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The Frontier’s Final Moments In Video
In this final installment of the end of the Frontier hotel series, I’ve got one last set of photos from the night of the implosion. These show the aftermath of the explosions.
The building, formerly the 16-story Atrium hotel tower, was brought down by 1,000 pounds of explosives that were so precise that not only did the tower not knock down any of the surrounding buildings, it also left the nearby carport and palm trees intact.
Tomorrow, I’ll talk about the project that will sit on …
Date: November 27th, 2007 |
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Planet Hollywood Brings Out The Stars For Grand Opening
This last weekend, Planet Hollywood finally hosted their grand opening celebration. Originally scheduled for the end of September, it was moved to the dates of November 16 & 17 earlier that month.
As expected, the hotel, part of the Planet Hollywood corporation, attracted a huge list of celebrities, including company investors like Sylvester Stallone and Bruce Willis. Others seen walking the red carpet include Danny DeVito and wife Rhea Perlman, Gene Simmons, Charlie Sheen, Eddie Murphy, Kevin Spacey, Joey Fatone, Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore and husband Ashton Kutcher, and local celebs like Pam Anderson and Palm’s owner George Maloof.
The entertainment was also full of A-listers, including a private invite-only comedy performance by Jon Stewart, followed by a concert featuring Willis, along with Big Bad Voodoo Daddy on Friday. Saturday, the Las Vegas resort upped the star quotient with another invite-only concert featuring the one and only Barbra Streisand. Babs was actually a present from PH co-founder Robert Earl to his father, as the senior Earl celebrated his birthday on Saturday, as well. Following Streisand, the music kept going at a separate party featuring Sugar Ray and Earth, Wind & Fire.
![Planet Hollywood Brings Out The Stars For Grand Opening - outside photo [photo: M. Snow]](http://www.lasvegaslogue.com/files/2007/11/ph-outside1-120x120.jpg)
Though this was the grand opening party, there are still a few areas of the resort that bear the old Aladdin theme, most notably the back part of the Miracle Mile Shops, formerly the Desert Passage.
The rest of the resort, however has been majorly changed to reflect the new ownership. The North African facade of the Aladdin has been replaced by white paint, a green-textured entrance area and lots of red accents, especially on the Miracle Mile signage. The front of the resort also features a huge flat plasma screen wall, as well as a round plasma screen corner, which broadcasts information and advertisements for the resort 24-hours a day.
Inside, the Middle Eastern motif has been replaced by dark hardwoods and decorated floor-to-ceiling ambient light columns. There are also several huge sphere-shaped crystal chandeliers throughout the resort and shopping mall, which provide both mood lighting and focal points for the larger open areas.
![Planet Hollywood Brings Out The Stars For Grand Opening - casino view [photo: M. Snow]](http://www.lasvegaslogue.com/files/2007/11/ph-casinofloor-120x120.jpg)
Each renovated hotel room reportedly has a movie theme to it, including a piece of Planet Hollywood memorabilia, such as the jacket John Travolta wore in Pulp Fiction and various movie posters. It should be mentioned that not all rooms have been transformed yet, so if you plan to stay here in the near future, make sure you request one of the renovated rooms or you could end up in one that still bears the Aladdin-theme.
As for dining options, the only hold over from the Aladdin is the award-winning Spice Market Buffet, which has been updated in shades of grey and silver to reflect the new resort’s modern elegance theme (not officially their theme, but there is a definite leaning toward a mixture of high-tech minimalism and classic elegance via things like the chandeliers and the warmth of the dark wood used throughout the PH resort and casino).
![Trader Vic’s Las Vegas [photo: M. Snow]](http://www.lasvegaslogue.com/wp-admin/http:/www.lasvegaslogue.com/files/2007/11/tradervics-120x120.jpg)
Newer restaurant options range from the high-end Strip House steakhouse and the Japanese menu of Hollywood-transplant Koi to more affordable offerings such as the Pan-Asian fusion Trader Vic’s and delicious sandwiches from Earl of Sandwich. There’s also the 24-hour cafe, Planet Dailies, which while it serves good food, seemed a tad too high-priced for me to eat there again.
Those seeking a lounge-type atmosphere can choose from the Heart Bar, in the center of the casino floor, and the Extra Lounge, which is co-sponsored by the TV celebrity news show “Extra!” and also occasionally serves as the setting for the show’s Vegas reports.
I’m looking forward to checking out Planet Hollywood once it completely finishes its changeover and all of its dining and nightlife options are open. In the meantime, if you stay there, just beware there is still some renovations being done.
Have you visited or stayed at Planet Hollywood recently? Let us know what you think of the resort.
In the meantime, enjoy more photos of Planet Hollywood below the fold.
