Latest / Vegas Revealed / Plenty To Do in Las Vegas, From Neon to Nature | Ep. 28

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Plenty To Do in Las Vegas, From Neon to Nature | Ep. 28 · Vegas Revealed

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_01: Welcome to Vegas Revealed, episode 28.
• 0:03
  SPEAKER_01: The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is doing its best to get travelers to pick Las Vegas.
• 0:09
  SPEAKER_01: We talk outdoor attractions and we also get some updates on various projects happening around the strip.
• 0:14
  SPEAKER_03: Plus, Garth Brooks was supposed to host the very first concert in our brand new Allegiance Stadium in August, but he has officially had to reschedule.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_03: Hear what he has to say about playing that inaugural show.
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_03: Plus, the Golden Knights are back on the ice and we're pumped.
• 0:33
  SPEAKER_01: Oh yeah, all that coming up on Vegas Revealed.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_03: Welcome to Vegas Revealed right here in the heart of Las Vegas.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_03: And you know the city has something to celebrate right now, and it is a brand new shiny arena that none of us can get into.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_03: I'm Sean McAllister.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm Dana Roselli.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we are super excited that Allegiant Stadium is done.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_01: 993 days of work, Sean.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_01: I know they still have to do stuff on the inside and decorate and put in all the stuff, but the outside structure is complete.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, we've been watching this thing uh rise up from the desert floor.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, this was just a a big dirt area right at uh right alongside of the the I-15, right next to the highway.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_03: And we've been watching as they dug a giant hole in the ground, and this arena has just built up out of it.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_03: And uh Allegiant Stadium is uh the name of our uh new arena, uh stadium, I guess.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and it uh it it's gotten some unique nicknames along the way, too.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_03: A lot of people saying that it like looks like a Darth Vader spaceship or something.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_01: I know, but I must say I did drive by it at night the other day, and I was like, wow, it it looks cool.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_01: I'm okay with it, you know?
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_01: And I love that area um that's kind of like all glass, and that's it's almost gonna look like it's open, but and apparently when you're sitting inside, you'll be able to see the whole Las Vegas strip out there.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, and uh there is at one end of the arena, the north end of um the stadium, there is this big glass wall that has the ability to open up.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_03: It's these giant glass panels that are on this rolling track and it can open up and it gives fans inside a direct look out at the Las Vegas Strip, which is really cool.
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_03: And yeah, while the majority of the construction is complete, there's still uh about the the Raiders uh say that there is about$1.4 million of work left to do on the inside, but that's just finishing.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_03: That's like finishing the painting, moving in furniture, getting all the plates and glasses in for the bars and concession stands and restaurants.
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_03: So it's like the little finishing touches, probably moving in the locker room equipment, all that kind of stuff.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_03: But the bulk of the work is done.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that's it's so great.
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_01: And for folks that are listening, just in case you don't know, because I know we have lots of folks that listen from outside of the United States, it's where the Las Vegas Raiders will play at Allegiant Stadium.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_01: So will our college here, UNLV football will play there.
• 3:33
  SPEAKER_01: And then it's gonna host a bunch of different kinds of concerts and award shows and all that stuff.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_01: But we haven't quite gotten there yet.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_01: The first one that was supposed to happen was Garth Brooks on August 22nd.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_01: We were super excited about it.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_01: He sold out in like record time, right, Sean?
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_01: Wasn't it like Yeah, it was like an hour or I don't know, something like that.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_03: Within a couple hours for sure, yeah.
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_03: Um, so yeah, Garth Brooks had this sold-out show that he was planning to put on to open uh the arena.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_03: It was supposed to come up at the end of August here, so it was coming up later this month.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_03: And uh obviously with the whole COVID-19 shutdown and the inability to have uh in-person shows of any size, let alone packing a stadium uh full of people for a sold-out concert, that's not happening.
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_03: So and Garth Brooks uh just held a news conference to specifically address uh having to cancel the show here in Las Vegas that would have opened Allegiant Stadium.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_00: When people go, What's the first show that was ever in the stadium?
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_00: You want them to go Garth Brooks, you know, and that's what you want.
• 4:44
  SPEAKER_00: But now the first show's gonna be somebody else because the scheduling now gets kicked back.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_00: And uh so that, you know, that that's that's an ego thing, but I'll always remind people we were the first, you know, whether we are or not.
