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Sep. 06, 2007
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Strip hotel delays its star turn

Planet Hollywood Resort puts off grand opening to get celebrities aligned

By ARNOLD M. KNIGHTLY
REVIEW-JOURNAL

Neon lights the way to the entrance at Planet Hollywood Resort on Tuesday. Planet Hollywood Resort's co-owner on Wednesday said the property will push back its grand opening event because of scheduling conflicts with celebrities and a movie premiere at the property.
Photo by Craig L. Moran.

Planet Hollywood Resort is pushing back its grand opening event seven weeks to Nov. 16-17 because of scheduling conflicts with celebrities and a movie premiere at the property.

Co-owner Robert Earl said Wednesday the move merely involves scheduling, and there are no problems in construction or financing.

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    • "Having spent so long planning and building this, I want to have it as ready as possible," Earl said. "To have as many of the elements completed, as many of the tenants finished as possible, to have as many rooms ready as possible."

    During a ceremony in April officially changing the property's name from Aladdin to Planet Hollywood Resort, Earl said the grand opening would be held Sept. 28-29.

    Earl cited scheduling conflicts with actors Bruce Willis, Sylvester Stallone and other celebrities as the main reason for the change.

    Another reason is Planet Hollywood's hosting of the Sept. 20 world premiere of the new film "Resident Evil: Extinction." Earl said the property did not want to hold two large events a week apart.

    The red-carpet event, the first movie premiere under the new owners, is part of a long-term business plan to host a movie premiere every month.

    Earl said construction is on schedule, with the front plaza on the Strip scheduled to be completed Sept. 28. Everything is already "100 percent financed," he said.

    Nearly $1 billion is being spent to upgrade all aspects of the property. Some financing is from Credit Suisse First Boston.

    Nearly 1,500 hotel rooms will be remodeled and ready by November; the remaining 1,100 are to be completed by early next year. Planet Hollywood has opened two new restaurants since April and has three more scheduled to be ready by November.

    The casino has also been remodeled. A new poker room opened in May, and a new sports book opened in late August.

    Bill Lerner, a Deutsche Bank gaming analyst, recently visited the property and said it looks much better than when it was operated as the Arabian-themed Aladdin.

    "It has always been a great location," Lerner said. "Visually, it is much more appealing. I liked the flow and the layout of the casino. They've done a nice job."

    Two new entrances now open along the Strip have helped access.

    The property was purchased in 2004 for $496 million by OpBiz, a joint venture between Planet Hollywood restaurant founder Earl, investment firm Bay Harbour Management and Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide.

    Earl and Bay Harbour Management have a joint venture with an 85 percent interest in the property; Starwood holds the remaining 15 percent.

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    R. Duck wrote on September 13, 2007 11:25 AM: The PH (Paris Hilton) hotel & casino is a nice place to stay but if you drive there be prepared for that Miracle Mile walk from the parking garage to your room. I was there in July and had a nice time. My room had a great view but the new decor is way-too LA chic...(gay and/or pimp-like) red lamps, carpet had red & black circle pattern that would make you nauseous if you had a few too many drinks. Caution: I sat on the end of the bed (king) and the mattress did a backflip over my head. TV's great; watching porn on a 47in LCD TV was da bomb! I got lost in the casino a few times but the staff was friendly with the exception of a few punks that work at the little pool (there's 2) bar. The whole time I was there I couldn't help but wonder how a bankrupt restaurant chain could buy a mammoth hotel on the LV strip.


    Dave wrote on September 06, 2007 03:56 PM: I don't know - that property is just jinxed I think. I was there a few weeks ago, and despite some cosmetic changes, it still looked and seemed like the old Aladdin to me.


    Sully wrote on September 06, 2007 01:02 PM: The Aladdin was one big very expensive joke! I think a Planet Hollywood theme stinks too, but I agree, they did a good job renovating the joint.


    mark wrote on September 06, 2007 12:14 PM: Everyone tried to blame their woes on 9-11. It never occured to anyone that Mohammad Atta was Egyptian? Outside of the average drop in business immediately after the event the Luxor never complained of people finding their theme objectionable. The Aladdin was a horrible design. There wasn't a visible auto entrance off LV BLvd. The foot traffic was horrible. It was destined to fail. Planet Hollywood will do better. The City Center will add more foot traffic to the area and the theme is more enticing than the Aladdin ever was.Of course if the sub prime debacle spreads it's cancer throughout the economy, we may find that LV overbuilt.


    RussBBinVegas@aol.com wrote on September 06, 2007 11:43 AM: LOL .. I remember reading that too, that in the aftermath of 911 some people were wary of entering an Arab-themed casino. Heaven forbid the tourists who come to Las Vegas be exposed to anything but what's already ultra-familiar to them, all the two-dimensional cheezy-fake Hollywood spectacle in this town.


    pjs wrote on September 06, 2007 09:45 AM: sounds to funny but oh, so true, on Boom's message, plus all the other things that went on at the Aladdin, the belly dancers, the food & smells. oh well another piece of history down the drain.


    Boom wrote on September 06, 2007 08:50 AM: I really missed the Middle Eastern theme of the Aladdin but if you walk through the mall there are still remnants that make you feel like a roadside bomb is imminent.