Destination: Las Vegas
Hawaii, Vegas Style?
by Pam Mandel | 01.28.09 | 4:17 PM ET
With Hawaii’s tourism-driven economy taking such a big hit this season, all kinds of ideas are being thrown around to raise money for the island state. Legalized gambling is again on the table—only Hawaii and Utah do not have legalized gambling in the United States.
Charles Memminger—writing in the Star Bulletin —has another proposal: Export Hawaii to the mainland. Vegas, to be exact, and build a Hawaii-themed casino.
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Yahoo! BuzzMorning Links: Glum Gladiators, ‘Nutters and Nudies’ and More
by Valerie Conners | 01.16.09 | 8:39 AM ET
- Yesterday’s incredible US Airways rescue in the Hudson River has yielded a medley of media coverage including eye-popping slideshows, surprising facts about bird strikes on planes and even a sprinkling of gallows humor.
- One New York City diner is taking the ultimate road trip to Alabama.
- Boston.com is featuring a series of stunning photos taken from NASA’s Earth Observatory website.
- Gorillaz frontman Damon Albarn announced plans for the band’s third album, dubbed the “Syria Sessions” and inspired by Arabic orchestral music. The band will head to Syria to record in March.
- The backlash against Slumdog Millionaire has begun, including harsh words from one critic describing the film as “poverty porn.”
- With the number of foreign tourists to Rome down more than 12 percent from last year, the dolce vita is no more for the city’s “glum” gladiators, carriage drivers and other tourism operators.
- Vegas’s iconic topless showgirl review, “Les Folies Bergere,” is closing after entertaining oglers for 49 years.
- We previously noted Australia’s call for applicants for the “best job in the world.” Now, the video applications are rolling in, and there’s no shortage of “nutters and nudies.”
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Morning Links: India Security, Peruvian Shamans, Las Vegas and More
by Jim Benning | 12.30.08 | 11:08 AM ET
- Is India safe for travelers? Depends who you ask.
- The Japanese man who mysteriously moved into Mexico City’s airport four months ago and became a celebrity of sorts up and left on Sunday. Go figure.
- Peruvian shamans held a ceremony to “protect the spirits” of Barack Obama and other leaders in 2009.
- Family members of the woman who disappeared off a cruise ship near Cancun say they believe she jumped, citing “previous emotional issues.”
- The Washington Post reviews “Bad Traffic, “a new novel from Welsh writer Simon Lewis, who “first gained attention as a travel writer.”
- Which helps impoverished people in developing countries more, cell phones or laptops? Good magazine debates the question. (Via Ideas Blog)
- In October, the last month for which numbers are available, gambling revenue in Las Vegas was down “an ominous 24.3% vs. the same month in 2007.” And that’s just the beginning. But hey, it’s nearly New Year’s Eve, so get out there and help the struggling city: Double down on 17.
Morning Links: Wynn’s Encore, a ‘Sadistic’ Geography Quiz and More
by Michael Yessis | 12.22.08 | 8:18 AM ET
- Continental Flight 1404 crashed in Denver Saturday night. Thirty-eight passengers were injured. There were no casualties. Investigators are on the scene.
- The first news about the crash apparently came via Twitter—from a guy on board the plane. Here’s his colorful tweet.
- “60 Minutes” examines the state of TSA screening. It’s “security theater,” says one expert.
- Steve Wynn’s Encore opens today in Las Vegas. When asked if he’s worried about opening a new resort In this economic climate, Wynn said, “Are you nuts?” He added: “If I didn’t say yes, you would walk out of here thinking I was crazy.”
- Southwest may begin service to New York City in 2009.
- Matt Gross hit seven airports in four days in search of good eats. He talked a little about it on All Things Considered.
- Thomas Friedman “had no idea that many of those oil paintings that hang in hotel rooms and starter homes across America are actually produced by just one Chinese village.”
- Concierge’s It List 2009 is out.
- The Passports With Purpose fundraiser enters its final week. The raffle was organized by four travel bloggers, including World Hum contributor Pam Mandel.
- The latest in the Washington Post’s excellent Time Zones series: The boom in used car auctions in Johannesburg.
- John Flinn unleashes his “most sadistic geography quiz ever.” No matter how you score, just remember: When it comes to geography, you’re no Sarah Palin.
Mourning in Vegas
by Kevin Capp | 12.18.08 | 10:06 AM ET
Surrounded by the decadence of yet another nightclub opening, Kevin Capp must come to terms with the death of his grandfather
Morning Links: Taj to Reopen, ‘The Pervert’s Grand Tour’ and More
by Michael Yessis | 12.16.08 | 9:38 AM ET
- The Taj Hotel, one of the Mumbai sites stormed by terrorists last month, plans to reopen some of its rooms Sunday night.
- Joe Brancatelli writes: “Like it or not, acts of terror aimed at travelers and the places they frequent are very good business tactics indeed.”
