Smash hit of movie "Hangover" is a good news for Las Vegas.
I really hope the movie could remind lots of people that Las Vegas is really crazy & attractive place.
To be sure, if you watch gloomy economic news every day, you might be in a mood of saving discretionary spending. This is the most dangerous thing for economic recovery. Money you spend makes somebody happy. The somebody use the money, which other guy will be happy... Economy is a kind of relay. Please spend money to make economy better !
‘Hangover’ brings new customers, campaign to Caesars
Hit movie prompts customers to inquire about suite seen in movie
Image
Justin M. Bowen
Sat, Jun 27, 2009 (1:55 a.m.)
What do you get when you throw four inebriated bachelors, a tiger and a baby into a suite at Caesars Palace? One of the summer’s biggest movies, a new marketing campaign and people curious about your hotel. And that’s exactly what Caesars Palace wanted.
“The Hangover” is the tale of a Vegas bachelor party gone wrong and puts Caesars at center stage for the debaucherous trip. The film has grossed more than $150 million since its June 5 opening and Caesars is taking advantage of its presence in the film through social media and “Hangover” hotel packages.
Bonnie Gilmour, Caesars’ vice president of marketing, said on the night of the movie’s release the resort’s reservation desk immediately received calls from people who wanted to book the suite seen in the movie.
“We had to train our call center on how to handle the incoming calls and figure out how we were going to play it,” Gilmour said. “We were a little surprised on how quickly the response came in.”
The suite seen in the movie doesn’t really exist. “The Villa,” which the bachelors request, is actually a soundstage inspired by elements from several suites at Caesars but producers chose most of the set elements from the Emperors Suite.
The actual suite is a two-bedroom, two-story suite, not like the one-story villa seen in the movie. There’s also no grand piano or bar area, but the Emperors Suite is covered in marble and filled with flat screen TVs, just like the movie. The floor-to-ceiling windows seen as the actors enter the suite — showing a sprawling view of the Strip — also are right out of the Emperors Suite.
The rest of the footage in Caesars — the lobby, the pool, the elevators, the front drive, the roof — is shot at the casino-hotel. “The Hangover” director Todd Phillips said it was important for the comedy to revolve around real places.
“Let’s really shoot in the lobby of Caesars Palace, let’s really walk down the hallway or go down the elevators that are really at Caesars,” he said. “That adds something to the audience’s experience of seeing the movie.”
“When we walked into the lobby, Todd just said ‘This is perfect for us,’” producer Dan Goldberg said. “We approached Caesars and they totally got it. Once they said yes, they put the entire Caesars staff on our side. Whatever we wanted, we could have.”
“They were a great group in every way,” said Debbie Munch, Harrah’s vice president of public relations for Las Vegas. Munch has been working with film crews at Caesars since “Rain Man,” including more recent films and TV shows like “Oceans 11,” “Iron Man,” “The Sopranos” and “Entourage.”
“Bringing a production of that magnitude to a resort that never closes is very challenging,” Munch said. “We worked together to get the scenes they needed while still accommodating guests, and they were very gracious of that.”
“The Hangover” cast and crew taped from mid-September to October at the Strip property. In the weeks before the release, Caesars ramped up its marketing, capitalizing on the movie’s Vegas party vibe -- and is still running with it.
Caesars set up a Facebook fan page, garnering 2,000-plus fans, and has more than 4,000 followers on Twitter. Caesars also started a Twitter and Facebook “Hangover” contest, giving away two- and three-night getaway packages.
The goal was to turn a virtual Caesars experience into a real one, Gilmour said.
“We wanted to make sure if people were going to be talking about it, we wanted to make sure they had a place to do it,” Gilmour said. “People did what we thought they were going to do, which was come searching for Caesars Palace after seeing the movie.”
Caesars also is playing “The Hangover” trailer prominently on its outdoor sign while showing an in-room video (exclusive to the hotel) with cast and crew interviews and a “Hangover” hotel package.
Munch said the hotel’s nationwide exposure from “The Hangover” reminds her of other movies on the big screen.
“In so many ways it’s created some guest interest that I compared to ‘Rain Man.’ People to this day call about the ‘Rain Man’ suite, even though we don’t have an official suite called the ‘Rain Man’ suite,” Munch said. “Now, they’re asking about ‘The Hangover’ suite.”
Those looking for the true-to-movie “Hangover” experience should be prepared to shell out $2,500 to $4,200 for the suite that inspired the set. Don’t expect to skip out on any damages, either. They’ll have your number and credit card.