Date: November 21st, 2007 |
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Vegas Hotel News for November 2, 2007
Just a few quick Vegas notes of interest for this week regarding upcoming hotel developments and renovations:
The Frontier hotel, also known as the New Frontier has been marked for implosion this month on Tuesday, November 13th. The 2am demolition of the buildings will clear the property for the upcoming Plaza resort project.
Landry’s Restaurants, owner of the Golden Nugget hotel downtown, has announced a $150 million expansion project for the property, in the form of a 500-room new tower which is set to open in 2009. The company has …
Date: November 2nd, 2007 |
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Harrah’s to Build Arena Next to Bally’s
Harrah’s shocked many this week when it announced it is partnering with AEG to develop a world-class sports and entertainment arena in Las Vegas.
The privately-financed indoor venue will be built on the currently empty lot that sits right behind Harrah’s-owned Bally’s and Paris resorts. This would put the venue on 10 acres of land right next to the Strip.
“This site, behind our Bally’s and Paris resorts, …
Date: August 26th, 2007 |
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El Cortez Announces More Renovation Plans
Just off the Fremont Street Experience lies the El Cortez, a favorite hotel among budget travelers to Vegas. But recently, the historic downtown hotel has started renovating the rooms and some of the public areas.
The property says they are committed to investing $20 million into this renovation project, which they plan to have finished by the end of this year.
When all is said and done, the El Cortez will have 300 remodeled rooms, new restaurants, lounges and even a nightclub. A $500,000 air …
Date: August 21st, 2007 |
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One Last Look at The Frontier
To wind up this Thanksgiving holiday, let’s take one more look at the last moments of the Frontier.
First a look at the hotel, prior to the implosion. As I arrived, I could tell the building had a good majority of windows removed and several floors were scored (parts of the outer wall were removed) to allow for the building to collapse upon itself, rather than explode outwards.
It gave the building a very eerie look. As though it’d been through a huge battle and didn’t come out the winner.
Thanks to Preferred Public …
Date: November 25th, 2007 |
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The New Frontier Reduced to Rubble
It’s a little after 3am on Tuesday, November 13th, 2007, and the Frontier Hotel (also known as the New Frontier) is no more. After a two-hour buildup and a few test fireworks, the sky above the Strip lit up with a full-on fireworks show at 2:30am.
Lights then counted down from ten on the southern side of the hotel, which had already been prepped for the implosion by the removal of windows and sections of the outer shell. As the timer reached zero, the number hovered for a few seconds before the big booms signaled the charges had been detonated.
Falling on top of its foundation, the building crumbled into a pile of rubble around 2:40am. A huge cloud of smoke billowed into the air from the explosions and the impact of the concrete, and we in the media area were blessed that the bulk of the dust and air debris was blown away from us, providing a clear look at the hotel’s final moments.
I’m still working on editing the video, but here are a few photos taken during this early morning event. This truly has to be one of the top most memorable moments I’ve ever witnessed, seeing this slice of Vegas history gone in a matter of minutes.
Were you there? Let us know what you thought in the comments.
Date: November 13th, 2007 |
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Vegas Resorts Turn Into Huge Billboards
Driving along The Strip recently, it came to my attention how many resort buildings are sporting huge advertising banners.
I’ve already talked about the two 30-story Resident Evil: Extinction banners gracing the outside of Planet Hollywood. But the resort also has a smaller banner advertising the Hans Klok magic show.
Just up the street, the Flamingo is sporting a Toni Braxton banner that runs the entire Strip side of the resort.
At the southern end of The Strip, the Luxor was advertising Absolut Vodka, with a banner that ran from …
Date: September 21st, 2007 |
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Dubai Buys Stake in MGM-Mirage’s CityCenter Project
Earlier this week, MGM Mirage made the announcement that they have signed an agreement with Dubai World to form a 50/50 partnership in the CityCenter project that is currently under construction on The Strip.
Dubai World is a major investment holding company representing the business and investment portfolio of the Arab government of Dubai, which itself is fast becoming a luxury playground. The company also has a hand in many luxury tourist resorts, including Mexico’s One and Only chain, and the Atlantis in …
Date: August 24th, 2007 |
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Structure Collapses at Fountainebleau Construction Site
Early yesterday morning (August 6), firefighters were called to the construction site of the future Fontainebleau Las Vegas due to a structure collapse.
Reports say part of the multi-level parking structure collapsed, causing three levels to pancake down upon each other. Thankfully no injuries were reported but following last week’s tragedy at the site, where one worker died in a fall and two others were hurt, all work has been suspended pending a thorough investigation.
The Fontainebleau Las Vegas is a $2.8 billion project scheduled to open in late 2009 just north …
Date: August 7th, 2007 |
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