MGM Signature and Pool Photos

Here are some photos of the MGM Signature Towers and the MGM Grand pool.

The MGM Signature can be a popular choice for those who want a larger, condo-style room in Las Vegas. The downside however is that those towers are a pretty long walk from the MGM Grand and the casino, so that's something to consider when booking a stay there.

The Linq Hotel - Old and New

Now that The Linq hotel on the Strip has been completely transformed from it's former Imperial Palace roots, I thought it would be fun to compare the current Linq hotel with what it used to look like as Imperial Palace.

Here's a picture I took of Imperial Palace in 2009:


And here's a Linq PR photo of the new pool deck and hotel facade:

Rio Pool and Strip View Photos

When I stayed in a Rio Samba suite I took a few pictures from my room of the Strip and the Rio Pool.

Las Vegas Pool Season 2011 Begins

Summer comes early in Las Vegas, as many of the pools around the Strip are open and ready for business.

A few of the more popular day-club type places will be holding grand opening parties this weekend.

Rehab at the Hard Rock:


Wet Republic at MGM Grand featuring Kim Kardashian:


Encore Beach Club featuring Michael Phelps:


The new kid in town this year is the Marquee day club at Cosmopolitan. Victoria's Secret Angel Alessandra Ambrosio was on hand for the opening last weekend and tweeted this picture of the pool:

Flamingo Pool Changes for 2011

There are some changes scheduled to take place at the Flamingo pool this summer. Flamingo announced these changes on their facebook page.

They first posted:

The Beach Club Pool (formerly the Go Pool) is now open to Flamingo guests of all ages! The new 18+ Go Pool (formerly the Lagoon Pool) opens April 1.

The post sparked many comments of confusion which resulted in Flamingo posting this follow up:

Here's what we've been able to find out.

1) There is no fee for hotel guests to use either pool.
2) The waterslides will be open and accessible from both pools, they are scheduled to open on April 1.
3) The reason the new Go Pool (the larger p...ool) is not opening yet is because we are installing a new sound system and performing additional construction.
4) The new Go Pool will not offer European style bathing - it is simply restricted to 18+ guests.

We're still waiting for the dust to settle (literally and figuratively) but we will update you on the details as soon as we hear them.

And then finally:

Here's a few more details on our pools.

Part of the rationale for the change was to give all of our guests access to the Beach Club Café - previously, due to its location in a 21+ pool, grabbing a poolside bite to eat with the kids presented... a bit of a challenge.

Also, some of the additional improvements that we're making to the new Go Pool include new chairs, new day beds and a new bar.

We believe that these changes will provide a more pleasant pool experience for guests of all ages, by giving families a dedicated (and frankly, beautiful) space all their own, while giving our adult guests a place to party outside the presence of children.

Given the percentage of our guests who travel with their children, we do not anticipate overcrowding at the Beach Club Pool to be an issue.

We do appreciate your feedback on this matter, and rest assured that we have shared all of your concerns with our management team.

Thoughts:

The biggest concern switching the pools is that the former Go Pool (now the family friendly pool) isn't very big. If I had to guess I would say that it only comprises about 25% of the total pool area. If they include the waterside pools in the family friendly area, the balance might be more like 50-50.

You may not think there are a lot of kids in Vegas, but Flamingo is a very popular choice for families because of the great pools. Reducing the amount of already crowded family friendly space might be a mistake.

Adults without kids might not like the change either, because they will have to switch from the quiet, secluded smaller pool to the larger, louder and likely more crowded big pool.

Personally I liked things the way they were before. I didn't even mind paying extra to get into the small, under-crowded adult only pool (with the added bonus of maybe seeing some European sunbathers back when they allowed that). In Las Vegas changes happen often though, so I guess I'll have to roll with the punches.

Vdara Death Ray

A story has been making the rounds about the pool area at Vdara being exceptionally hot. It appears that the sun has a way of reflecting off the curved building and converging directly onto the pool area, causing temperatures to soar 20 degrees above normal. The buildings architects foresaw this problem somewhat and coated the glass with a film that was supposed to disperse the sun, but apparently this isn't doing the trick. The sun can routinely melt plastic bags and cups around the pool area. The hotel is planning on installing more sun umbrellas and planting some trees, but it is unclear weather this will be enough to protect visitors from what is being called the "Vdara Death Ray." I'm guessing with fall on its way there won't be many complaints for the next six months or so, but it will be interesting to see if this phenomenon remains when triple digit temps hit next summer.