- Rome and Milan are now connected by the high-speed Red Arrow train.
- Tony Perrottet continues his Pervert’s Grand Tour at Slate. “Sex,” he writes, “Sex has always been the unspoken inspiration for travel.”
- Delta adds WiFi to some East Coast shuttle flights. The airline says it will make its entire fleet wireless by the middle of next year.
- Robbie Knievel will jump the volcano at the Mirage in Las Vegas on his motorcycle on New Year’s Eve. I’ve been to Vegas on New Year’s Eve. This will not be the craziest thing that happens that night.
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to Go Global
by Valerie Conners | 08.13.08 | 3:58 PM ET
After forgoing my chance at pseudo-rock stardom when I realized I was a dud at Rock Band, I’m pleased to learn all hope of exploring my inner Dylan may not be lost: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is hitting the road—first stop, New York City.
Las Vegas Strip Going Eco-Friendly?
by Michael Yessis | 08.04.08 | 11:43 AM ET
It’s giving green a shot. More than 50 million square feet of construction built to LEED standards is planned “on and around the Las Vegas Strip, not including the 8.3 million square feet of the 7-month-old, $1.9 billion Palazzo Resort Hotel Casino, which, in May, was designated the nation’s largest LEED-certified building,” according to USA Today.
High-Speed MagLev Train from Disneyland to Las Vegas Gets $45 Million
by Michael Yessis | 06.09.08 | 3:23 PM ET
The money, which was earmarked in the transportation bill President Bush signed Friday, “will pay for environmental studies for the first leg of the project,” reports the AP. Gizmodo wonders if it’s just greenwashing, since $45 million is but a fraction of what it might cost to build a legitimate high-speed MagLev rail line. I think it’s a fine step forward, and likely not the last. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid hails from Nevada, and he’s on the record supporting the project. That’s a powerful ally.
Why Disneyland is Hot and Vegas Is Not
by Jim Benning | 05.15.08 | 11:05 AM ET
Interesting bit of economic analysis from the AP: “The gaming business often brags that it’s recession-proof because gamblers will always like to gamble, but amusement destinations historically have seen their business get hard hit when consumers’ wallets are pinched. The upscaling of Las Vegas with its five-star hotels, restaurants and shops, and the down-pricing of Disney to more value-oriented park packages and hotels over the last decade has turned that concept on its head.” Now, if Disney would just open a Vegas casino everything would balance out nicely.
Related on World Hum:
* A Clash of Civilizations Over Disney’s ‘It’s a Small World’
Photo by gruntzooki via Flickr, (Creative Commons).
So Long, Guggenheim Las Vegas
by Jim Benning | 05.13.08 | 6:22 PM ET
Los Angeles Times architecture critic Christopher Hawthorne bids farewell to the Rem Koolhaas-designed Guggenheim Museum, which closed Sunday. “Like a lot of Las Vegas marriages,” he writes, “the one between the Venetian Hotel and the Guggenheim Museum was born of some seriously misplaced optimism.”
The Las Vegas Mob Bus Tour: The Sights Aren’t Spectacular, But the Stories Are
by Michael Yessis | 03.17.08 | 1:53 PM ET
Who knows what mobsters like Tony “the Ant” Spilotro really would have thought of a bus tour of Las Vegas mob history, but Robert Allen, the founder of the tour, has a pretty good idea. “I can only do this tour,” he told the Los Angeles Times, “because Tony Spilotro’s dead.”
Las Vegas’ Hooters Hotel to go Boutique
by Jim Benning | 03.06.08 | 11:19 AM ET
Photo by thenestor via Flickr, (Creative Commons)
Yes, despite the oh-so-clever do-not-disturb signs—not to mention that fact that Hooters and Las Vegas would seem to be made for one another—redevelopers have come a knockin’. That’s the word from the Las Vegas Review-Journal, which reports that Hooters Hotel is being purchased by a developer who plans to transform it into a “lifestyle, entertainment-driven boutique hotel and casino complex.”
Deadly Ricin Found in Las Vegas Motel Room
by Jim Benning | 02.29.08 | 11:12 AM ET
The discovery was made Thursday at an Extended Stay America Hotel. Seven people, all apparently in good condition, have been sent to hospitals for observation. It puts the whole bedbugs debate into perspective, doesn’t it?
High-Speed Train From Southern California to Las Vegas ‘Picking up Steam’
by Michael Yessis | 02.26.08 | 10:13 AM ET
The plans for a high-speed link between Los Angeles to San Francisco make more sense to me. Alas, they’re stalled. So are the plans for a Disneyland to Las Vegas MagLev train. That has given an opening to the DesertXpress, a privately funded high-speed project that seeks to connect Las Vegas with Victorville, California, perhaps best known as the place where, when you’re driving from Los Angeles to Sin City, you can stop off for a Double-Double at In-N-Out.