Vegas News October 21, 2023

ZorkFest

I couldn’t make it to ZorkFest 2023 this year, but by all accounts, it sounds like the conference was a success. If you’re a super early planner, you can plan for ZorkFest 2024 to take place from Nov. 1- Nov. 3. 

Since we skipped Vegas News last week, there’s a ton of information to get to from the past few weeks. Let’s get right to it.

Casino Openings

Durango Casino opens on Nov. 20 and the hotel rooms look nice.

Escape to our friendly oasis in the Resort King room.

Book: https://t.co/ktyVPbt7ac pic.twitter.com/Kg3Zd0WwFz

— Durango Casino & Resort (@durangoresortlv) October 9, 2023

Just a reminder that Durango has fewer than 250 rooms. For comparison, Fontainebleau will open with almost 4,000 rooms available. I live a handful of miles down the street from Durango and can’t wait to check the place out. 

Caesars Rumors and Such!

Rumor Alert: Flamingo Las Vegas will add another Gordon Ramsay Burger and another Vanderpump. Caesars using popular brands from other properties sounds typical. I expect we’ll hear confirmation sooner than later. Read more from Mr. ‘Scoop Vital Vegas here.

Adele added more shows to her residency at Caesars Palace Las Vegas next year. Read more here.

MGM and Marriott Partnership Delays

The MGM partnership with Marriott was supposed to start in Oct. It looks like that won’t begin until next year. This isn’t much of a surprise since it took the company a while to recover from the cyberattack. Read more here. 

LAS Jackpots!

Is it me, or are people hitting slot jackpots at LAS more often this year than ever? 

Blast from the past, Aviation Queen wrote a TravelZork article on Nevada Airport Slots in 2016.

✈️ Now this was a trip to remember! A player at Harry Reid International Airport (@LASairport) placed a $1.25 bet and won a $643,434.31 jackpot playing Wheel of Fortune Triple Double Emeralds Slots! Congratulations! 🎉 pic.twitter.com/unM7YHehUp

— IGT Jackpots (@IGTJackpots) September 27, 2023

Las Vegas Quick Hits

• Since our last edition of Vegas News, Fontainebleau announced it will open on Dec. 13. We shared a slew of renderings from the property and its website earlier this month. Check it out here.   
• The rumor about Post Malone performing at Fontainebleau on New Year’s Eve is true. See more here and Read more here. 
• Usher will be performing at the Super Bowl halftime show at the Super Bowl at Allegiant Stadium next year. Read more here.  
• Las Vegas has been added to the host city Super Bowl rotation before even hosting the first game. Expect to see a Super Bowl in Las Vegas every 5-8 years. Read more here.  
• While I’m thinking about football, the NFL slot machine by Aristocrat landed in Las Vegas earlier this month. Read about the game here. and use the Aristocrat slot finder for specific locations here.  
• G2E took place last week. I shared some thoughts here. 
• There were plenty of games that the masses would enjoy. Some are already hitting casinos.
• I was somewhat underwhelmed. There weren’t too many games that I would enjoy playing in a casino. There was only one new video poker game that looked interesting and I didn’t see too much innovation that made me curious about playing. That said, I can’t wait for next year.
• This robot slot machine from Europe will never make it to casinos but it was the most interesting thing I saw at the gaming expo.

It’s all fun and games until the slot machine chases you down. pic.twitter.com/pmMQKlcidO

— Marc (@MeltzVegas) October 11, 2023

• John and Kristina from Vegas Advantage went to way too many casinos in a 24-hour period. This was fun to track on Twitter as it was happening. Read their story here.
• The Sphere is open! U2 has very specific instructions for General Admission ticketholders. Read more here.
• There are 11 more U2 shows coming in 2024. Read more here.  
• The Sphere movie is open. Feedback from paying customers I know has been positive. All the people who got free tickets liked it too. Go figure! Read more here. 
• U2 made a video in downtown Las Vegas. Enjoy!

Hack!

By now you’re probably caught up with the news about the MGM hack so I’m not going to share any updates. Besides, MGM deleted all of their Twitter statements. The company is not totally back to normal as they repeatedly claim. It seems as if the MGM Rewards section of your app will be the last thing to get fixed. The company will likely be back to normal when that works again.

