Las Vegas reopened

Las Vegas reopened 

What has reopened in Vegas?

Nevada entered the second phase of its reopening on May 29. This meant that most businesses, such as dine-in restaurants, retail shops, salons and even bars could again welcome a capped number of guests. Casinos, however, were not included in the first or second phase of the state’s reopening plan and instead were permitted to resume gaming operations on June 4.

Reopened casino resorts

Many, though far from all, of the major casino resorts reopened their doors to overnight guests and visitors on June 4. Some of the now reopened casinos include Treasure Island (now in the Radisson family), Wynn, Bellagio, MGM Grand, New York-New York, Caesars, Rio, Circus Circus, The D, Golden Nugget, Planet Hollywood, the Venetian and more. Most recently, MGM Resorts announced that Mirage Las Vegas will return on Aug. 27, but no return date has been set for Park MGM or NoMad Las Vegas.

Travel expert Lee Abbamonte visited Caesars Palace right after its reopening and told this to TPG: “…it’s about 10% as busy as usual. Slot machines are open every other one, craps spacing people out, table games like blackjack have a max of three players it appears. All employees, dealers, etc. are wearing masks, few of any cops and maybe 10% of patrons.” He went on to note that sanitizing stations are located all over the casino and hotel.

Spot checks showed rates starting around $30 per night at the lower tier resorts and just over $100 at the top-tier resorts (plus resort fees).

Pools

While the hotel pools will reopen when the resorts do, things will be different. The pool party as we knew it is paused for now and the pools will adhere to social-distancing guidelines with cabanas and loungers spaced out to maintain a safe distance. Additionally, pool areas will undergo a strict cleaning regimen throughout the day.

At Wynn resorts, loungers and cabanas will be thoroughly cleaned after each use and cabanas will be pressure washed each night; the towel desks, entry points and other counters will be cleaned at least hourly; and lifeguard posts will be cleaned at each rotation.

The Venetian, while not going into as much detail, reiterated that its pools are treated daily with antibacterial and antiviral treatments and that its pool chairs will be separated to comply with social distancing protocol.

What hasn’t reopened in Vegas

Some resort casinos

The Las Vegas Strip is home to some of the country’s highest-capacity hotels. For example, the MGM Grand and the Venetian each have close to 7,000 rooms, making them two of the largest hotels in the world. Given how massive these casino resorts are, there simply was no need to reopen all of the casino properties at once.

MGM Resorts began the reopening with New York-New York, MGM Grand and Bellagio. From there, it reopened Excalibur on June 11. The most recent reopening announcement is for the Mirage Las Vegas on Aug. 27.

And even within hotels that do reopen, not all of the rooms may be open at once. According to the Los Angeles Times, Bill Hornbuckle, the acting president and CEO of MGM Resorts International, said the Bellagio would initially reopen with only 1,200 of the property’s 4,000 rooms in service.

This is likely for a couple of different reasons. A phased reopening could help control the flow of people returning to the Strip and allow for social distancing, according to direction from the Nevada Gaming Control Board, as to not counteract progress made with COVID-19.

Shows

Live entertainment venues have not yet reopened in Nevada, so while the Bellagio and its iconic fountains are again open — the same is not true for its iconic Cirque du Soliel show, O, and others like it across the city.

Nightclubs and dayclubs

While bars and restaurants are again open in Nevada, with some restrictions, nightclubs have not yet been permitted to reopen and remain closed with no set reopening date. As mentioned, the infamous dayclub pool parties are also still on hold for now.

Select restaurants

Not all restaurants within a given resort are open or open at the same time, so check carefully before assuming your favorite will be open in the immediate term.

Poker rooms

Many poker rooms will not reopen with the other gaming operations at this time.

The return of free parking

But all of the reopened Vegas changes are bad. For example, MGM and Caesars group of casinos have announced the (much anticipated) return of free parking at their properties.

Before the March closing, self-parking cost as much as $18 per day at the MGM properties. But, when the MGM and Caesars properties (such as Caesars, Flamingo, Bellagio, MGM Grand, Aria and more) reopen, self-parking will be free. Valet parking is indefinitely suspended due to coronavirus concerns. There’s no guarantee that free parking lasts forever, but the Bellagio’s website states that free self-parking is being offered as a way to welcome back guests with no timeline regarding future plans or changes. The Caesars website simply says that self-parking in Las Vegas is free.

On its May earnings call, MGM stated that “about 50% of the traffic coming into Las Vegas is from automobiles, and [it thinks] there will be some pent up demand and as the opportunity [to travel again] comes about, [it’ll] definitely open up properties to maximize [its] cash flow.”

While a Vegas with fewer fees will be a welcome change for all visitors, drive-in guests will likely comprise much of the first wave of visitors — and eliminating parking fees is a logical way to incentivize those visitors.

Gambling changes

Gambling is the lifeblood of Las Vegas.

The trend in recent years has been for Vegas to emphasize revenue from dining and entertainment, alongside gambling, but betting is still synonymous with Vegas. Casinos, however, simply weren’t originally designed to keep people six feet apart from one another. With slot machines packed in side-by-side and groups of curious onlookers crowding behind blackjack and craps tables, casinos have had to make changes — big ones — to provide a safer environment for gamblers.

But, Vegas is committed to making it work.

The Gaming Control Board has set limits of six players per craps table, three per blackjack table, four per roulette or poker table and that slot machines are spaced out, or that every other chair is removed. In addition, the board’s plan limits a property’s occupancy to no more than 50% of its normal limit.

While the Nevada Gaming Control Board has laid out a set of 18 specific guidelines and regulations for reopening casinos, individual properties have their own plans that were submitted and approved by the board before reopening.

