Sahara Website Farewell Message

With the Sahara closing on Monday after 58 years of operation, their website was sure to follow suit and recently shut down.

The message left up on the site says, "Thanks for a Wonderful Engagement" and directs prospective guests to Circus Circus.

A few weeks ago I speculated that Riviera would benefit by taking stranded Sahara guests. Even though Circus Circus turned out to be the "official" relocation destination, I still think a lot of the Sahara clientele will wind up at Riviera.

Revel Atlantic City Restarts Construction

The stalled Revel hotel project in Atlantic City is back on track. The project recently secured financing for the remaining $1.15 billion needed to complete the hotel.

When it opens in the spring of 2012 it will be the first new casino to open on the boardwalk in over 20 years. Locals are hoping the $2.4 billion resort will attract new business to Atlantic City.

It's nice to see a stalled project like this get back on track. Maybe this gives hope to Fontainebleau and Echelon someday restarting in Las Vegas? Maybe not.

To read more about Revel check out Press of Atlantic City.

Sahara Closed

The Sahara closed its doors today after nearly 59 years of operation.

After the final guests were escorted out of the property, owner Sam Nazarian taped a note to the front door that read:

BE BACK SOON!
THANK YOU FOR
59 YEARS....
SAM NAZARIAN
5/16/11

Will Nazarian be able to keep his promise and transform the Sahara into a new luxury hotel? Only time will tell.

The hotel was open from October 7, 1952 to May 16, 2011.

Aria Improves Occupancy and ADR in 2011

In the first quarter of 2011, Aria scored all time high occupancy and room rates. Occupancy was 86% with an average rate of $201.

I've been keeping an eye on Aria's occupancy rate since it opened. They started off slow with a low 63% occupancy in the first quarter of 2010, but the numbers have been improving slowly throughout 2010 and now into 2011.

Aria probably will never be the cash cow that MGM was hoping for when the project was conceived, but breaking the $200 room rate mark is a step in the right direction.

Room rates were higher across the board at MGM properties in the first quarter, so we might be looking at the start of a real economic recovery in Las Vegas.

Aria Occupancy and Average Daily Rate:

1Q 2010 - 63% - $194
2Q 2010 - 80% - $178
3Q 2010 - 82% - $175
4Q 2010 - 80% - $190
1Q 2011 - 86% - $201

Source: MGM Investor Relations.

Boyd Updates Echelon Status

Boyd Gaming company CEO Keith Smith gave an update on the stalled Echelon Place project during the company's first quarter 2011 earnings conference call question and answer session on Tuesday, May 3rd.

Smith confirmed that nothing will be done on the project anytime soon, and said that Boyd would consider selling some or all of the land if presented the right opportunity:

"With respect to the Echelon development on the Strip, we continue to, kind of, I guess keep it as an option and assess our future. We are not taking any specific actions right now. We're, obviously, continuing to watch the market and try and determine when the best time to move forward on that asset may be. It's clearly not today. It's clearly not this year. It's probably not next year. As we kind of look into the future of the Strip and we look into the future of consumer demand and when it hits a point that you could add another project of that caliber. So if we had an opportunity to sell some of the land, we just sit on 88 acres, would we entertain it? Sure. That opportunity hasn't presented itself. We clearly have long-term confidence in Las Vegas, in Las Vegas Strip. We look forward to having an asset on the Strip at some point in our future as a company. We think, strategically, that's important for us. And still have that as a longer-term focus as we look to the growth of our company."

Source: Q1 2011 Boyd Gaming Corp Earnings Conference Call.
Transcript courtesy of Seeking Alpha.