Prestige issue 233-234, Dec 2012-Jan 2013
Founded by the Mormons in 1855, Las Vegas becomes an agricultural village by excellence in the early XXth century. Its current prosperity comes from gambling, legalized in 1931 in Nevada. Thanks to its numerous casinos and hotels that attract millions of visitors, the city acquired over time a worldwide reputation. Major trading centers make it the temple of shopping and one of the most valued tourist destinations in the United States. In 2004, Las Vegas hosted 37.4 million visitors. Overview.
© Prestige / Photos: Pr. Bassam Lahoud
The Bellagio fountain viewed from the Hotel Cosmopolitan.
Las Vegas, a picturesque town Las Vegas with an area of 340 km2, is nestled in “Las Vegas Valley”, a valley in the heart of an arid basin surrounded by mountains with snow in winter. As it seems coming out of a dream with all its lights, Las Vegas emerges in the desert area of Nevada related to the geological Great Basin region. The climate Las Vegas has a typical arid climate of the Mojave Desert, the driest in the United States. Winters are mild and have an average annual temperature of about19 ° C, with a total of rainfall of109mm. However, the sun bathes this fascinating city more than 315 days per year, to the delight of tourists. Las Vegas,the first city hotel in the world Around the end of the XXth century, Las Vegas experiments an important customer diversification with Circus Circus and Excalibur. It is during this period that the businessman Steve Wynn builds the gigantic Mirage hotel. Hotels, one after the other, have proliferated, combining chic and luxury with impeccable service.Their architecture, with a theme, is fascinating. Many hotels of Strip include halls used for concerts or blockbusters of Cirque du Soleil. The biggest stars have organized concerts, such as the famous Rat Pack: Frank Sinatra and his “band of rats,” the comic duo Bennett &Hudson, and the king Elvis Presley. Celine Dion recently presented the show A New Day for five years at Caesar’s Palace. This attraction drew alone, more than 3 million viewers.
© Prestige / Photos: Pr. Bassam Lahoud
From Venetian Resort we have a view of the Mirage hotel.
© Prestige / Photos: Pr. Bassam Lahoud
At Caesar’s Palace Hotel.
The city of gambling With its worldwide reputation for its high-capacity casinos, Las Vegas has become the most attractive city in the world. Its fabulous casinos are divided in two zones: the oldest casinos and exciting Fremont Street Experience in downtown; Strip or the Las Vegas Boulevard. It is a long boulevard that stretches from Downtown to the South towards Los Angeles.This is where the greatest luxury, newest and more eccentric casino hotels, emerge.
© Prestige / Photos: Pr. Bassam Lahoud
One of the top tourist destinations With its large number of hotels and casinos, Las Vegas attracts more and more tourists. In fact, several factors contribute to the development of its tourism, such as games, restaurants, shows and various entertainment programs. In 1997, Las Vegas attracted nearly 30 million visitors, and in 2007more than 39 million! An inconceivable development. In fact, major building projects come to realize, as Veer Towers and the Harmon, a 400 rooms hotel, and Haze a nightclub of 2300m2… In addition, City Center, a new complex on the Strip is one of the largest of these projects. The central piece of the set is a 61-storey building with restaurants, a convention center, a casino, a theater with 2,000 seats and a new mall of 46.000m2. Shopping in Las Vegas Taxes on shopping in Las Vegas are less than in Los Angeles, and the choice of products is immense. Each hotel and Casino in Las Vegas has galleries with a variety of shops that offer the finest luxury items. The visitor is fascinated by big shopping centers including two truly unique: the Grand Canal Shops in the Venetian Resort that recreate the architecture of Venice, and the Forum Shops at Caesar’s Palace, a copy of the Roman Forum with marble facades, the animated statues and ceilings covered with clouds that change constantly.
© Prestige / Photos: Pr. Bassam Lahoud
The Cosmopolitan Shopping Center
