Wynn casino wins with crowds

The $2.7 billion Las Vegas resort built by casino magnate opens its doors to hordes of visitors.



A tower suite in the new, $2.7 billion gambling, hotel and shopping complex Wynn Las Vegas.


LAS VEGAS - Wynn Las Vegas, a $2.7 billion resort built by casino magnate Steve Wynn, opened its doors early Thursday to hordes of visitors eager for a glimpse of the lavish gambling, hotel and shopping complex.

The crowd spilled onto the Las Vegas Strip as security guards restricted the number of people allowed into the curved bronze tower.

"I think it's spectacular," said David Schwartz, coordinator of the Gaming Studies Research Center at the University of Nevada Las Vegas.

The five-year project "has elements of Wynn's earlier casinos evolved and carried to the next level," he said.

Located toward the north end of the fast-growing city's fabled gambling corridor, the 2,700-room tower marks Wynn's first new project since the opening in 1998 of the Bellagio resort, now owned by MGM Mirage.

The interior of Wynn Las Vegas is richly decorated with textured wall coverings, dramatic draperies, mosaic floors and whimsical light fixtures.

Curved escalators lead down to a patio facing a large pool with a 70-foot wall of water cascading at its back. Periodically, the wall turns into a multimedia theatrical show complete with animatronic creatures.

Atriums and floor-to-ceiling windows in many areas bring daylight in and fresh flowers are abundant.

"I love the primitive graphics. It's really unique -- a combination of the primitive and very sophisticated," said Las Vegas resident Marlene DeMarco. "This would be hard to top."

Wynn and his wife Elaine hosted a grand opening charity event at the new resort Wednesday evening and the doors were opened to the public just after midnight.

"Wynn is raising the visibility of Las Vegas ... it's a lot of free advertising for us," said Jim Murren, chief financial officer of MGM Mirage.

No replica
Wynn told Vanity Fair in an upcoming article that he sought to employ elements of Renaissance architecture in his latest project but chose to avoid building a "themed" resort like other Vegas destination casinos.

"I didn't think that a themed hotel was the thing to do any more. Why would anybody want to build a replica?" he said.

Wynn's previous company, Mirage Resorts, was taken over by MGM several years ago. He later founded Wynn Resorts Ltd., which owns the new Wynn Las Vegas resort.

"I think the theme is Wynn, which says luxury, sophistication and style," Schwartz said

The price tag for Wynn Las Vegas falls short of the record $3 billion spent on a hotel in Abu Dhabi, but Wynn has already started work on a $1.4 billion expansion next door.

The exterior of the property is obscured by a small man-made mountain covered with trees, mostly alpine varieties. It also features waterfalls and a lake, which offer dramatic views from restaurants and other venues inside the casino resort.

Wynn said last week in Los Angeles that the resort's 9,500 employees have been told to make sure guests stay happy, even if it means reversing a charge or returning a bet.

"The best thing about it," a security guard said, "is that the casino is away from everything else. You don't have to be bothered with it when you go to dinner."

That's a relatively new strategy in Las Vegas, which is known for labyrinthine casino floors choked with slot machines at every turn.

Disclaimer: This Review is NOT associated with Wynn Casinos,Las Vegas or Reuters, and is purely for educational purposes ONLY. All copyrights, trade marks and licensing is owned by their respective owners.