architects lead by the visionary Pelli Clarke Architectural Firm; a builder that has reinvented many iconic cities such as New York and London. In addition to the phenomenal architecture, CityCenter has the largest public art display in the world. A handful of internationally celebrated artists including Maya Lin, Claes Oldenburg, and Frank Stella have been selected to exhibit their new wave creations throughout the center’s parks and plazas.

GM MIRAGE included an assortment of resort casinos, residential living and entertainment venues that will awe its visitors. The Aria Resort and Casino is the largest hotel in CityCenter, boasting an unbelievable 4,004 luxury rooms and suites. Furthermore, the state-of-the-art complex in Vegas has been adorned with nine restaurants conducted by top chefs. “The chef talent out here is pretty inspiring,” said chef Shawn McClain of Aria’s Sage restaurant. This is McClain’s first venture outside Chicago, where he has three distinctive restaurants.

As magnificent as the casinos and restaurants are, nothing has created a bigger buzz than Aria’s “Viva Elvis” Cirque du Soleil production. The show is a tribute to the life and work of the late rock ‘n’ roll king Elvis Presley. Additionally, the act will feature rare unreleased footage of Elvis. The performances will commence on December 18 and tickets can be had for $95.

Perhaps the most paradoxical and intriguing facet of the ultimate Sin City is its allegiance to sustainable design. CityCenter has achieved LEED (Leader in Energy and Environmental Design) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council for their preservation of indoor and outdoor environmental quality, water and energy savings, and their unique approach to site development.

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SINGAPORE (Dow Jones)–Las Vegas Sands Corp. (LVS) is on track to open its Singapore casino resort at Marina Bay at the end of March, but is facing some delays due to rains, Chairman Sheldon Adelson said Monday.

“We look pretty good in several segments…if we are a little late it will a be couple of weeks…not months,” Adelson said in an interview to CNBC news channel.

Las Vegas Sands is building a US$5 billion resort-casino complex in Singapore and the project has been dubbed as essential for Las Vegas Sands, as Asia continues to recover from the recession faster than other regions.

-By P.R. Venkat, Dow Jones Newswires; +65 64154 152; venkat.pr@dowjones.com

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A nonprofit environmental advocacy group is rating Las Vegas drinking water among the worst in the nation.

The Washington, D.C.-based Environmental Working Group ranks Las Vegas 98th out of 100 cities studied. It says area drinking water contains what it calls a “chemical cocktail” of regulated and unregulated substances.

The Las Vegas Valley Water District says the water it delivers to taps meets all federal safety standards.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board has released October numbers that show new lowpoints in revenues staewide, which declined to $800.3 million - the lowest monthly record in almost six years, and an overall decline of 11.6 percent when compared with the same period in 2008.

The disappointing performance of the gambling industry, which accounts for about two-thirds of state tax revenues, is the 22nd consecutive month of decline.

On the Strip, gaming revenues were $426.3 million, a 10.3 percent decline compared with October last year.  All but two areas of Clark County reported double-digit gaming declines; the Boulder Strip was down 6.3 percent while North Las Vegas casinos were up 3.3 percent.

Tax collections based on the gaming revenues generated in October was $49.3 million, a decline of 12.7 percent. For the fiscal year that began July 1, 2009 total collections are about $50 million short of projections used to set the state budget this year.

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Step aside, Garth Brooks, and move over, Bette Midler: you’re about to face a little (friendly) competition in Las Vegas. On Tuesday, Barry Manilow — Mr. I-Write-The-Songs himself — announced that he’d signed up for a two-year residency at the Paris Las Vegas hotel. The show, to be produced by AEG Live, will open on March 5 at the hotel’s Paris Théâtre and will be directed by Jeffrey Hornaday, the choreographer whose credits include “Flashdance” and the film version of “A Chorus Line.” It will mark Mr. Manilow’s second stint on the Las Vegas Strip, following an earlier residency at the Las Vegas Hilton that ran from 2005 to 2008.

At the end of a lengthy, interview-filled afternoon, Mr. Manilow spoke with us about his new Vegas show. (Despite our best efforts, he wouldn’t take the bait to start a feud with Mr. Brooks.) These are excerpts from that conversation.

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