Las Vegas Vacation Blog Blog

The number of passengers using McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas continued to slide in 2010, totaling fewer than 40 million after peaking at 47.7 million in 2007.

Data released Thursday showed just under 3.1 million passengers arrived and departed the airport during December.

That put the total for 2010 at just under 39.8 million, down 16.7 percent from 2007.

The peak traffic figure came before the national recession cut into travel and tourism.

Airport spokesman Chris Jones says McCarran handled 44 million passengers in 2008 and just under 40.5 million in 2009.

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Las Vegas ranks among the top cities where buying a home is more affordable than renting, according to a report today from Trulia.com.

Trulia, a real estate and property search website based in San Francisco, calculates the price-to-rent ratio for the 50 largest U.S. cities using the median list price compared to the median annual rent on two-bedroom apartments, condominiums and townhomes listed on the site.

The website said the price-to-rent ratio in Las Vegas is 6, tying Miami for the top spot. According to Trulia, buying is more affordable then renting when the ratio is below 15.

Las Vegas had the highest unemployment and foreclosure rate among all the cities where it is more affordable to buy.

“Cities overwhelmed by foreclosure filings and unemployment, including many cities in Florida, Arizona, Nevada and central California, typically correspond to more affordable markets for prospective buyers,” Trulia said in its report.

Also on the top of the list were Phoenix, Jacksonville and Arlington, Texas. On the other end, New York ranked as the top city where it is more affordable to rent with an average rental price of $3,500 to $4,000 per month versus an average purchase price of $1.3 to $1.4 million.

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LAS VEGAS, Oct 14, 2010 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ — EQ Labs /quotes/comstock/11i!eqlb  (EQLB  0.01, 0.00, 0.00%)  announced today that it has been chosen to sponsor the National Las Vegas Entertainment and Sports Hall of Fame Vegas Star Awards along with The Palms Hotel and Casino and Adidas. Furthering EQ Labs’ commitment to use some of the world’s most well known celebrities to build its EQ Energy drink into an internationally-known brand, EQ Labs is sponsoring the 2 day event in Las Vegas.

Among the many celebrities that have been nominated to receive an award are tennis great Andre Agassi, auto racing superstars Kurt and Kyle Bush, boxing great Floyd Mayweather, MMA Hall of Fame inductee Randy Couture, NFL Pro-Bowler Randall Cunningham, and billionaire businessmen Gavin and George Maloof. Earlier this year, EQ Labs announced its plan to utilize internationally know celebrities to build its brands.

“We are extremely happy that our products are receiving the recognition they deserve. This opportunity that was presented to us is just another great opportunity to accelerate the sales of our energy drinks,” said Mo Owens, Chief Executive Officer of EQ Labs. “This 3 day event gives us a great opportunity to close additional sponsorship opportunities with these very well known celebrities,” concluded Owens.

About EQ Labs, Inc. EQ Labs is engaged in the development, marketing and sale of EQ (”The Smart Energy Drink”). EQ is an effervescent tablet that can be dissolved in any beverage to provide instant energy. Consisting of a blend of essential vitamins, Gingko Biloba, and less caffeine than a cup of coffee. EQ is currently sold at Best Buy, select 7-Eleven and Walgreens stores, Terrible Hearst, and other leading retailers. For more information about EQ, visit: http://www.drinkeq.com/.

The EQ Labs, Inc. logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=7430

Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking statements that reflect the Company’s current expectation regarding future events. Actual events could differ materially and substantially from those projected herein and depend on a number of factors. Certain statements in this release, and other written or oral statements made by EQ Labs, Inc. are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements since they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which are, in some cases, beyond the Company’s control and which could, and likely will, materially affect actual results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements. The Company assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future.

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ohn Force raced to his third victory of the season and record 129th overall NHRA win, beating Tony Pendragon on Sunday in the Summitracing.com Spring Nationals at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

The 60-year-old Force had a 4.334-second pass at 284.93 mph in his Ford Mustang against Pendragon (5.630 at 138.34) in the Funny Car final.

“The hardest thing I work for is to be able to compete and show my kids that I can still do it,” Force said. “I want to show them how much I still love it. This is a great win here in front of a lot of family and friends. Now I’m back in the game, and it feels good.”

In Top Fuel, Larry Dixon raced to his third victory of the season and 51st overall, beating Cory McClenathan with a 4.016-second pass at 313.37 mph.

Mike Edwards won the Pro Stock final. Edwards had a 6.751-second pass at 205.51 mph to edge Greg Stanfield.

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Nearly 11,000 families in the Las Vegas Valley will be able to experience Easter this year thanks to a donation from Hickman’s Family Farms.

The Arizona-based farm donated 129,000 eggs Tuesday to Three Square Food Bank. The eggs will be delivered to 285 other nonprofit agencies and Churches.

Julie Murray, the President and C.E.O. of Three Square Food Bank, says eggs are the perfect meal for this time of year.

“There are so many families who are unemployed right now who are in need of food. And when you’re struggling with hunger, protein is a really important item to be able to provide for your family.”

Sharman Hickman says she started the donations last year because there are grocery retailers who buy the eggs to sell to the community. We thought we’d like to donate back to the Las Vegas food banks.”