Wynn Las Vegas has released a 23-page “Health and Sanitation Program” that outlines how Wynn properties (including the adjacent Encore) will operate.

New casino protocols cover five main areas including the casino cage, slot operations, table games operations, poker operations, and race and sportsbook operations. You can read the full list of protocols here, but to put it into perspective, the “table games operations” section alone has two subsections with 27 individual regulations and guidelines between them.

MGM has outlined a seven-step plan that requires masks for employees and provides free masks to guests who are required to wear them. It also includes increased reliance on digital solutions to reduce touchpoints, such as digital room keys available via an online app, mobile check-in and menus available by scanning QR codes.

Wynn casinos have implemented a cleaning and sanitization plan that includes regular sanitization of guest counters, slot machines, card tables and card shufflers plus the placement of hand sanitizer throughout the casino floors, outside entrances and next to all ATMs.

At the roulette table, the wheel head, ball and dolly will be sanitized every time a new dealer enters a game. When a guest leaves a table game, the rail and seat will be sanitized. Each new shooter at the craps table will have the dice sanitized before picking them up.

Wynn guests must wear masks and are encouraged to sanitize their hands before and after each game they play. A chip-cleaning policy is currently being reviewed.

Another major Las Vegas casino resort, The Venetian, which includes the Venetian tower, the Palazzo tower and the Venezia tower, has outlined its “Venetian Clean” initiative, which includes near-constant disinfecting of table game areas, slot machines, electronic kiosks and chairs. And, like the Wynn, the Venetian has rearrange its slot machines and table games to allow for social distancing, enforce a three-player maximum per table and install hand sanitization stations and disinfectant wipes throughout the floor. Venetian also says that it will sanitize its chips “approximately every two hours.”

What about masks?

Per an announcement by Gov. Steve Sisolak, masks are required in all public spaces, with few exceptions:

“Effective June 26, the state of Nevada required the wearing of masks or face coverings that cover both the nose and mouth for all Nevadans and visitors when in a public space. The mandate includes exemptions for those with medical breathing issues or disabilities that make mask use impractical, as well as for children ages 2 – 9. Businesses have the right to ask any patron to leave if they are not following the directive.”

The Venetian has equipped all its rooms with a “Venetian Clean” pack that will contain hand sanitizer, disinfecting wipes, gloves and a face mask. Bellagio seems to have a similar pack available for guests.

Temperature screenings and sanitation

Just like at nongaming hotels, casino resorts have boosted their sanitation measures to keep guests and employees safe. Wynn has installed “noninvasive thermal cameras” at each entry point, and, “Any person displaying a cough, shortness of breath or other known symptoms of COVID-19 or a temperature above 100.0 degrees Fahrenheit will be discreetly offered a secondary screening” by staff donning masks and eye protection.

Venetian resorts has the same procedures, with those who present a temperature over 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit undergoing a further medical assessment and being directed to other medical care.

Of course, sanitization and disinfection are central to the plans of all major resort casinos. As mentioned, stations dispensing hand sanitizer, regular disinfecting of public spaces and other customer-facing areas, and access to disinfecting wipes and other PPE is located all around the resort and casino grounds.

No more self-service buffets

Vegas wouldn’t be Vegas without the famous buffets, right? Well, it has to be.

It’s unlikely we’ll see self-serve buffets return in any near future. MGM resorts closed buffets at all its Las Vegas properties before states began shutting down, and since then they’ve been suspended elsewhere.

In a post-coronavirus world, buffets are the type of situation many people will avoid due to the large number of people congregating around — and breathing on — food in a confined space. In any buffet-type situation, such as a Player’s Club, expect to see snacks and beverages served by staff upon request, as opposed to self-service.

Part of MGM’s reopening plan is indeed the suspension of self-service buffet food service as employees will serve guests. There will also be prepackaged food options available.

But at least one Vegas mega-buffet may not have entirely given up on the concept of all-you-can-eat prime rib and chilled crab legs. The Bacchanal Buffet at Caesars Palace was already planning a multimillion-dollar renovation when COVID-19 hit, and according to Eater Las Vegas, may have tweaked its renovation plans as it pushes forward. Many of the serving stations at the buffet were already individually prepared and plated by staff behind the corners, so that type of serving trend may continue.

How cheap is a reopened Vegas?

Vegas has a lot of rooms and the deals this summer may be hot as the desert temperatures outside.

Summer is usually a great time to find deals in Vegas, but we expect to see better-than-normal offers in the near term. Those who gamble may see targeted offers comparable to the deals of yesteryear when even moderately profitable gamblers were given offers of multiple free nights.

But will resort fees go on a hiatus? That would be nice but isn’t the across-the-board approach so far. In fact, as coronavirus was worsening in the weeks before the shutdown, we saw multiple Caesars casinos increase resort fees. But the weeks before the shutdown also saw sub-$100 rates at the higher-end resorts that typically price at a few times that amount.

That said, Sahara is offering rates with no parking or resort fees to residents of many states and we’ve seen offers from the Cosmo with waived resort fees targeted at select guests.

Bottom line

Las Vegas has certainly felt the full blow of the economic catastrophe caused by the spread of the coronavirus even more acutely than many other destinations, due to its reliance on bringing large groups of people together to mix, mingle, gamble and have a good time.

It cost the Las Vegas casinos millions of dollars per day that the doors were shut. There are reports that the MGM properties alone were going through more than $14 million per day during the shutdown.

So, while the path to reopening the casino resorts wasn’t short or easy, the lights are back on and Vegas is ready for socially distanced action.