Vegas may have been built on gambling, but it has developed into an a la carte resort. Whatever your poison, it’s on Sin City’s menu, as resident Brett Morton explains.
 |
|
| Earning $200,000 a year for nightly performances, they have time on their hands to buy the rocks for their fingers | |
 |
Dear Edgers,
Temperatures have cooled from the record 117 degrees Farenheit two weeks back, but we’re still over 100 degrees during the ‘monsoon season’. Spectacular thunder and violently forked lightning add to the neon of the night sky. And it’s not only temperature records being broken. Sweaty, red-faced Brits top the list of overseas arrivals. I spoke to a Basingstoke couple as they slurped Pina Coladas at the Flamingo. They had last visited in 1984 and were swooning at the transformation from a city dominated by gambling to a resort catering for all tastes.
Some – usually older couples – are looking to see a touch of crazy after 50 weeks in car_washing suburbia, others seek zany wedding experiences, while red-blooded males and raunchy hen-parties want to party till dawn. The nightclub scene is throbbing and there’s always a chance of seeing the big names partying it up.
Cleopatra’s comin’ at ya
The Mirage is launching Jet, its new nightclub and it’s typical of Strip efforts to attract the young-ish big spenders who gamble and then go on the prowl around midnight. I met just such a patron at Caesar’s. He was red_wine voluble, betting several hundred a spin at roulette and boasting about his losses of over $8,000. Whether a douche of cold reality awaited him at dawn I could only guess.
Besides new poker rooms, the buzz themes on the Strip are nightclubs and sexy entertainment like the Pussycat Dolls at Caesars Palace. Last week, I saw Caesar himself by the entrance, but Cleopatra was on his arm, so I guess he was grounded. With gentlemen’s clubs booming and Victoria’s Secret now expanded into big new premises selling very small articles, sex certainly sells here. The willowy blondes laden with Armani provide convincing evidence that the purveyors of sex are also very much the buyers in the hottest, most fashionable stores. Earning anything up to $200,000 a year for their nightly performances, they have time on their hands to buy the rocks for their fingers.
The sweeping, attractive arcade at the Wynn has added to the lustre. Till now, the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace vied with the Bellagio for shoppers with platinum cards. While husbands double_down at blackjack, the women are now spoiled for choice whether buying or just gazing in awe at the opulence of the jewels, gowns, lingerie and fine arts.
As Andrew Hagopian, vice-president of retail operations at the Bellagio told me when comparing Beverly Hills with Via Bellagio: ‘We offer Rodeo Drive in the desert with ten of the most exclusive stores in the world generating over $2,500 per square foot.’ This statistic is all the more amazing as no ordinary mortals seem to have the courage to go in even to find out the prices!
Fishing for whales
These boutiques especially benefit from largesse extended to curvy women, some of them even wives, who fly in with the high_rollers. While the big man gambles, the casino host may have gifted the latest squeeze a $40,000 voucher to treat herself at Gucci or Cartier in the Via Bellagio. These biggest high-rollers, aka ‘whales’, can command an upfront $50,000 appearance fee from the casino just to encourage them to visit. Such is the battle between casinos to hook the biggest fish willing to lose ten million in a weekend.
For the rest of us, there are plenty of other diversions. You can visit amazing value Factory Outlets close to the Strip. Some will relish white knuckle_rides or recline in the very naughty gentlemen’s clubs off the Strip. For others, golf or sightseeing tours to the Hoover Dam, Death Valley or the Grand Canyon are easy options. In the casinos, you can play one cent or $100 slots, but the lower the stake, the less generous the payback percentage.
This is the city where casino moguls live in 20,000 sq ft palaces with 20-car garages, indoor and outdoor pools, spas, discos and private cinemas. One day, you may just join them. One spin of the wheels at Megabucks and the jackpot could be $40m, no skill or previous experience required. A 73-year-old lady won over $31m, but was confident it wouldn’t change her life. Heh_ho! If you’re reading this, dear, please send me the odd million. It would change mine!
All the best,
Brett
Related Posts
About PokerPlayer
