Baltimore House of Cards Display

During a recent visit to non-Vegas casino Horseshoe Baltimore this house of cards display caught my eye outside of Jack Binion's Steak. It's a fairly simple display, but cool things like this are part of the reason I like to explore different resorts and casinos.

New Bellagio Fountain Song Uptown Funk

It had been a while since I had heard about anything new on the Bellagio Fountains song list - but earlier today Bellagio announced the addition of the smash hit "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars.

Bellagio produced this video to promote the new song:

Wayne Newton has turned Home into Museum

Five years ago today I wrote a blog post about how Wayne Newton was planning on turning his famous Casa de Shenandoah estate into a tourist attraction.

After half a decade that plan has finally came into fruition. Starting at $35 guests will be able to explore the manacured grounds, encounter horses and other wildlife, and tour a museum showcasing Wayne's cars and showbiz memorabilia.

As I speculated in my 2010 blog post, Wayne's private jet will also be on display - visitors will be able to step aboard to see how Mr. Las Vegas traveled back in the day.

The 52 acre Casa de Shenandoah certainly looks impressive, but I'm not exactly sure this is something I would take the time to visit on a Las Vegas vacation.

For all the info check out Casa de Shenandoah.

Big Rig Jig coming to Fremont East

Big Rig Jig, a modern art sculpture by Mike Ross is coming to downtown Las Vegas later this year according to Las Vegas Weekly.

The sculpture, which features two tanker trucks welded together will be located in the Downtown Project owned Fergusons Motel lot on Fremont East.

Big Rig Jig was created in 2007 for the Burning Man festival. It has also been featured at Coachella and most recently at the Banksy pop-up installation Dismaland.

Speaking of Banksy, Downtown Project founder Tony Hsieh has hinted there could be a Banksy installation during the upcoming Life Is Beautiful Festival.

Manneken Pis LV at The D Las Vegas

Owner of The D and master marketer Derek Stevens is back at it again as The D has unveiled their newest attraction - a replica version of the famous Manneken Pis statue in Brussels, Belgium.

The media frenzy started as The D published this wacky video of Derek Stevens holding an "executive board meeting" announcing that The D has signed the longest entertainment contract in Las Vegas history:



The next day a press conference was held to unveil the new bronze statue.


Photo: Kara Rutkin Instagram.

Here's what Derek Stevens had to say about Manneken Pis LV:

"Alright well today, I want to thank everyone for coming here. Today is going to be a great, great day. September 1st, 2015 will certainly go down as a great day in Las Vegas history.

First I want to start with just a little bit of history here. Manneken Pis, and it is pronounced that way - Manneken Pis was placed in Brussels, Belgium in the year 1619 and today has upwards of 5000 visitors a day come and visit with him.

He's created over 100 sustainable small businesses in and around a three block area in downtown Brussels. Manneken Pis in Brussels symbolizes the spirit of Brussels - which is youthful enthusiasm, an entrepreneurial spirit, a hard working attitude, while being friendly and fun loving. All various traits that we embrace here at The D Las Vegas.

When I was a very, very little boy, and then as I grew up, just as a little boy, and as a teenager, and really up to just a few weeks ago I visited Manneken Pis in Brussels, and I've always been amazed at the crowd that he draws, and the smiles that he brings. I've wanted to bring a version of Manneken Pis to Las Vegas for a number of years.

The D Las Vegas has now given my brother and I the opportunity to respect our Belgian ancestry, and also really give a tip of the cap to my parents who are both 100% Belgian. My mother was on the Belgian council for over 20 years, and my dad grew up in Brussels. He acutally attended the Royal Athenian high school of Brussels which is only a half block away from the original Manneken Pis.

Now today we've said that we signed the longest entertainment contract in Las Vegas history. A hundred year contract with the new and younger version of Manneken Pis, and today we unveil Manneken Pis LV.