And Caesars asks: No swimming in the fountains and please, no tigers.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Friday, June 26, 2009
Agency downgrades debt of Las Vegas Monorail
Today is Las Vegas Monorail story. Do you know how many monorail run in Las Vegas Strip ? The answer is two ! One is free rail between Mandalaybay and excalibur and another is the subject monorail( http://www.lvmonorail.com/)
Actually I has rided on the monorail just once. The reason is simple. Expensive and inconvenient.
1. Expensive : Do you know just single ride is $5 ? To be sure, distance between stations is too far to walk in terribly hot Las Vegas summer, but is that worth $5 ? I usually go to Strip with my family weekend. Total 4 people. I have to pay $20 for moving just one station ? They sell one day pass. It's $12. You can pay off by riding for three times.
2.Inconvenient : The monorail is operating between MGM Grand and Sahara. The accesse to Strip eastside casino is not so bad, but access to westside is very bad. Crossing Strip is hard work. I would be tired just to reach crosswalk. Therefore I usually don't want to cross Strip. Latest data shows that number of Visitors to Las Vegas is -8.3% decline from last year. On the other hand, average daily ridership of this Monorail decrease by -23.6% from last year. I don't think just bad economy explain bigger decline of Monorail.
I have better ride on the monorail before it stops operation.
Actually I has rided on the monorail just once. The reason is simple. Expensive and inconvenient.
1. Expensive : Do you know just single ride is $5 ? To be sure, distance between stations is too far to walk in terribly hot Las Vegas summer, but is that worth $5 ? I usually go to Strip with my family weekend. Total 4 people. I have to pay $20 for moving just one station ? They sell one day pass. It's $12. You can pay off by riding for three times.
2.Inconvenient : The monorail is operating between MGM Grand and Sahara. The accesse to Strip eastside casino is not so bad, but access to westside is very bad. Crossing Strip is hard work. I would be tired just to reach crosswalk. Therefore I usually don't want to cross Strip. Latest data shows that number of Visitors to Las Vegas is -8.3% decline from last year. On the other hand, average daily ridership of this Monorail decrease by -23.6% from last year. I don't think just bad economy explain bigger decline of Monorail.
I have better ride on the monorail before it stops operation.
Agency downgrades debt of Las Vegas Monorail
Published Mon, Jun 22, 2009 (3:05 p.m.)
Updated Mon, Jun 22, 2009 (4:23 p.m.)
Debt rating agency Fitch said today it downgraded its rating on most of the debt issued by the Las Vegas Monorail, saying default appears to be inevitable because of weak ridership trends and disappointing fare revenue.
Fitch Ratings cut the underlying rating on the $451.4 million in outstanding debt, called the "Director of the State of Nevada Department of Business and Industry Las Vegas Monorail project revenue bonds, 1st tier, series 2000."
Fitch, which cut the rating to "CC" in July 2007, cut it again today to "C".
Fitch does not rate the $149.2 million in outstanding Las Vegas Monorail project revenue bonds, 2nd tier, series 2000; and the $48.5 million in outstanding Las Vegas Monorail project revenue bonds, 3rd tier, series 2000.
"Fitch's 'C' rating on the first-tier bonds reflects an extremely constrained financial environment stemming from continued declines in monthly revenues for the first five months of calendar 2009 as compared to the first five months of 2008 despite a $1 fare increase on the unlimited One-Day Pass. Strong competition from buses on the Las Vegas strip and taxis continue to contribute to the monorail's deteriorating financial position," Fitch said. "Despite management's efforts in recent years to raise and lower fares in efforts to stimulate revenue growth or establish a larger ridership base, fare revenues have failed to grow to levels sufficient to pay debt service."
January to May year-to-date average daily ridership decreased by 23.6 percent to 17,027 from 22,238 in 2008, primarily due to an increase in the unlimited daily fee to $13 from $12, Fitch said. The unlimited pass now accounts for 28 percent of tickets sold, down from approximately half that in 2008. The decrease also reflects lower visitor volumes, air traffic, and convention attendance overall in the region, Fitch said.
Ingrid Reisman, vice president of corporate communications for the Las Vegas Monorail Co., said downgrade doesn't take into effect the decline in visitors to Las Vegas during the economic downturn.
“While the Fitch rating release was not expected, it does not change the status or conditions of our bonds other than the rating itself,” Reisman said in a statement. “What the release does not stress, however, is how the Las Vegas tourism industry and economy has suffered exponentially due to the current economic downturn, and that this decrease in visitation has led directly to losses in Monorail ridership and revenue year over year.”
The average fare in May 2009 increased to $4.45 from $3.52 in May 2008. Despite the toll increase, average daily revenue decreased by 5.9 percent to $76,105 for the first five months of calendar 2009, Fitch said.
