Las Vegas, April 28, 2005.

The most expensive casino in the world will open its well-appointed doors on Thursday, marking the latest installment of the evolution of the Las Vegas Strip from tacky gambling corridor to venue of the rich and sometimes famous -- or at least the free spending.

The $2.7 billion Wynn Las Vegas resort, fronted by a tree-covered artificial mountain, opens at a time of resurgent investment in Las Vegas, which is riding a wave of record tourism and booming real-estate prices.

Steve Wynn -- the gaming magnate known for creating casino resorts like The Mirage -- has become something of a celebrity himself, starring in a television commercial standing astride the rooftop of the gleaming 50-story bronze tower.

Already just the promise of the new resort's opening has upped the ante for rival Las Vegas destinations, analysts say.

"Every time a major resort opens with the kind of profile that all of Wynn's properties have enjoyed, it causes everyone else to enhance their amenities," said Erika Yowell, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority spokeswoman.

Several major Strip casinos have added upscale hotel towers or will soon open new ones, including Caesars Entertainment Inc.'s Caesars Palace. Mandalay Resort Group in December 2003 opened THEhotel adjacent to Mandalay Bay, and the Bellagio, owned by MGM Mirage, opened a spa tower, complete with a fountain of liquid chocolate, last December.

Although he is excited about his hotel's complicated design with its asymmetrical roof and horizontal white lines, Wynn said the resort's success will come down to service and employees that show a greater interest in making guests happy.

'Destroying money'
Speaking at a conference last week in Los Angeles, Wynn said the 9,500 employees have been told not to worry about money or failure. Such things are inevitable in a new operation and a new building. Their one charge, he said, is to not let guests leave unhappy, whether it takes reversing a charge or even returning a bet.

"Don't worry about making mistakes and destroying money," Wynn said he told his employees. "The only thing that matters is that the people who come to this environment be happy and playful. It's not about us, it's about them."

Details of the resort's interior have not been widely circulated, although the company's Web site boasts that "Michelangelo took four years to complete the Sistine Chapel. Your room took five." The 2,700 rooms have floor-to-ceiling windows with views of the Strip, the mountain and lake, or the resort's 18-hole golf course.

Wynn Las Vegas -- the name was adopted two years ago to unify brands operated by Wynn Resorts Ltd -- was originally dubbed "Le Reve" after a Picasso painting.

Wynn's art collection still holds a prominent role in the resort's bid to provide guests with a VIP experience.

The complex also sports 18 restaurants, some run by celebrity chefs, theaters, a spa and dozens of designer boutiques along with a Ferrari Maserati dealership.

Wynn's opening in 1998 of the Bellagio launched Sin City's transformation into a high-end travel destination.

When considering his latest project, Wynn said his team looked around at other operations like the ornate Bellagio, but decided they simply had to "create something special that everyone must see."

After a brief fling with the family market, Vegas now touts its adult ambience. The ad campaign promising "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" has done its job. A record 37.4 million tourists came last year and 38 million are expected in 2005.

Gambling is an important component of the draw, but now accounts for only about half of Nevada's total casino revenue.

"Wynn is opening at the best possible time for them and, frankly, for us," said Terry Lanni, chief executive of rival MGM Mirage.

He noted that the average Las Vegas visitor stays in one hotel, but visits two or three others.

"People who could go anywhere in the world choose Las Vegas, because we have a high concentration of the amenities they are looking for," Yowell said.

Source : ehotelier.com

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