• 4:58
  SPEAKER_00: And then so it's it's like um it's like the Billboard Awards with the Icon Award.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_00: That's the we were named for the icon award.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_00: So whether they have that show or not, they're not gonna take that away from me.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_00: So whether we're the first show in Vegas or not, it's still the same thing.
• 5:15
  SPEAKER_00: After 20 years of that stadium being there, you're going in there wanting to be the best show that's been in that stadium, and that's what we'll do.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: And hopefully that's what other artists are doing, is they're coming to bring in their A game, and they're gonna try and blow that stadium apart.
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_00: And uh so if you're first, if you're ninth, if you're 20th, just be the best show in that stadium.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_00: So that that's the consolation that we'll take in there.
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_00: And then just remember, man, you're getting to play in a freaking stadium in Vegas.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_00: So you know, you can bitch all day about moving it and all that stuff, but really what are you bitching about, man?
• 5:54
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's gonna be the coolest gig on the planet.
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_00: And anybody who has seen that stadium, either from the air or from the road, that may be one of the coolest looking structures in this country.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_00: Because I mean we've been to every stadium, uh, you know, thank God that there is.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_00: And that thing, when you pass it, it's just like, oh, I want to play that thing because it looks awesome.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_01: Now he canceled August 22nd, but he has rescheduled and he's pushed it to February 27th.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_01: So he's still gonna have the concert.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_01: Hopefully it won't get pushed again, but now that's the next date.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_01: So I guess if he had tickets they could transfer and all that kind of thing.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_01: But um fun hearing him talk about it.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_01: And I love that he says, you know what, no matter what, I'll be the first.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_03: I know.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_03: And you know what?
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_03: Really, in the record books, he is going to be the first sellout entertainer at Allegiance Stadium.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_03: You know, the show won't be able to happen until February 2021, but you know, on the record books, he sold out his show in 2020.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_03: So you gotta give that to him, right?
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_01: It's true, and I think that you know, even and when he has this show, it's gonna be, you know, even a bigger celebration now because it's like, okay, we had to wait, we've all been through it this year, but now let's let's celebrate, let's party, let's let's do the show and let's do it right.
• 7:03
  SPEAKER_01: So look forward to it.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I don't have a ticket, but I'll be watching from social media.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, no kidding.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_03: We both will.
• 7:12
  SPEAKER_03: How about that?
• 7:12
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we both seen Garth though in his small theater, and we both said a really, really good, good show that he had there at the Win and Encore.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, saw him in uh over there at Win and Encore, and also saw him when he played in Las Vegas with his wife Trisha Yearwood over at T-Mobile Arena, and that was a rockin' concert.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_03: Let me tell you, people were into it.
• 7:32
  SPEAKER_01: He is, he's great.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_01: Uh uh really, that's gonna be an amazing show.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_01: So we're sorry that Garth has to push his show.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_01: We're bum that we kind of thought, well, maybe because everyone was wondering, like, well, it's almost August.
• 7:42
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe he's not gonna cancel.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_01: You know, obviously, um, there's a lot of things that factor into it and the time that we're in and everything like that.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_01: So it just had to be done.
• 7:49
  SPEAKER_01: So anyway, we will we will welcome Garth back uh here to Las Vegas on February 27th.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_01: Another big event happened uh last night.
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_01: We're recording this on a Friday.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_01: So Thursday night, the Golden Knights played, and I know you were super pumped, uh Sean, trying to find a place to watch it.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, uh I ended up, we we ended up watching at home.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_03: We we made our our game day food and sat down, watched the the game uh here in our our living room.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_03: But yeah, professional sports, they are back.
• 8:20
  SPEAKER_03: The National Hockey League uh going into the Stanley Cup playoffs, and our Las Vegas professional hockey team, the Vegas Golden Knights, they're back on the ice.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_03: Their their first round robin game uh was against uh the Arizona Coyotes, and we won the game.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_03: Woohoo! Love it.
• 8:39
  SPEAKER_03: We were having lots of celebrations uh here inside of our house.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_03: Our little dog Sawyer, little golden doodle, he was getting excited and joining in, jumping around every time that uh a goal was scored.
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_03: But it's just exciting to have live sports happening again.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_03: A little weird to watch without fans, but nonetheless, the sport's happening.
