With meeting planners under so much pressure to justify their meetings and to tone down the celebratory aspects of their events, the initial response is to avoid Las Vegas as a corporate destination. However, Las Vegas offers value that other cities simply cannot provide. When it comes to booking accommodations in Las Vegas, planners are getting more than simple lodging for their attendees. The facilities here are true turnkey institutions, making them valuable resources for planners looking to develop every part of their itinerary at one location.

As this section shows, Las Vegas is filled with resort-style facilities that work to a budget-conscious planner’s benefit. Guests at these resorts have access to first-class dining and entertainment options and meeting planners can enjoy a bounty of meeting space that is already personalized for corporate events, unlike that of generic event venues.

Meetings & Events Las Vegas has spoken with many industry insiders over the past six months, and, surprisingly, it appears that the economic situation has made it possible for meeting planners to utilize Las Vegas as an events destination when it may not have been an option before. Aside from the all-purpose nature of Las Vegas resorts, meeting planners now have more leverage than ever to negotiate favorable group packages, as more facilities are adjusting their sales plan to better suit the needs of budget-constrained clients.

As you’ll read in this section, many of the city’s established facilities on the Strip are developing new programs that will provide planners with cost-effective solutions while still being able to enjoy the amenities of this prime location. Likewise, many newly built resorts are incorporating trendy amenities like green event teams to make it easier to justify the expense of a Las Vegas event. This article gives a brief overview of some established facilities that are continuing to add to their already expansive list of excellent services, new facilities that are continuing to make the decision to stay on the Strip a positive one and a sneak peak of what the near future holds for Las Vegas accommodations.

Classic Las Vegas Gets a Facelift
No matter what the outreach of some of the more contemporary resorts on the Strip, they are simply not an option for planners with smaller budgets, or, in many cases, they don’t appeal to every company looking to Las Vegas as their meeting destination. In both cases, looking at older facilities that are in the midst of a remodel might be a planner’s best bet for a Las Vegas event several months down the line.

Two important fixtures of the Las Vegas hotel scene are in the process of much needed renovation projects. The El Cortez will greatly benefit from a $25 million renovation project that will include updating the historical hotel and its fitness center, swimming pool, restaurants, business center and nightclub.

The exteriors of the Las Vegas are a time capsule for what Las Vegas looked like sixty years ago; it’s one of the few major attractions in the city that have not updated its façade, giving it a sense of charm and sentimental value that planners will be hard-pressed to find elsewhere.

The hotel recently renovated the building immediately behind it into the Cabana Suites, a stylish accommodations boutique with Miami-inspired sensibilities. Furnishings reflect the design combinations of retro geometrics and modern patterning and coloring that are so popular in the major cities of the Florida peninsula. Each suite will include its own refrigerator, 42”-inch plasma television, fully stocked snack bar, custom-made furniture and fine linens for maximum comfort. The Cabana Suites are truly a great way to enjoy a sense of nostalgia accompanied by a plethora of high-end amenities.

A Miami-tinged atmosphere is also the planned solution to revive the Strip’s Tropicana hotel, once the epicenter of Las Vegas casino culture. The new head of Tropicana, Alex Yemendijian, plans to bring the hotel back to its former glory and turn it into a major competitor of the Strip’s major casino resorts. A $100 million renovation overhaul, expected to begin in the near future, will see the expansion of the hotel’s casino and convention center along with the debut of two new restaurants and a nightclub. For the sake of old Las Vegas, here’s hoping that we can report on more details of this revitalizing project in our next issue.

Recent Strip Additions
The Strip is the city’s signature destination attraction and visiting professionals always view an overnight stay in this district as a treat when passing through on business. The popularity of the Strip never dies out thanks to the continuing development of new accommodations facilities that make repeat visits as fresh and exciting as a guest’s first Las Vegas experience.

The Palazzo Las Vegas opened for business in January 2008 and has been a welcomed addition to the variety of upscale accommodations facilities on the Strip ever since. An upscale resort like the nearby Venetian, The Palazzo was immediately recognized for its lavish suites and signature European elegance.

The Palazzo Las Vegas also makes a great choice of accommodations facility for meeting planners needing to get involved with green initiatives on behalf of their clients. Only four months after its opening, The Palazzo became the largest complex in the world to receive a Leadership in Energy and Environment Design certificate from the U.S. Building Council. Facilities with such a distinction have been verified that all process within are environmentally efficient and contribute to the health of employees and visitors alike.