Encore Beach Club

The much awaited Encore Beach Club opened Memorial Day weekend. The front part of Encore transformed into a pool and surrounding cabana balconies. It even has a few blackjack tables tucked away from the main action.

The Las Vegas pool party "daylife" concept is a big trend, and EBC will satisfy the high end of this market. From what I have read about the opening the crowd was pretty similar to that of the most popular trendy day clubs like Wet Republic and Liquid.

It will be interesting to see if the upscale pool trend continues. Like the gourmet burger trend I wonder if this niche is becoming over saturated.

New Rules for Las Vegas Pools

Las Vegas is supposed to be "Sin City" but in reality there aren't many things you can do in Vegas that you can't do elsewhere around the country. Drugs and prostitution are still illegal. There are strip clubs, but the rules are surprisingly strict. Gambling is becoming more common all over the place. Everywhere has drinking, just in Vegas you can do it 24 hours a day and on the street.

One thing that might be somewhat unique to Las Vegas in this country is topless sunbathing. A lot of the hotels have a separate "European" pool where guests must be 21 to enter, and most of the time charge a fee for males. Most of the females at these pools stay covered, but prefer to be there because there are no children running around.

A recent story by KLAS outlined a list of rules sent out by Clark County to all of the major resorts. You can read the letter here (PDF). Among other things Clark County code outlaws "best swim suit", "best chest", "wet t-shirt" and "booty shaking" contests and parties at topless pools.

Clark County Commissioner Steve Sisolak was quoted as saying, "There is certain behavior that's acceptable. There's certain behavior that's not acceptable… (Lewd behavior) will absolutely, 100 percent not be tolerated. That's not what this is about. It's not a party atmosphere."

I understand that the county doesn't want drugs and prostitution at these pools, but I'm not sure I understand the logic behind banning some of this stuff. You can't have a best swimsuit contest at a Las Vegas pool? Wet t-shirt contests aren't allowed in "Sin City?" With visitor numbers struggling as it is, I don't think limiting fun is a good idea.

Read more about the new pool rules at KLAS.

Camp Vegas Videos

I turned on the TV this morning and caught the very end of a Camp Vegas commercial. I wanted to see the whole commercial so I went searching for the videos and this is what I found:







Whatever you think of the campaign (a lot of people have been criticizing) it looks like they are putting some effort into it, and spending some cash for a national advertising campaign.

Nikki Beach Tropicana coming 2011

Nikki Beach is coming to Tropicana in 2011. The Nikki Beach brand has 20 locations worldwide including the original location in Miami.

Nikki Beach at the Tropicana will include the Beach Club, utilizing part of the four-acre, recently renovated pool area, as well as an additional expansion with a nightclub and restaurant.

This is just another in a long line of improvements at Tropicana. It shows that the new owners are serious about making the Trop a place to be in Vegas. Adding a trendy beach club is a great move in my opinion.

Check out this article for more info: Las Vegas Weekly.

Ditch Fridays at the Palms Opens

The Las Vegas pool season is heating up. Most of the pools are open and in full swing. This weekend the Palms hosted the season opening of their "Ditch Fridays" weekly pool party. Sean Paul performed on Friday to celebrate the opening.



For more information, check out Ditch Fridays.

View from Veer Rooftop Pool

Someone posted this YouTube video from the east Veer tower pool area. The view is nice, but it would probably be nicer without Cosmo and Harmon in the way of the center strip and the Bellagio fountains. The pool area is a little small, but since this is a residential building maybe they aren't expecting a lot of pool traffic. Either way it will be a while before the building is full considering the slow sales.

SKYBAR opening at Hard Rock

As part of the $750 million hotel expansion, the Hard Rock is announcing a new pool / lounge. SKYBAR is located above the Hard Rock Beach Club and will offer party-goers an exclusive day to night atmosphere.

SKYBAR has been a hotspot in LA for 14 years, and the Las Vegas location will look to re-create that success. When I first read the press release I was thinking this sounds like a mini "rehab" but it might be a little more low key.



Source: Hard Rock Press Release.

Liquid Pool Lounge at Aria Grand Opening

Liquid Pool Lounge at Aria had their grand opening on Thursday. DJ Tiesto was spinning records as hundreds of people gathered poolside for the party.



Source: Vegas Deluxe.