Meeting and event organizers know that gaming venues and destinations are a big draw for their attendees—and now there’s more than ever to bring them in, on and off the casino floor.
In December, Station Casinos opened the doors to Durango Casino & Resort, a new luxury, state-of-the-art resort in southwest Las Vegas. It features an 83,000-sf casino, more than 200 guest rooms and suites, a pool with private cabanas, outdoor social spaces, premier dining options, free parking, more than 25,000 sf of meeting and event space with a 15,000+-sf ballroom space, a pre-function foyer, breakout rooms and a boardroom equipped with the latest technology. It also features an environmentally friendly event lawn and intimate outdoor patios, as well as a top culinary team. The new resort is seeking Green Globes certification for its eco-friendly features, which includes desert landscaping to reduce water use, 30 Tesla charging stations and bike-lane access to the property.
“As the newest luxury destination in Las Vegas, Durango offers brand-new, state-of-the-art meeting space in a comfortable serene environment, a true oasis in the desert,” says Renee Di Liddo, director of sales at Durango Casino & Resort. “The layout and design of our resort offer guests the perfect mix of business and pleasure—meeting spaces conveniently located near the hotel tower and a stunning restaurant row, just steps away. Durango Resort gives guests the ability to connect over intimate settings located throughout the resort, all the while enjoying the natural light that floods the resort at every opportunity. Durango’s location offers simple access to the resort and stadium corridor and provides a straight shot to the airport.”
This city may be on the seashore, but there’s a lot more to do than hang on the beach. Atlantic City is constantly evolving to provide even more for meetings and events, from world-class accommodations to fine dining, shopping, culture and the city’s famous Boardwalk. With more than 1.8 million sf of meeting space citywide, Atlantic City has plenty of flexible meeting venues, from boardrooms to ballrooms to outdoor spaces on rooftops and beaches.
And many of the city’s casino resorts have been installing solar energy projects and undertaking beach restoration efforts to help protect the environment that is so key to the city’s appeal. In fact, the Ocean Casino Resort last spring took on a $700,000 project to shore up and enhance a 100-ft-wide beach in front of the resort. In 2022, Caesars Entertainment and DSD Renewables broke ground on an 8.4 MW solar portfolio spanning three Caesars Atlantic City properties. As of fall 2023, two of the projects have been completed: 1.7 MW and 886 KW solar garage canopy at Caesars Atlantic City and two installations at Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City. A solar rooftop system for Harrah’s garages is scheduled for completion in early 2024.
For large events, the Atlantic City Convention Center, which recently achieved GBAC STAR facility reaccreditation, offers 45 meeting rooms totaling 109,100 sf of event space, ranging from 700 sf to 11,880 sf, as well as 500,000 sf of exhibit space.
Jim McDonald, GM of the Atlantic City Convention Center, says of the reaccreditation, “This achievement reflects our unwavering commitment to the highest standards of cleanliness, safety and health in our facility.”
The city’s dining options also are continuing to expand. Among recent openings are Il Verdi at the Tropicana; Dos Caminos at the Golden Nugget; Nobu and Gordon Ramsey’s Hell’s Kitchen at Caesars Atlantic City; Bobby’s Burgers by Bobby Flay at Harrah’s Resort; and B-Prime Steakhouse and American Bar & Grill at Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa.
The Bahamas’ famous Atlantis Paradise Island has been undergoing multimillion-dollar upgrades to lure even more events and meetings to its five miles of white-sand beaches. In addition to guest room and suite enhancements at The Royal tower, the resort has added new dining options, including a Shake Shack with its own exclusive menu items available only at the Atlantis; Paranza, a new Italian restaurant at The Cove; and Silan, a Mediterranean-inspired restaurant on the casino floor.
The Atlantis Casino is undergoing a refresh as well, including an enhancement to its two onsite lounges, and new bars.
Next up for the island resort and casino is a newbuild slated to replace the former site of The Beach Tower. The oceanfront resort, scheduled to open in 2024, will offer 400 guest rooms and suites alongside top-tier dining venues and lushly landscaped grounds.
“We could not be more excited for all of the developments coming to Atlantis,” says Audrey Oswell, president and managing director of Atlantis Paradise Island. “With these incredible additions, we are continuing Atlantis’ legacy of offering guests endless, immersive experiences during their stay.”
In addition to its Atlantic City properties’ enhancements, Caesars Entertainment also has unveiled the newly renovated Colosseum Tower at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Formerly known as the Forum Tower, the refreshed version offers 440 guest rooms and suites furnished in classically designed yet modern decor. The Colosseum Tower, which is adjacent to Dominique Ansel Las Vegas, is across the street from The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, which now features 3,980 guest rooms and suites, including the redesigned 182-room Nobu Hotel Caesars Palace and The Laurel Collection by Caesars Palace, as well as almost 130,000 sf of casino space.
Terrence O’Donnell, SVP and general manager of Caesars Palace, says, “We are excited to welcome visitors to the Colosseum Tower, where they can experience a new level of comfort and luxury fit for a Caesar while enjoying our incredible dining, entertainment and gaming options throughout the resort.”