"Monorail demand remains weak, in part due to the lack of marketing partnerships with the casinos and more recently weak economic conditions. To the extent management's efforts are more successful than in the past, liquidity may last longer; however, this appears unlikely given the reduction in visitor volumes at Las Vegas," the agency said.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Reflection Bay Golf Course close
Reflection Bay golf course, one of high-end golf course in Las Vegas, will be closed by June 30 before asset sales process starts on Jul 9 in accordance with Chapter 11 process.
I have never played at the golf course, but I heard it's good course. I want to play here before it close. Otherwise I might not be ablet to play here forever. Nobody know if new buyer really pops up. More prececisly, somebody will be interested in purchasing the asset, but nobody knows if any bank really lend money to the potential buyer. Banks has got huge amount of money from Federal government. They should get the money pump into real ecnomy ! Otherwise economy would not recover as if Japanese economy experienced in 90s.
-----------------
Another golf course to close at struggling Lake Las Vegas
The Reflection Bay golf course at Lake Las Vegas is scheduled to close June 30 and its employees will be laid off, Lake Las Vegas revealed in a recent court filing.
With the earlier closure of the Falls golf course, this will leave just one operating course at the struggling high-end development in Henderson. That's the private SouthShore course.
Reflection Bay is an 18-hole Jack Nicklaus-designed course that in years past hosted the national Wendy's Three-Tour challenge.
Lake at Las Vegas Joint Venture, which filed for bankruptcy protection last year, said in a court filing last week that even though it operates Reflection Bay, it has determined it has no equity interest in the course and that the property is not necessary for is financial reorganization.
Lake at Las Vegas said it will close the course in advance of a foreclosure sale set for July 9 by the holder of the course's mortgage, Carmel Land & Cattle Co.
About 45 employees will be laid off, a spokeswoman said.
The planned closure caused the three hotels at Lake Las Vegas to make arrangements to send guests to golf courses in Henderson, Las Vegas and Boulder City.
A spokeswoman for the Lake Las Vegas Destination Marketing Council said the Ritz-Carlton has partnered with Cascata in Boulder City; Rio Secco, Anthem (Revere at Anthem-Concord Course and Revere at Anthem–Lexington Course) and Tuscany in Henderson.
The Loews Lake Las Vegas Resort has partnered with DragonRidge and Legacy in Henderson, Royal Links in Las Vegas and both courses at Anthem; and is pursuing other partnerships.
MonteLago Village Resort has partnered with Tuscany.
Given the distressed state of the economy, it's unclear if anyone would buy the Reflection Bay course. Carmel Land earlier foreclosed on the Falls course.
And while that course remains closed, it's being maintained, said Sandra Sternberg, spokeswoman for Lake at Las Vegas.
In court papers, Lake at Las Vegas said Carmel Land holds a claim related to Reflection Bay of $28.382 million.
"In view of the continued deterioration of the economy and the scarcity of available financing for golf courses, the debtors believe that Reflection Bay is worth significantly less than Carmel's secured claims," Lake at Las Vegas Senior Vice President James Coyne said in court papers.
The bankruptcy court set a June 29 hearing on the plan to close the course and to allow Carmel Land to proceed with the foreclosure sale.
I have never played at the golf course, but I heard it's good course. I want to play here before it close. Otherwise I might not be ablet to play here forever. Nobody know if new buyer really pops up. More prececisly, somebody will be interested in purchasing the asset, but nobody knows if any bank really lend money to the potential buyer. Banks has got huge amount of money from Federal government. They should get the money pump into real ecnomy ! Otherwise economy would not recover as if Japanese economy experienced in 90s.
-----------------
Another golf course to close at struggling Lake Las Vegas
The Reflection Bay golf course at Lake Las Vegas is scheduled to close June 30 and its employees will be laid off, Lake Las Vegas revealed in a recent court filing.
With the earlier closure of the Falls golf course, this will leave just one operating course at the struggling high-end development in Henderson. That's the private SouthShore course.
Reflection Bay is an 18-hole Jack Nicklaus-designed course that in years past hosted the national Wendy's Three-Tour challenge.
Lake at Las Vegas Joint Venture, which filed for bankruptcy protection last year, said in a court filing last week that even though it operates Reflection Bay, it has determined it has no equity interest in the course and that the property is not necessary for is financial reorganization.
Lake at Las Vegas said it will close the course in advance of a foreclosure sale set for July 9 by the holder of the course's mortgage, Carmel Land & Cattle Co.
About 45 employees will be laid off, a spokeswoman said.
The planned closure caused the three hotels at Lake Las Vegas to make arrangements to send guests to golf courses in Henderson, Las Vegas and Boulder City.