In agreeing to this hundred year contract it was important for us to Vegas-size it. A lot's changed in the last 396 years. First and foremost Manneken Pis LV is more than double the size of the original Manneken Pis. Our version is over 500 pounds made out of bronze.

And also adapting to the modern day times, yet showing his youthfulness and entrepreneurial enthusiasm and his hard working attitude, Manneken Pis LV has committed to re-tweet every picture taken with him when he's tagged in a photo. Similar to his father who has over 900 outfits, Manneken Pis LV will begin to develop a seasonal wardrobe - it's going to be lighthearted, fun loving and friendly.

As a part of the long-term contract Manneken Pis LV is committed to bring in joy, a smile, a chuckle, and good fortune to all who visit. And lastly as part of our long term contract - in this day and age when TripAdvisor and Yelp are so important - Manneken Pis Las Vegas will always aim to please."

Bally's Grand Bazaar Shops

I haven't had a chance to share my thoughts about the Bally's Grand Bazaar Shops on this blog. With many of the shops opening, now seems like a good time.

Bally's is located pretty far off the Strip in terms of walking distance. For years to reach the casino you would travel up a long moving walkway, and then up and down a series of escalators. Pretty inefficient.

The large amount of space between the Strip and the entrance presented an opportunity for Bally's parent company Caesars Entertainment to build something productive. With retail being hot right now, and an easy way to make money by simply renting space out to tenants - the decision was made to develop the Grand Bazaar Shops.

The area has been open for a couple of months, but it seems like tenants are just now starting to open. One of the anchors is a Starbucks with stadium style seating for people watching. Fuel Bar and Garage has flair bartenders along with the "garage" game-room with beer pong, pool and even basketball. There's also a hot sauce shop that I'll probably have to check out.

The shops have been widely criticized across the internet for being tacky, flea-market-like, and an eyesore. I can't exactly disagree with any of these sentiments, but I'm probably more open minded than most comment section participants.

From what I've seen the layout just seems odd. I understand that Bally's isn't a luxury property, but I think Caesars could have made this area into a nicer space - similar to what they did with The Linq and what MGM is doing with The Park.

The saving grace might be the free attractions at the shops:

Nightly Light Show:
Experience the unique hexagonal LED rooftop canopy, designed just for Grand Bazaar Shops, featuring an energetic light show set to custom-created themed soundtracks.

Swarovski Midnight Celebration:
Central to the Grand Bazaar Shops’ experience is the Swarovski Crystal Starburst. The Starburst soars above Grand Bazaar Shops’ colorful, mosaic-pattern rooftop canopy and is the star of the nightly Swarovski Midnight Celebration, a brilliantly colored light, music and video spectacle.

I'm guessing neither of these will become the next Bellagio fountains or Mirage volcano, but in a time where free attractions are going away, it's nice to have them as an option. I really liked the old Bally's moving walkway light show, so I have a feeling I might end up liking this one as well.

Bellagio Fountains to host Kabuki Performance

Shochiku Co, Ltd. and MGM Resorts International are teaming up to bring some Japanese flair to the Las Vegas Strip. On August 14-16 Kabuki star Ichikawa Somegoro will perform a show called "Fight with a Carp" in front of the iconic Bellagio fountains.

According to Wikipedia Kabuki is "a classical Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theater is known for the style of its drama and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers."

In addition to the August 2015 performance, a "Kabuki festival" is being planned for Las Vegas in 2016. I'm guessing there would be a more permanent show located at one of the MGM properties.

It's somewhat interesting that they would choose the Bellagio fountains for this trial performance. The fountains are clearly one of the most iconic images of Las Vegas, and I could see some purists getting upset at anything that changes them.

For more about the Kabuki performance check out the MGM Resorts Press Release.

UPDATE: Some videos of the Kabuki spectacle.

Mirage Volcano Cutting Showtimes

The famous volcano in front of The Mirage will be reducing the number of times it erupts per night. The volcano showtimes will be 8 and 9 pm on weekdays (Sunday through Thursday) with an additional 10 pm show on weekends (Friday and Saturday).