Over at Paris Las Vegas, the new $100 million Versailles Tower includes 756 redesigned luxury guest rooms and a pedestrian bridge—set to open early 2024—that connects the Versailles Tower to the existing Paris resort, which features a total of more than 2,900 rooms and suites, as well as an 85,000-sf casino and a ballroom with 140,000 sf of pillar-free function space.
“The addition of the Versailles Tower makes Paris one of the largest resorts in the heart of The Strip,” says Sean McBurney, regional president of Caesars Entertainment.
Also in Las Vegas, the Flamingo is opening Pinky’s by Vanderpump in summer 2024, making it the third Vanderpump venue on The Strip. The Flamingo Las Vegas also features more than 3,500 guest rooms and suites, and this summer is slated to open a Gordon Ramsay Burger restaurant. Vanderpump also is slated to open a restaurant, Wolf by Vanderpump, at Harveys Lake Tahoe.
The Venetian Resort Las Vegas last fall announced a $188 million renovation plan for its 2.25 million-sf Convention and Expo Center. Set to be completed in stages between 2024 and 2026, key design elements will include a new, upscale color palette of cream, white and platinum, luxury lounge spaces for meetings, and innovative technology including improved lighting, AV updates and state-of-the-art digital screens. The speakeasy-style lounge will be able to host events in a 10,000-sf, 1930s-inspired space, and the center will feature classic Murano glass chandeliers. The renovation is a key piece of the resort’s $1 billion capital investment project.
“Embarking on a refresh of a convention center that hosts back-to-back events year in and year out is no easy task, but our promise is to provide our guests a best-in-class experience,” says Patrick Nichols, president and CEO of The Venetian Resort Las Vegas. “The finishes and amenities planned were thoughtfully curated based on feedback from our customers and will usher in a new era of Venetian Meetings and maintain our position at the forefront of the industry.”
The big news last fall was that MGM Resorts International and Marriott International launched an exclusive, long-term strategic licensing agreement and the creation of the MGM Collection with Marriott Bonvoy. The agreement, which enables guests to book using Marriott’s marriott.com and other digital platforms, encompasses 17 of MGM’s resorts, which represent more than 40,000 guest rooms in Las Vegas and across the U.S. The resorts will continue to be available via MGM Resorts’ channels, including MGMRewards.com and the MGM Resorts mobile app. MGM and Marriott loyalty members also can link their accounts with Marriott Bonvoy to receive select member benefits.
In addition to the $100 million Mandalay Bay Convention Center remodel that includes upgraded technology and a refreshment of its 2.1 million-sf meeting and expo spaces—including new Cat6A Ethernet cabling throughout the center to dramatically enhance the data transmission speed and frequency—MGM Resorts has redesigned the Four Seasons Hotel Las Vegas’ 424 rooms and suites, remodeled the StripSteak by Michael Mina, and added celebrity chef restaurants such as Retro by Voltaggio, Orla by Michael Mina and Carama by Wolfgang Puck, opening January 2024. Also coming up is the debut of Flanker Kitchen + Sports Bar; and the 2024 opening of British crazy golf concept—Swingers Golf.
Ernest Stovall, VP of sales for Mandalay Bay, said of the newly enhanced convention center, “We listened to feedback from meeting planners over recent years and are confident this refreshed and upgraded space will exceed their needs and expectations in every way.”
Several of the company’s hotel’s also have undergone room remodels, including a $110 million redo of the Bellagio’s Spa Tower rooms and suites, ARIA Resort & Casino’s seven reimagined SKYVILLAS and its 400+ Sky Suites, New York New York’s $63 million remodel of its 1,830 rooms and 155 of its suites, and the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino’s 700 Studio Tower rooms.
Stephanie Glanzer, SVP and CSO for MGM Resorts, says, “With 4 million sf of meeting and convention space across 13 resorts on the Las Vegas Strip, MGM Resorts has the ability to create highly customized events across multiple venues that bring different options to the table. With our dedicated teams of professionals, wide range of accommodations, incredible dining options, relaxing spas and pools, world-class entertainment and beautiful attractions, you have the perfect mix for an outstanding meetings experience. Outside of the incredible amenities we offer, there is a tremendous benefit to working with a company like ours because of our ability to create a seamless process for meeting planners even as they work with different resorts. MGM Resorts is also committed to being ‘Focused on What Matters,’ with community and sustainability efforts at the forefront of everything we do, from how we operate our buildings to how we host meetings.”
Outside of Las Vegas, MGM Resorts also this past fall announced its plans to transition Empire City Casino by MGM Resorts into an entertainment destination called MGM Empire City. If it is awarded a commercial casino license for its historic Yonkers, N.Y., site, the first phase of the design will include a comprehensive casino floor redevelopment and expansion, a 5,000-capcity entertainment venue, state-of-the-art BetMGM sportsbook, celebrity chef food outlets, bars and lounges, and technologically advanced meeting spaces.
visitatlanticcity.com; durangoresort.com/meetings; atlantisbahamas.com/meetings; caesars.com/meetings; venetianlasvegas.com/meetings; mgmresorts.com