Tourism - VEGAS INC

How monorail’s fate might have been different

The Las Vegas Monorail pulls into the Convention Center station on Monday, Nov. 14, 2011.

I’ve always maintained that the Las Vegas Monorail had little chance for success because it has operated despite being incomplete. Critics have continually battered the 3.9-mile elevated work-in-progress transportation system because it doesn’t go where most people want to be.

19 December 2011

By Richard N. Velotta

Caesars' Octavius Tower — with 'small hotel feel' — is set to open

The hallway inside the new Octavius Tower at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas Thursday, Dec. 15, 2011.

Las Vegas tourists often come to the city looking for a bargain, especially as the economy continues to falter. Caesars Entertainment is counting on the boutique feel of a new hotel tower to attract customers despite its higher prices. Finishing touches are being put on Octavius Tower, Caesars Palace’s “hotel within a hotel,” in advance of its Jan. 2 opening.

16 December 2011

By Delen Goldberg

Health officials can't pinpoint source of Las Vegas marathon illnesses

A race crew team offers water to runners during the Zappos.com Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon Sunday, December 4, 2011.A spokeswoman for the Southern Nevada Health District said the agency is trying to find a cause of the reported illnesses during the marathon. Some runners complained about the taste of the water but people could have gotten sick from a common source that has nothing to do with the water, she said.

Despite survey responses from more than 1,000 people, health officials can’t yet pinpoint the source of an outbreak of diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea and other symptoms reported after the Dec. 4 Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon.

15 December 2011

By Joe Schoenmann

Experts pick casino industry winners and losers of 2011

An exterior view of the newly renovated Plaza Hotel and Casino in downtown Las Vegas on Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2011.

The Las Vegas gaming market rebounded this year with a jump in visitor volume nearing the record total of 39.6 million in 2007. Room occupancy rates and gaming revenue are up from the depressed levels of recent years, while visitors have shifted their spending patterns, focusing an ever-larger percentage of their cash on special events and clubs rather than casino floors. So, can you brand Las Vegas a winner in 2011 despite the region’s continued battle with double-digit unemployment, record home foreclosure rates, the ever-present sense of economic uncertainty, and the continued domestic and international expansion of the casino industry?

15 December 2011

By Dave Berns

Rapid-screening lanes open for trusted travelers at McCarran

The security screening process at McCarran International Airport will get easier for customers of four airlines as the Transportation Security Administration opened its first TSA Pre-Check trusted traveler lanes Tuesday.

14 December 2011

By Richard N. Velotta

Eighth fireworks show added to New Year's Eve celebration on Strip

Las Vegas city and tourism officials, at Fashion Show on Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011, announce details of the citywide 2011 New Year's Eve party.

Revelers heading to the Strip this New Year’s Eve will have even more opportunity to watch fireworks than last year. Las Vegas tourism officials have added an eighth pyrotechnics display to the lineup.

14 December 2011

By Delen Goldberg

AAA: Nevada gasoline prices lowest since February

The average price for gas in Nevada is now the lowest it has been since February after a 21-cent drop in the past month, according to the AAA auto club.

14 December 2011

By Kyle B. Hansen

Oscar Goodman rolling out the red carpet in Las Vegas

Former Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman takes the stage with a martini and showgirls before an event Thursday, Oct. 13, 2011. Goodman now acts as the city's ambassador.

Former Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman hasn’t been in the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority limelight for six months, since his term as mayor and board chairman of the LVCVA came to an end.