Planners looking to maximize their budget by stretching their dollars to include food and entertainment will be thrilled to learn that the Palazzo offers amazing suite packages that are not likely to be found anywhere else. A few notable offers include the Reward Yourself Package, which allows guests to enjoy the best accommodations on the Strip along with $150 worth of entertainment, food and gaming credits, and the Lavo Nightlife Package, which treats visitors to dinner, drinks and dancing at one of the city’s premier adult venues.

Green transportation initiative include the nearby Monorail station and bus stops, rewarding carpools and drivers of fuel-efficient vehicles with preferred parking and providing valet bicycle services. The Palazzo has been able to reduce water waste by eight million gallons a year by replacing turf grass with artificial grass and installing drip-irrigation to eliminate run-off. In addition, two atria skylights fill the main building with natural sunlight and the hotel’s swimming pools are heated by solar-powered temperature regulation system.

The Palazzo’s neighbor, Encore, is also a new accommodations player on the Strip. This Wynn enterprise has been drawing top corporate clients since its opening in December 2008 and is expecting to stay at a near-booked pace through the end of this year.

Encore’s immaculate interior design reflects the many opulent resort cultures of the world, including Europe, India, and the Far East.

Meeting planners will find that Encore is a corporate events haven with 60,000-square-feet of flexible and ornately decorated space, combining the best aspects of aesthetic luxury and productive utility. A magnificent ballroom provides an expanse of open space that can accommodate galas, banquets and seated dinners while a vast array of small rooms provide the perfect setting for classroom- and boardroom-style functions.

Event services at Encore include a catering staff made up of some of the premier food and beverage works in the industry, a business center that provides convention attendees with equipment, office supplies and communication rentals and an entertainment production team that guarantees technically proficient presentations. A meetings concierge is also available to assist planners in communicating with the many branches of the resort’s staff and to make sure attendees are able to move from one session to the next with as little interruption in the event’s flow as possible.

Providing first-class entertainment is one of Encore’s specialty’s, as it is the only place in the world where guests can experience La Rêve, a breathtaking show combining acrobatics, dance and aqua theatrics that the Las Vegas Sun calls “visually stunning.” Group sales are available for this beautifully crafted spectacle in the tradition of the famous Cirque du Soleil productions.

Encore also attracts many top-name performers on a regular basis. One of the most highly anticipated shows in Las Vegas this summer is Encore’s limited engagement of international superstar Beyonce’s “I Am…Yours” concert, which runs July 30 through August 2.

What’s Coming Next?
Later this year will mark the arrival of the much anticipated Fountainebleau Las Vegas. This luxury resort will offer 3,800 guest suites that are planned to rival the finest accommodations in the world. Each flat will be tapered to the needs of today’s business professional while also giving guests the fine surroundings that are expected of top-of-the-line resort. Every guest who stays at the Fountainebleau will be able to experience the satisfaction of having incomparable utilities at their constant disposal. Marble bathrooms, flat screen televisions and Apple computers will be the standard in each and every set of living quarters.

Guests at Fountainebleau will never have to leave the resort, as a full roster of fine dining and high-end shopping establishments are being developed to make the experience as comprehensive as possible. Gotham Bar & Grill will feature traditional American cuisine by Executive Chef Alfred Portale who is a two-time winner of the James Beard Foundation Award. Hakkasan brings the internationally acclaimed restaurateur work of Alan Yau to Las Vegas with his unique take on Cantonese cuisine that arrives in town with a Michelin star pedigree.

Guests looking for a shopping experience like no other will enjoy the endless consumer options of the Runway, a 300,000-square-foot mall that will feature high fashion boutiques that will rival the fashion capitals of the world. With all these exciting developments and more, Fountainebleau Las Vegas is set to be the perfect location for business professionals looking for entertainment in between long hours of business.

The CityCeter complex is continuing to elicit excitement from all sectors of the hospitality industry, including accommodations. The Aria Resort & Casino is expected to feature 568 suites that will be a prominent feature of this bustling mini-city. The resort will also include a 1,800-seat theater that will be the permanent home of Cirque du Soleil’s production commemorating the life and work of Elvis Presley.

Our next issue promises to be filled with new details on both projects, which are expected to continue the trend of meeting planners looking to Las Vegas as their corporate destination of choice in these trying times. If the growth this year in any indication, our next issue will unveil even more projects that are coming down the pipeline, making for a bigger, better and even more fabulous Las Vegas experience.