A spokeswoman for the Lake Las Vegas Destination Marketing Council said the Ritz-Carlton has partnered with Cascata in Boulder City; Rio Secco, Anthem (Revere at Anthem-Concord Course and Revere at Anthem–Lexington Course) and Tuscany in Henderson.
The Loews Lake Las Vegas Resort has partnered with DragonRidge and Legacy in Henderson, Royal Links in Las Vegas and both courses at Anthem; and is pursuing other partnerships.
MonteLago Village Resort has partnered with Tuscany.
Given the distressed state of the economy, it's unclear if anyone would buy the Reflection Bay course. Carmel Land earlier foreclosed on the Falls course.
And while that course remains closed, it's being maintained, said Sandra Sternberg, spokeswoman for Lake at Las Vegas.
In court papers, Lake at Las Vegas said Carmel Land holds a claim related to Reflection Bay of $28.382 million.
"In view of the continued deterioration of the economy and the scarcity of available financing for golf courses, the debtors believe that Reflection Bay is worth significantly less than Carmel's secured claims," Lake at Las Vegas Senior Vice President James Coyne said in court papers.
The bankruptcy court set a June 29 hearing on the plan to close the course and to allow Carmel Land to proceed with the foreclosure sale.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
UNLV CBER "Midyear Economic Outlook 2009"
Yesterday I attend economic seminar by UNLV CBER(University of Nevada Las Vegas, the Center for Business & Economic Research) at Mirage Casino Hotel.
The CBER's Clark county's economic forecast for 2009 & 2010 is as follows.
2009 2010
Employment 869,500(-5%) 877,500(+0.9%)
Housing permit 5,480(-55.8%) 5,800(+5.8%)
Gaming Revenue($ m) 9,550(-2.5%) 9,840(+3.0%)
Personal Income($ b) 75.3(-2.5%) 78.7(+4.5%)
Population(k) 1,978(-0.4%) 1,999(+1.1%)
Visitor(k) 38,868(+3.7%) 41,084(+5.7%)
Rooms available 143,757(+2.3%) 152,881(+6.3%)
Las Vegas economy has to face downward economy in 2nd half of this year too, but, according to them, we will be able to see a recovery from next year , although they warn us that recovery will not be "V shape" or "U shape", but "Lazy LV shape". Long negative & flat growth, and then very moderate growth will come.
As far as I am involved with construction industry, I don't see any sign of recovery in the industry yet. I hope stimulus money push up construction demand artificially, but amount of money to Nevada is very small. Stimulus money might offset another decrease of demand. I feel this tunnel will be very long.
City Center will be open this year. It might be good news for Las Vegas, but it means Las Vegas will have another thousand of rooms. Will new room be absorbed by increase of visitor ? When will brave gaming company come back to Las Vegas to develope new property ?
The CBER's Clark county's economic forecast for 2009 & 2010 is as follows.
2009 2010
Employment 869,500(-5%) 877,500(+0.9%)
Housing permit 5,480(-55.8%) 5,800(+5.8%)
Gaming Revenue($ m) 9,550(-2.5%) 9,840(+3.0%)
Personal Income($ b) 75.3(-2.5%) 78.7(+4.5%)
Population(k) 1,978(-0.4%) 1,999(+1.1%)
Visitor(k) 38,868(+3.7%) 41,084(+5.7%)
Rooms available 143,757(+2.3%) 152,881(+6.3%)
Las Vegas economy has to face downward economy in 2nd half of this year too, but, according to them, we will be able to see a recovery from next year , although they warn us that recovery will not be "V shape" or "U shape", but "Lazy LV shape". Long negative & flat growth, and then very moderate growth will come.
As far as I am involved with construction industry, I don't see any sign of recovery in the industry yet. I hope stimulus money push up construction demand artificially, but amount of money to Nevada is very small. Stimulus money might offset another decrease of demand. I feel this tunnel will be very long.
City Center will be open this year. It might be good news for Las Vegas, but it means Las Vegas will have another thousand of rooms. Will new room be absorbed by increase of visitor ? When will brave gaming company come back to Las Vegas to develope new property ?
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Japanese Noodle(RAMEN) Shop in Las Vegas
But...finding good RAMEN shop in Las Vegas is not as easy as finding good Sushi restaurant. I really wish more Las Vegans could be impressed wonderful taste of RAMEN!
Today I want to share with you about one of my favorite RAMEN shop in Las Vegas, name "TOGOSHI RAMEN".
Outlook of TOGOSHI RAMEN is like this. It is hard to know if it's open or not at a glance.
I ate MISO(soy bean) vegetable RAMEN for today's lunch.
That's really normal Japanese RAMEN. Very basic. But that's what make this shop one of Japanese favorite in Las Vegas. Please try and enjoy Japanese typical RAMEN taste !
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)