CityCenter’s Grand Opening: Top 10 Reasons Why This “Anti” Vegas Destination Stands Apart

Las Vegas generally conjures up mental images of glitz n’ glam, neon lights, and scaled down versions of the Big Apple and Eiffel Tower. Enter CityCenter, the just-opened $8.5 billion project that took less than five years to build (no less in the middle of a recession) and your perception of the not-so-classy—if not tacky—Vegas may never be the same again. With skyscraper-tall buildings designed by celeb architects, multiple hotels to choose from, no smoking policies, LEED-certified awards, a [gasp] lack of neon lights, a plethora of Michelin-rated chef restaurants and a new Cirque du Soleil show, CityCenter attempts to be in a class of its own.

Last week, we got a sneak peek of ARIA before its opening and attend CityCenter’s grand opening. Here’s our Top 10 reasons why City Center stands out:

1. Deals Galore: Although brand new, CityCenter’s three hotel properties currently open (ARIA, Mandarin Oriental Las Vegas, Vdara), debuted with astonishingly low nightly rates and value-added deals. We’ll be highlighting each property—and their best deals—all week.
2. It’s Called a “City” For a Reason: Encompassing 67 acres and 18 million-square feet (that’s 12 Manhattan blocks in area), we didn’t leave the CityCenter perimeter once in two days. It truly is an “urban district.” Vegas first-timers must venture outside CityCenter’s perimeter to experience the “other” Vegas—you know, the one that’s been around for almost a century?
3. Eyebrow-Raising Architecture: You’ll find no miniature versions of foreign cities or landmarks here. Rather, buildings that were designed by seven world-renown architects and 43 interior designers—all who share a passion for ultra-modern and contemporary design. There’s no shortage of jagged edges and glass here.
4. “Standard” Rooms That Aren’t So Standard: We toured all three hotels and were impressed that even the standard, least expensive rooms came equipped with the same items as the more costly suites: high-tech gadgets, floor-to-ceiling windows, bathroom amenities, etc.
5. A LEED Gold-Certified Building: While a desert gambling oasis and “sustainability” may not seem like an obvious match made in Sin City, CityCenter attempted. We appreciated the low-water use landscaping, sunshades, automatic lighting controls and Monorail transit system, but couldn’t help notice that CityCenter still can’t escape some environmental mishaps of a mega Vegas resort (especially the infinitely reappearing supply of 6-oz. water bottles in our Vdara room multiple times a day!). However, cheers for the effort.
6. Shop ‘Til You Drop: Crystals Retail and Entertainment District is an architectural and design destination in itself (our first visit made us question: “museum or mall?”). The Libeskind-designed Las Vegas Blvd. exterior plays entry to 62 retails spaces and 12 food spaces, including Eva Longoria’s Beso Restaurant and Eve Nightclub. Every uber luxury retailer imaginable is setting up shop in this squeaky clean mall. Shopaholics and brand junkies beware.
7. Place Your Bets on WET: WET Design (the same design dream team behind The Fountains of Bellagio show) has created five new water installations for CityCenter. Each unique water creation hones in on visual and audio senses, with alternating neon light displays and choreographed water patterns. You’ll go from hearing the clink-clink of slot machines to the trickling of running water in minutes.
8. The Museum-Feel Continues: The “first major permanent art collection of art in Vegas to be integrated into a public space,” The CityCenter Fine Art Collection continues the museum v. gambling resort? question ever present. The contemporary art will definitely be appreciated by art buffs but might be missed by the general population. Our favorite: Jenny Holzer’s “Vegas” light projection by ARIA’s North Valet pick-up.
9. “Viva Las Vegas” Part Deux: Elvis Presley returns to Vegas via Cirque du Soleil’s new VIVA Elvis show at ARIA. A sneak peek of the performance reminded us more of a Broadway musical than the flying acrobatics of Cirque du Soleil shows we’ve seen before. We couldn’t even compare the new show to CDS’s LOVE show, which plays homage to The Beatles’ music; VIVA Elvis centers on The King’s life (not music) so be open-minded. *We only saw a handful of scenes from the performance; not the entire show, which is subject to change.
10. Still More to Come: While the bulk of CityCenter is now officially open, there’s still more to open—including The Harmon Hotel. You can expect more Vegas hotel deals in early 2010!

Love it or hate it, one can’t deny that CityCenter has (and will) change Vegas—from the architectural skyline (take a look at our aerial photos to see the difference!) to the number of jobs created (12,000+) to the effect the project will have on average room rates in town (competition will now be fierce as ever).

This last item is of particular interest to us here at DealBase, as Vegas remains our most popular U.S. destination and we consistently offer some of the best value-added hotel deals here. We’re interested to see how much CityCenter effects other Vegas hotel rates (we wouldn’t be surprised to see a slew of even more incredibly discounted Vegas room rates).

Until then, we’ll continue to offer hotel deals for every Vegas property and if you insist on staying at a brand new CityCenter hotel, we have surprisingly decent low rate deals here: try $129 for Vdara and $159 for ARIA!

ARIA HOTEL DEALS | MANDARIN ORIENTAL VEGAS HOTEL DEALS | VDARA HOTEL DEALS