One interesting thing I found about the MGM hack is that an Expedia company is powering its online reservation system. See the tweet here.   

The Caesars cyberattack might be more interesting to TravelZork readers as Caesars Rewards account information was stolen. Read more here.

More! Quick Hits

• Portillos from Chicago is looking to expand into Las Vegas. People seem excited about this on TwitterX. There’s no timeframe or location(s) yet. Read more here.
• The Palazzo has a sweet new high-limit room. Check it out here.
• The Suncoast replaced its buffet with a new high-limit room. It’s pretty nice, although it seems way too big for the property. Check it out below.

Attention high rollers! Suncoast’s High Limit Room is now open and ready for action. With Boyd Connect, Boyd Pay, and a beautiful bar serving hand crafted cocktails, it’s the perfect place to up the ante. pic.twitter.com/jKgNw2NNah

— Suncoast Casino (@suncoastcasino) September 19, 2023

• Britney Spears is looking to return to Las Vegas for another residency. Rumor has it she’ll be taking the stage at Resorts World. This would make sense since Katy Perry will be done with her residency. Read more here.
• Speaking of teen pop stars returning to Las Vegas for a residency, it looks like Christina Aguillera will return to Las Vegas. Her shows will supposedly take place at The Venetian this time. Read more here.

Wynn! Wynn Wynn!

• Wynn Las Vegas is hosting two special wine events in November. Read more here. 
• The Wynn West expansion seems like it will happen eventually. Read more here. 
• Wynn is hosting an official auction of the Las Vegas Grand Prix. Read more here and sign up for updates here.
• The Wynn Grid Club is a year-round membership program for F1 fans. Read more here.
• The Netflix Cup golf event with F1 drivers and PGA golfers will take place at Wynn on Nov. 14. No word on tickets to watch the event in person yet. Read more here.

Speaking of Wynn Golf Club. This is fun. 

Perfect ⛳️🏌️ pic.twitter.com/2D9tyCdxq0

— Marc (@MeltzVegas) October 10, 2023

F1 Facts and Figures

Free F1 Attractions

The Las Vegas Grand Prix might be a money grab but MGM has some free F1 things to see in person at different properties. Read more here.

You may have read that Caesars room rates during the Las Vegas Grand Prix are dropping. I’d share thoughts on this, but the people who frequent those dumps might be offended. Luxury hotel room prices are still high. See my X Twitter thread here. 

The library in my part of Las Vegas has an art gallery with three rooms. One room was full of showgirl art and costumes. Another has hip hop artist paintings. I’m not sure if this is normal, but I didn’t have things like this growing up in the Bronx, so I think it’s all pretty sweet. You can see some pics of the showgirl display below and more on x Twitter and Instagram.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Marc Meltz (@meltzvegas)

The Final Round Of Quick Hits

• Junior’s Restaurant, known for great cheesecake in Brooklyn, NY, is replacing the very mediocre Kitchen at Resorts World. Read more here.
• Circa is hosting a Las Vegas Grand Prix watch party at Stadium Swim. Read more here.
• The volcano at The Mirage is off until December. Read more here.
• The President of Resorts World, Scott Sibella, was let go. Read more here.   
• If you like drama you can read more about why Sibella was dumped here. 
• If you really like drama you read about how the Sibella case could impact a potential New York City casino here.   
• There’s a new show at Virgin. Read more here.   
• Shaquille O’Neal wants to bring an NBA team to Las Vegas. Read more here.  
• Rumor: Nitro Circus is coming to Paris. Read more here.
• You can find some info on the Universal attraction in Las Vegas here. 
• David Blaine is taking his illusions to Wynn Las Vegas. He was most recently at Resorts World. Read more here.
• CrashNBurn and Aero Vegas are opening in downtown Las Vegas. Read the confusing press release about the bar, restaurant, bowling, and wind tunnel place here, and check out the website here.
• Norm’s Restaurant from LA is opening a location in Las Vegas about 10 minutes off the Vegas Strip. Read more here.
• Station Casinos has a new app with lots of bells and whistles. Read more here.
• The Venetian is updating its convention space. This part of the property can use some TLC. Read more here. 
• Rio has a new website and rewards program. Check it out here.