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Tripping Macau - MacauTrip Blog

The boss sent Chuckmonster to Macau to bring back the scoop on what Asia's Las Vegas is all about. Follow along as Chuck deals with all the questions, logistics, travel issues, language barriers, hotel construction stuff, the lack of craps tables and all the other obstacles that any/every Macau tripper from the West might have to deal with.

Is There an MGM Grand In Vegas, Too?

» posted by Chuckmonster on 2008-05-09 08:28:40

Imagine that. The day that someone says "they've got an MGM Grand in Las Vegas too? Is it three shades of gold? And wavy like the Grande Praca?" Perhaps never, perhaps it's already happened. Perhaps perhaps perhaps, Marcia. Maybe I should check to see if the MGM Venti is still there next time I go to Vegas. Oh wait... that's tomorrow.

The long and short of this tomfoolery is that I'm headed off to "America's Macau" for 48 hours of you know what, which will include giving whatever room the MGM Venti happens to stick me with... the bizness.

The second order of business is to continue the hunt for Steve Wynn, in the hopes of convincing him to talk turkey about Macau and Cotai with us every so often. Yeah, I'm dreaming. Wynn Resorts won't touch us with Sheldon Adelson's cane let alone...

Life is full of dreams... y'know Le Reve and all that.

Third order of business is getting away from the computer, at least for a little while. Fingers hurt. Wrists hurt. Head hurts. Mind hurts. Eyes hurt. Aaaand the butt hurts. The word from the sidelines is "everything hurts."

If you need a Macau fix - go check out photos.vegastripping.com, tons of goodies up in that thar thang.

See ya Sunday.

Wynn Cotai and Encore Macau Updates

» posted by Chuckmonster on 2008-05-05 08:51:53

I doubt that I'm the only person who thinks that Steve Wynn should have his own podcast. Oh wait, he does... the Wynn Resorts Quarterly Earnings Call! In this quarters episode his Steve-ness admirably dropped a couple of crumbs about Wynn Resorts' evolutionary plans for Macau particularly Encore at Wynn Macau and the still hazy outline for Cotai.

Encore at Wynn Macau

Encore at Wynn Macau is currently scheduled to open in late December 2009, 1 year from the opening of Encore Suites at Wynn Las Vegas. The hotel will feature 400 suites and villas starting at a 1000 square foot footprint. Encore at Wynn Macau will also feature a very large dedicated spa, probably on the lower levels of the tower. As with everything, Wynn described Encore Macau as "the fanciest thing we've ever done." All of the design, decor, layouts, amenities and filigree were locked down prior to commencing construction, which looks to be at about the 5th floor.

Wynn Cotai

Four Seasons Macao, Cotai Jets, Junket Finance and More

» posted by Chuckmonster on 2008-05-04 05:57:58

The main advantage of perusing the quarterly earnings reports and analyst calls the casino companies host is that they generally leak a couple of tidbits of information somewhere in the margins of the discussion. Listening to bizwigs yammer about numbers is a certifiable yawnfest, but the most recent call from Las Vegas Sands Corp (Venetian Macao, Sands Macao etc) had a couple of interesting nuggets, in addition to execs becoming infuriated about the technological breakdown of the analyst Q&A phone system they contracted out.

Four Seasons Macao is scheduled for a July 2008 (or Q3) opening. According to LVS, the opening will be "proper" - not the infamous soft opening, where bits of the property are rolled out, partially completed. Their use of "proper" confirms our belief that soft openings, a la Las Vegas Palazzo's spectacularly messy birth, are extremely "improper." There is nothing 'soft' about paying full price for hot and cold running mudrust, missing or still wrapped furniture, failing electricity and scads of boo-boo tape.

Paul Steelman Talks Macau Studio City, City of Dreams and Trinity

» posted by Chuckmonster on 2008-05-01 21:24:42

In a casinoverse where the headlines are dominated by Wynn, Adelson, Kerkorian, Lanni and Ho (x5), the name Paul Steelman doesn't elicit much wow and excitement to casual Macau or Vegas tripper. Chances are, you'll never see "STEELMAN" up in lights on any casino marquee soon even if Steelman is the name scrawled elegantly on blueprint boilerplates on a large percentage of the casinos we've all, or will, visit.

MacauBusiness recently (April 1) conducted an interview with Mr. Steelman wherein he waxes power poetics about some of the seven casino properties his firm is currently working on in Macau, including Macao Studio City, City of Dreams' Hard Rock Hotel Casino, Melco PBL Entertainment's Trinity, recently shuttered Oceanus project and the Jade Entertainment complex adjacent to the Grand Emperor Casino (which is nice).

Wynn Diamond Suites Renamed Encore at Wynn Macau

» posted by Chuckmonster on 2008-05-01 20:11:28

Buried in an earnings release from Wynn Resorts was teeny tiny mention that the Wynn Macau luxury tower (construction photos) known as Wynn Diamond Suites, will now be called Encore at Wynn Macau.

This is a pretty smart move to unify their brand identities. Having every tower at this that and the other property with the name-du-jour dilutes product understanding by tourists like us. Additionally, the Encore at Wynn Macau will feature similar interior designs as Encore Suites at Wynn Las Vegas. Conversely, Encore Suites at Wynn Las Vegas are going to use the same casino design - smaller, more intimate gaming 'parlors' demarcated by pillars and other ambient signifiers - as Wynn Macau. It's an evolutionary mix and match situation.

Picasso's Le Reve Now Hangs At Wynn Macau

» posted by Chuckmonster on 2008-04-30 19:06:08

Macau tipster week continues with this tidbit sent to us by Mr. M Going To Vegas II (from Switzerland) who just returned from his first visit to Macau with the high rolling news that the Picasso's Le Reve is now hanging in a Private Gaming salon at Wynn Macau.

"Le Reve" (above), translated The Dream, was the original name for Wynn Las Vegas but was abandoned after Speilberg, Diller and Eisner convinced Steve otherwise. While in the final throes of negotiating a sale of Le Reve, Steve accidentally poked his elbow into the painting during an animated discussion with Barbara Walters and Nora Ephron. Steve and Elaine Wynn (whom I had pleasure to eat) both decided that the Picasso hole poking episode as a 'sign' and decided to cancel the sale.

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