Vegas News September 26, 2021

Lifting Some International Travel Restrictions

This week the US finally announced it was lifting some international travel restrictions in November. Visitors from countries in the European Union, China, and more will be able to visit Las Vegas once again. You can read more from the NY Times if you’re curious about specifics. 

Meanwhile, the US extended the current travel restrictions with Canada and Mexico until October 21. I wouldn’t be surprised if the restrictions are removed in time for the holidays in November and December. That’s an uneducated guess. I spend less time with international politics than I do playing baccarat. Read more here. ​

Steve isn’t the only person from England to be excited about returning to Las Vegas for the first time in nearly two years. Wynn Resorts CEO Matt Maddox told CNBC that the company has “had reservations from the U.K. spike from effectively zero to hundreds a day.” That’s just one hotel on the Vegas Strip. Expect to hear similar from the others.

This is exciting news but what will Steve tweet about after he visits? 

Seriously though, this is good news for anyone that’s been looking to visit the US from overseas. It’s also good news for the Las Vegas casino corporations looking to get closer to a normal visitation. Let’s get to the news in and around Las Vegas.

GASP!

I can’t believe a bunch of drunks haven’t knocked over the Mannekin Pis statue at The D before. The Benny Hill music Scott from Vital Vegas added to the video of the incident below keeps making me laugh out loud (LOL). Read and see more here. 

Las Vegas Quick Hits

• The Westgate just made a major upgrade to its already great video wall in the sportsbook. Gotta keep up with the Joneses (Circa) and stay ahead of every other sportsbook in Las Vegas. Read more here.
• Golden Gaming (The Strat, PT’s, etc.) had a security breach earlier this year. Read more here.
• The news here is that 150 people were riding the High Roller at the same time. Oh yeah, they got stuck. Read more here.
• Wayne Newton is moving to another Caesars’ property. Mr. Las Vegas will now be performing at the Flamingo Las Vegas. Read more here.
• The poker rooms at Bally’s and Flamingo are closing during the World Series of Poker. Read more here.
• According to Las Vegas-Review Journal reporter Johnny Kats, Spiegelworld staffers spent a lot of time at the Rio All-Suite Hotel recently. Will the company be opening a new venue off the Vegas Strip next year? 
• Speaking of Spiegelworld, Opium at the Cosmopolitan opened this weekend. Read more here.
• Superfrico, the restaurant next to Opium, also opened this weekend. I have dinner there during the week and will share more about the experience next week. You can read a little about Superfrico here.

• The autumn display at the Bellagio conservatory is up! While these are always beautiful, this is my least favorite season. The winter display is my favorite and that should be up in a little more than a month. Read and see more about the current display here. 
• The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians hired a GM for Palms. Read more here.
• Another Nobu is opening in Las Vegas next year. Read more about the Paris Las Vegas location here.
• Stop if you’ve heard this before but a politician wants to raise the tax threshold from $1200. Read Rep. Titus’ letter here.
• Foreigner will be doing a limited engagement/residency at The Venetian next year. See dates and read more here.
• I can’t believe this but preseason games for the Vegas Golden Knights start tonight! Not only can people watch the games in person but they can watch the team practice in Summerlin. Read more here. VGK practice is one of the best free attractions in Las Vegas. It’s fun being so close to the action.
• Red Rock Casino is getting a Wingstop. See what it’s replacing here.
• Station Casinos took illegal bets for a few years and may get punished for their sins. I think the penalty should be allowing all sportsbooks to allow remote account registration since they’re the main casino operator still fighting against that. This would bring new sportsbook operators to Las Vegas. Anyway, read more here.
• Zouk Nightclub at Resorts World Las Vegas is now open. Read more here.
• Maroon 5 is moving their New Year’s Eve show in Las Vegas from Mandalay Bay to the Cosmopolitan this year. Read more here.
• I’ve been managing my expectations about G2E. Attendance appears to be lower than usual for both panels and exhibitors. Additionally, the companies don’t seem like they’ll have the wow factors of previous years. That said, maybe we’ll see some cool tech replacing the popular big-name branded slot machines that gaming manufacturers have featured in the past. You can see some info on Scientific Games’ G2E plans here.  
• The AVN convention won’t be an in-person event at Virgin next year. Read more here.
• Royal Resort has closed. I don’t think this is news but there’s a blog post about it here.
• Bazaar Meats inside the Sahara has a new menu made specifically for Mr. TravelZork, probably. Read more here.