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it was a little weird to see it empty, but you know what?
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_01: It it is what it is, and baby steps will take it.
• 9:06
  SPEAKER_03: That's right.
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_03: So the uh Vegas Golden Knights, we have a couple more round robin games to play, and then it's uh straight into Stanley Cup playoffs.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_03: Official uh play is already underway for the first round, so it's it's gonna be good to see.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I'm hearing a lot of sports commentators say that they're they're calling the Golden Knights, you know, the winners of the they think we're gonna we're gonna take it all the way, and man, we could use it.
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_01: We could use the boost.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_03: Well, we've been to the playoffs every single year that the team has been in existence.
• 9:39
  SPEAKER_03: So, you know, the the team has been very thoughtfully put together.
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_03: It's very well coached.
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_03: So fingers crossed, let's hope our guys can bring the cup down here to the Las Vegas Strip.
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, okay.
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_01: I hope so.
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_01: I hope so.
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_01: Well, listen, coming up, we have a lot to do off the strip as well.
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_01: If you come to visit us here in Las Vegas, and we're gonna talk with the LVCVA about options and also get an update on a bunch of new projects.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_01: The new convention center, the Elon Musk Loop, also Resorts World.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_01: Stay with us.
• 10:11
  SPEAKER_03: Thanks for listening to Vegas Revealed.
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_03: As always, we appreciate you and we want to hear from you too.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_01: That's right.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_01: We have a lot of ways that we can hear from you.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_01: And one of them is going to our website, Vegas-Revealed.com.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_01: There we've got video clips, we have articles, also all our podcasts are listed.
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_01: But we also have an email there that you can just click on.
• 10:31
  SPEAKER_01: It's called ideas at vegashreve.com.
• 10:34
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• 10:37
  SPEAKER_01: We want to hear from you.
• 10:39
  SPEAKER_01: But we also love the reviews, Sean, that's for sure.
• 10:41
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• 10:42
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• 10:54
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• 10:56
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• 11:00
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• 11:04
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• 11:05
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• 11:06
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• 11:08
  SPEAKER_01: Also, again, check out our website, Vegas-revealed.com.
• 11:16
  SPEAKER_01: Welcome back to Vegas Revealed.
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_01: And you know what?
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_01: During these times, uh, we realize there is a lot to do in Vegas.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_01: We've always kind of known that, but I think a lot of people are exploring more and more during these times when we have the stay at home and we have limited things to do.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_01: And we're excited to have with us today the VP of Marketing for the LVC VA, Fletch Brunel, to join us and talk about some of those things we can do outdoors.
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_01: Hey, Fletch.
• 11:41
  SPEAKER_02: Hi, how are you doing, Dana?
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_01: Good.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_02: Some of the things we can do outdoors would be to bring your dogs with you because they like to bark during conversations.
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_01: That's okay.
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_01: This is what these are the times that we live in now, Fletch.
• 11:54
  SPEAKER_01: This is what we got to do.
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
• 11:56
  SPEAKER_03: And Las Vegas has never been more pet friendly than it is today either.
• 12:01
  SPEAKER_03: But I looking at uh this new campaign that you have going on at the LVC VA, from neon to nature, really this explores everything that there is to do here in southern Nevada.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_03: And there's a ton that people don't realize.
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
• 12:18
  SPEAKER_02: So I'm a native of Las Vegas.
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_02: So I was born and raised here, and there were 200,000 people here when I was a kid.
• 12:24
  SPEAKER_02: And as you know, we're at 2.2, 2.3 million that are in the Las Vegas Valley.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_02: And at the end of the day, there are so many great things.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_02: So Las Vegas has always been known for the uh allure of all the experiences with world-class resorts, expensive culinary options, uh, quick and easy escape uh that we offer, and and they they love all of the amenities, but some don't understand or realize that there are things that uh are great to see that are nearby, like uh Red Rock Canyon, so Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, unbelievable hiking.
• 12:55
  SPEAKER_02: Obviously, it's a little warm today at noon, one, two o'clock in the afternoon, but in the morning it's beautiful up there, and it's actually very cool.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_02: And uh I know that when uh they will allow for social gatherings again uh out at Spring Mountain Park, they actually have plays and you can go out there and picnic, and by eight o'clock at night it's cold and you need a blanket, so it's really beautiful out there.