Previously the volcano had erupted every half hour from dusk until midnight. It has operated since the hotel opened in 1989. The volcano was upgraded in 1996 and underwent another major renovation in 2008.

Unfortunately this marks another reduction of free attractions on the Strip. The MGM Grand lion habitat,the Pirate Show at Treasure Island, and the Rio Show in the Sky were some other free attractions that closed recently. While the volcano isn't closing completely it's upsetting nonetheless.

It appears MGM Resorts International is reducing the volcano's hours as a cost cutting measure. MGM has also been selling assets recently. It seems like they need money for something. I guess they are watching their pennies closely with the $1.2 billion MGM National Harbor starting construction, along with Massachusetts and Macau projects underway.

Elvis Exhibition at Westgate

A new Elvis exhibit is coming to Westgate - the hotel Elvis called home while performing in Las Vegas (then called The International and later the Las Vegas Hilton).

"Graceland Presents ELVIS: The Exhibition - The Show - The Experience" set to open April 23, 2015 will feature 28,000 square feet of Elvis memorabilia and artifacts.

In addition to the exhibit - the Elvis Presley International Showroom has been remodeled and for a limited time will feature Elvis themed shows.

As if that weren't enough "Elvis Presley’s Graceland Wedding Chapel" will also debut in conjunction with the exhibit and the show.

Elvis is obviously a huge part of the history of Las Vegas entertainment, so it makes perfect sense to have an exhibit like this. Given the size and scope of this exhibition, and the fact that it's being run by Graceland - this is likely going to be a must visit attraction for Elvis fans.

For more info check out graceland.com/vegas.

High Roller Averaging 5000 Riders Per Day

On a recent earnings call, Caesars Entertainment revealed the High Roller observation wheel attraction is averaging 5000 riders per day.

The High Roller is the centerpiece of The Linq pedestrian walkway between Flamingo and the newly renamed Linq Hotel (formerly The Quad and Imperial Palace before that).

While 5000 riders is below the 10000 riders originally projected for the High Roller, ridership is growing - up 10% from the previous quarter.

Caesars executives commented about how challenging the marketing aspect of the attraction is, with ridership varying drastically depending on seasonality and demographics. It's possible that once the marketing is fully optimized that 10000 daily riders wouldn't be out of the question as a long term goal.

5000 average daily riders adds up to 1.825 million riders a year, which means roughly 5% of Las Vegas visitors end up riding the High Roller. That seems like an OK number, but Caesars will definitely want to push that higher if they want to fully optimize The Linq.

High Roller Photos and Thoughts

The High Roller observation wheel has been open for a few months. Reviews seem to be mixed. While most people enjoy the ride and say it has great views, ridership seems to be low. Prices started out high for the attraction, but coupons and comps are becoming more common now.



My parents went on recently and sent me these photos. They went during the day and were able to get a pod to themselves. While they had a good time I don't think they would go out of their way to ride again.



The High Roller is the centerpiece to The Linq development, which is a walkway between Flamingo and The Quad lined with restaurants and retail. I'm getting the same type of vibe from the Linq as the High Roller - it's a nice place but most people aren't making special plans to go there.



A recent trend for Caesars Entertainment is also to offer High Roller view rooms in their hotels. It does look pretty cool at night. Here's a shot of the July 4th fireworks from the Flamingo.

Las Vegas Chinese New Year Decorations

Chinese New Year is a big deal in Las Vegas. Many high rollers come from the far east to celebrate the new year, which begins on February 3rd this year. The upcoming year will be the year of the rabbit.

Check out how some of the major hotels decorate for Chinese New Year (photos are from each hotel's twitter and facebook pages):

Caesars Palace:



MGM Grand:


Aria:


Bellagio:


Palazzo:


Wynn Las Vegas:


Mirage: