Vegas News December 6, 2022

Las Vegas Quick Hits

• The (not really) big news on the Vegas Strip is that VICI purchased the remaining 49% of the Mandalay Bay and MGM Grand joint venture from Blackstone real estate. Read about the deal here.  
• This isn’t big news because it’s a real estate deal and MGM Resorts is still operating the properties. They’ll just pay rent to a different landlord. Your experience shouldn’t change.
• On a related note, VICI owns almost all the land underneath Las Vegas casinos.
• I don’t cover the financial world but it seems as though the more significant news from this deal is about Blackstone. This isn’t specifically about Las Vegas but you can read more here.  
• Hyatt purchased the Dream Hotels Group. You can read the press release about the deal here and get a good explanation about the deal here.   
• You may remember Dream Las Vegas broke ground across the street from Mandalay Bay this summer. Read more here.
• It seems as though Dream properties will hit the Hyatt system early next year. That’s just a guess on what I read about the deal.
• Construction on Dream Las Vegas should continue.
• As expected, MGM Resorts’ sale of the Mirage to Hard Rock is on the 12/7 Nevada Gaming Commission (NGC) agenda. Read more here.  
• If Hard Rock receives a recommendation from the NGC this week, the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) should approve the deal during its meeting in a few weeks. The two companies should finalize the transfer of the Mirage shortly after.
• Have you noticed “The Mirage” is now just “Mirage”?
• Coincidentally, I’ve been noticing more people calling “The Cosmopolitan” just “Cosmo.” I was repeatedly told to never say or write “Cosmo” by the previous owner. Someone else noticed this as well.
• I’ll be listening to the meeting on Wednesday and will share anything new on Twitter. 
• The transformation of Bally’s to Horseshoe should be finished by the end of the month (and year) as originally planned. You can see some information here. 
• Surprise! All Net Arena is being delayed again. Read and see more here.   
• Sharing this press release about land for sale in North Las Vegas because it includes room for a casino. This could mean something or nothing. Read more here.  
• Hotels.com has info on when you might be able to find lower hotel room prices in Las Vegas and other cities. The info isn’t much of a surprise but it’s a good reminder of when you can find lower hotel room prices. Read more here.  
• While we’re on the topic of high hotel room prices, you may have noticed prices were kind of insane in October. Some of that can be seen in the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority monthly Executive Summary. You can see the report here.  
• The Average Daily hotel room Rate (ADR) was $209.89 in Las Vegas during October. Occupancy for the month was 87.7%. Rooms on weekends alone had a 94% occupancy rate.
• This isn’t a surprise as casino operators shared positive vibes about the month during earnings calls.
• During those calls, they also noted that November and December are two of the months with the lowest hotel room rates of the year despite the holidays and rodeo. 
• Visitation to Las Vegas in October was still 8% behind 2019 levels. As a reminder, this is before the Covid-19 pandemic. 
• LAS reported record-breaking traffic in October. Read more here.   

Newest Bar On The Vegas Strip

• Brewdog is open across the street from Park MGM. I hope to stop by in the next week or two. The space looks rad. Check out this drone tour of the newest bar on the Vegas Strip.

Drone through @BrewDogLasVegas pic.twitter.com/KUImlLf11P

— Marc (@MeltzVegas) November 30, 2022

• Garth Brooks extended his residency at Caesars Palace Las Vegas through 2024. Read more here.  
• Carrie Underwood extended her Resorts World residency. Read more here.  
• Miranda Lambert extended her residency at PLANET HOLLYWOOD Las Vegas Resort. Read more here.
• The B-52s are returning to The Venetian for 10 shows next year. See dates here.  
• Could the person who hasn’t had a popular song since The OC was first on the air have a Las Vegas residency in 2023? Read more here.   
• KYLIE!

• Jack Harlow will be performing a very limited “residency” at Resorts World next year. Read more here.  
• Celine may return to Las Vegas and finally start performing at Resorts World next year. Read the rumor here.  
• Speaking of Resorts World, check out the Hotel EDC promo for next year here.  
• Tickets for the NFL Pro Bowl Games at Allegiant Field next year are on sale now. Read about the new events taking place of the game here. 
• The Pac-12 Championship at Allegiant Stadium was sold out last week. I actually won a college football bet on the game! Anyway, the conference extended its agreement to have the game in Las Vegas for another year. Read more here.  
• Resorts World upgraded its cashless gaming system. Read more here.    
• It should come as no surprise that the majority of cannabis lounges in Nevada will be in Clark County (Las Vegas). Read more here.   
• The WNBA released 2023 schedules last week. Find ticket information and when the World Champion Las Vegas Aces are playing games here.   
• You can rent a Tesla at the Fashion Show Mall. Rates are somewhere around $150 and up for weekdays from what I can tell. Read more here.   
• Last and least, the Fremont Street Experience has some kind of fancy AI security. Read more here.