The newest megaresort on the Las Vegas Strip got high marks in its first days of operations. The $4.3 billion Resorts World Las Vegas, a Genting property, opened June 17 and will celebrate its official grand opening on July 4.
Located along the North Strip on a parcel once occupied by the legendary Stardust, Resorts World is hard to miss: its gleaming red tower features on an 88-acre plot of land is animated by 100,000-square-foot outdoor LED screen, one of the largest in the world. The screen will be used to promote the resort’s special features and advertise upcoming events.
The complex also includes three Hilton hotels with a total of 3,500 rooms and suites, including the largest Conrad hotel in the world as well as the ultra-deluxe Crockfords, part of Hilton’s new LXR Hotels & Resorts brand. The latter has perks like 24-hour butler service, a VIP infinity pool and a high-limit table area. For extra luxury, guests can reserve Crockfords’ two-bedroom pool villa, with its garden terrace, private pool, gourmet kitchen, massage room, movie theater and floor-to-ceiling windows for enviable views of the Vegas Strip. The largest accommodation is the 7,000-square-foot four-bedroom Palace Villa with a grand foyer, formal dining room, kitchen, game room complete with billiards, and a terrace with a pool, kitchen and manicured gardens.
A 5,000-capacity all-star theater, still to be finished, will host the likes of Katy Perry, Celine Dion, Luke Bryan and Carrie Underwood. According to a Forbes account, “In a city known for going big, Resorts World Las Vegas takes this mantra to another level, with outsized villas, pools areas and more.”
Newsbreak.com reports that Resorts World Las Vegas is “all about the amenities,” so much so that “the main gaming floor comes across almost as an afterthought.” In an interview with CDC Gaming Reports, Resorts World President Scott Sibella said the property will reap 73 percent of its revenues from attractions outside the casino (the Strip average is 65.5 percent).
“Knowing that non-gaming was going to be a big part of our revenue, we programmed for that with the different restaurants, lounges, bars, rooms, and attractions,” Sibella said. “We took advantage of what you can do today. Technology (including cashless gaming) has advanced and a lot of these properties don’t have the infrastructure or money. We started from scratch and did things in today’s world that they couldn’t.”
Max Tappeiner, senior vice president of hotel operations, said Genting was committed to finishing the project even during the pandemic, and now may be an optimal time to open. “We’re eager to be part of the resurgence of travel in Las Vegas and for the United States,” he said. “Our guest experience will be super-unique and the ability to have anything at any time on your phone is something we felt strongly about. You can order room service on your phone from any place on property, including the pool deck, and from any restaurant. You can order pillows and make reservations and check in and have a digital key with your phone.
“We are currently in the post-pandemic world and technology will continue to play a major role. But at the end of the day, the authenticity of warm and friendly service still sit sat the center of everything we do. That’s a reflection of our commitment to our Asian heritage.” A Malaysian-based company, Genting also operates Resorts World New York City in Queens and Resorts World Catskills in upstate New York; its Asian properties include Resorts World Sentosa in Singapore.
Strategy Organization founder Josh Swissman said the Vegas resort, the first to open on the Strip since the Cosmopolitan in 2010, “takes luxury and elegance and fun to a new level … What that says to me is that Genting is taking this project and the market very seriously and are prepared to deliver an experience unlike any other on the Strip. … From what I’ve seen, the level of creativity when it comes to food and beverage is dialed up a notch compared to other luxury-oriented properties on the Strip.”
Unsurprisingly, room rates at the property are expected to be the Strip’s highest for the Independence Day holiday weekend.
“In many ways, it seems like an old-school Las Vegas resort opening,” said Bo Bernhard, executive director of UNLV’s International Gaming Institute and the university’s vice president of economic development. “This is an entirely new company with new ideas, and in this case, global ideas. It’s tremendous expertise that will help grow this market.”
Denstone Group CEO Oliver Lovat called Resorts World “the most international property that has ever opened in Las Vegas. It is designed and structured for international visitors as well as the U.S. market in a way no other resort in Las Vegas has ever been built. It’s a fusion of casino development from North America and Asia.”
Technological advances for the digital era include cashless transactions, smart tables, digital login and other seamless, frictionless guest options that make even more sense in the post-Covid era.
“I wish I could say I was a smart guy and that I planned it this way,” Sibella said of the resort’s positive impact and its opening, shortly after pandemic restrictions were lifted. “But we planned a summer 2021 opening last year, either way, hoping things were going to be better.”