“The eggs that have been donated by Hickman’s farms will allow families a great source of protein and also be able to continue to participate in the great Easter tradition of Easter egg hunts and coloring the eggs,” said Murray.

Hickman’s Family Farms hopes to increase their donation in 2011 to one million eggs.

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Ringing in another year, Paris Hilton celebrated her 29th birthday at Tao nightclub in Las Vegas over the weekend.

Grabbing up prime seats, the former “Simple Life” star was joined by her boyfriend, Doug Reinhardt, and parents, Rick and Kathy Hilton, at the popular Sin City nightspot.

According to an onlooker, neither Paris or Doug seemed to be in a very good mood at first, but quickly got into the flow of things before the presentation of a giant birthday cake in the shape of shoe boxes.

Also in attendance at the Las Vegas bashe were Brian Baumgartner and Charles Barkley, who laughingly gave his buddy a lap dance during the course of the evening.

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President Obama is winging his way back to Washington, D.C., after a tour around Las Vegas, where he was welcomed by most everyone, it seemed - except the city’s mayor.

President Obama professes his love for Las Vegas.
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By Isaac Brekken, AP
Independent Mayor Oscar Goodman refused to attend Obama’s events or meet with the president, saying he wouldn’t do so until Obama apologized for dissing his city by saying people shouldn’t gamble with their college savings during a recession.

Here’s what Obama said earlier this year:

“When times are tough, you tighten your belts. You don’t go buying a boat when you’re trying to pay your mortgage. You don’t blow a bunch of cash on Vegas when you’re trying to save on college. You prioritize, you make tough choices.”

Speaking to the Chamber of Commerce, Obama didn’t apologize for what he said. But he made sure to say he has nothing against sin city.

“Let me set the record straight, I love Vegas - always have,” he said.

“It wasn’t meant to be a shot,” Obama said of his college savings remark. “I think everybody would agree that the only place people should spend their college savings is in college. … But I understand how hard things have been here.”

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A 33-year-old Las Vegas man accused of an ax attack that left a 4-month-old baby dead and two women critically injured told police he doesn’t remember a thing, Las Vegas TV station KVVU reported.

Harold E. Montague, 33, didn’t know the woman or the boy he is accused of hacking with the blade of the ax during the rampage a little before noon Thursday on a residential street about a mile east of Las Vegas Boulevard, police Lt. Lewis Roberts said.

Montague also is accused of stabbing his sister-in-law, a mentally disabled woman, more than 20 times with a point of the ax before bursting out of a home into the street.

“We don’t know what set him off,” Roberts said after Montague was interviewed by homicide detectives and taken to the Clark County jail.

“He claims he blacked out. He said he doesn’t remember anything,” Roberts said.

Police found one of the women lying on a sidewalk and an overturned stroller nearby in the street when they responded to a domestic dispute call at about 11:51 a.m. Thursday.

The 4-month-old boy died at the scene, and the woman, who is believed to be the baby’s mother, was taken to Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center in very critical condition with what Roberts said were disfiguring face and head injuries.

Their names weren’t immediately made public.

The sister-in-law, whose name and age also weren’t released, was reported to be in fair condition at University Medical Center in Las Vegas.

Neighbors saw the attack and shouted at Montague to stop while calling 911, Roberts said.

Montague left the ax in the single-family home before police arrived, and scuffled with officers who tried to use a Taser to subdue and arrest him, said Officer Bill Cassell, a department spokesman. One police officer received what Cassell said were minor injuries that did not require medical treatment.

Montague was being held without bail on charges of murder, attempted murder and attempted murder of a police officer pending a court appearance Tuesday morning. Court officials said it was not immediately clear if he had a lawyer.

Montague was described as the caregiver for his sister-in-law, who Roberts said was stabbed repeatedly in torso, stomach and legs.

Roberts said Montague’s wife was at work and two children were in the house during the attack. Another child was at school. The children weren’t hurt.

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The Ritz-Carlton Lake Las Vegas will close May 2, FOX5 has learned.

An employee said notifications were sent out Monday morning and a hotel official confirmed the closing a few hours later.

The resort, which opened in 2003, is among the top luxury destinations in southern Nevada and recently won the AAA Five Diamond award.

Despite the accolades, the Lake Las Vegas area fell on hard times during the recession. Last year, the three golf courses within the resort were closed or went bankrupt.

USA Today said the move will put nearly 400 employees out of work.

The 348-room resort — 17 miles away from the Las Vegas Strip — is owned by Village Hospitality, an arm of Deutsche Bank, according to USA Today.

“They have decided to cease funding the hotel,” Ritz-Carlton spokeswoman Vivian Deuschl said. “We reluctantly agreed to close the hotel.” Deuschl could not say how much money the resort is losing, USA Today reported.

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Forget falling profits and a grim jobless rate. The United States knew for sure it had entered a recession during a football game last February.

How so? Super Bowl wagers in Nevada’s sports books dropped more than 11 percent compared to the previous year. At $81.5 million, the Pittsburgh-Arizona thriller — a 27-23 Steelers victory — marked the lowest handle (money bet on a contest) for the bookies since 2004. The drop in six-figure bets in particular jarred oddsmakers.

As Indianapolis and New Orleans prepare to battle in Super Bowl XLIV in Miami on Feb. 7, sports book chiefs believe the recession won’t sack the house this year.

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