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_02: You can also hike at the Valley of Uh Fire uh State Park as well.
• 13:20
  SPEAKER_02: So another gorgeous place that's outdoors uh that you can visit.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_02: So uh aside from that, I could rattle off the list, but I'll pause for a moment for any any questions.
• 13:29
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, well, what I was gonna say is I've noticed a lot of people too at Lake Las Vegas doing like the paddle boarding and that kind of thing, more than I've seen in the past.
• 13:38
  SPEAKER_01: And people are just really, I think, taking in so many different things that maybe we we didn't do all the time, or even visitors coming didn't think of before.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_01: And and I think that's a good thing.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, absolutely.
• 13:49
  SPEAKER_02: Uh the Lake Las Vegas, I know it's a 40,000 square feet floating aqua park out there.
• 13:54
  SPEAKER_02: So uh it's an unbelievable uh place to go, uh inflatable obstacle course, uh slide swings that are right in the water.
• 14:01
  SPEAKER_02: Uh and the water sports complex offers stand-up, like you mentioned, paddleboarding, uh flyboard experiences, kayaking, etc.
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_02: So uh for those that are really uh into those types of activities, uh just a great time out there.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_03: And you know, kayaking is one of the things that I was recently looking into for my own recreation as you know, we find ourselves in these times, and especially as we find ourselves in this heat, I was like, okay, let's get out to the water, let's find something to do.
• 14:30
  SPEAKER_03: And and I thought it was interesting that a lot of the kayaking uh companies offer some nighttime options.
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_03: You can do moonlight paddles.
• 14:40
  SPEAKER_02: Wow.
• 14:41
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, beautiful when you're out in the evening in the in the desert uh southwest.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, we all know that it does start to cool down when you're out in the middle of the desert uh late in the evenings, and being able to do that is just a fantastic experience.
• 14:55
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and then there's always Mount Turlsen, which some people I think that that don't live here don't realize it, you know, it's not that far away.
• 15:02
  SPEAKER_01: And when you go up there even in the middle of the day, it's a lot cooler and it's beautiful.
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, absolutely.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_02: The uh you're up in the elevation, uh, it's gonna be anywhere from 20 to 25 degrees cooler.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_02: So getting up there to hike or to picnic or just enjoy the outdoors, uh it's a it's a very, very uh nice environment.
• 15:19
  SPEAKER_02: And you gotta love the trees because you go from the desert and then you're up in the natural wonders of the trees, which is really a nice thing to be able to do in the summertime.
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_03: And and do you think that a lot of Las Vegas visitors uh are surprised to learn about all the activity that there is when once you take a few minutes to step off of the Las Vegas strip?
• 15:41
  SPEAKER_02: Sure.
• 15:41
  SPEAKER_02: I I think that the domestic uh visitors to Las Vegas are uh always surprised at those things.
• 15:47
  SPEAKER_02: We know that our international uh visitors, although they're not coming this year.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_02: Uh we look forward to welcoming them back when the borders reopen.
• 15:55
  SPEAKER_02: But they typically are the ones that would come out here in the summertime and go and explore all of the great wonders, whether or not it is, as we've mentioned, Red Rock or Valley of Fire or Lake Mead or the Hoover Dam, but also out uh in Scion, uh which is uh just uh north of us in Utah.
• 16:11
  SPEAKER_02: Uh just some beautiful places outdoors.
• 16:14
  SPEAKER_02: And now I think what people are finding is they're uh reimagining what their summer vacations could be, and you'll see a lot more RV rentals of people doing things outdoors.
• 16:23
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know if you've been on the freeways recently, but I see a lot of RVs out there driving.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I know.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_01: There's definitely a lot.
• 16:29
  SPEAKER_01: You know, and a lot of people, you know, we're known.
• 16:32
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, there's the dog.
• 16:34
  SPEAKER_01: What's your dog's name?
• 16:36
  SPEAKER_02: So uh that's Maggie, who's very loud.
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_02: She's a she's a Karen Terrier, uh, so that would be a Toto dog.
• 16:42
  SPEAKER_02: And then I have two Yorkies, uh Sophie and Rocco.
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_02: So they're very, very uh boisterous.
• 16:47
  SPEAKER_02: And when the neighbors get their yards done, they become very loud.
• 16:50
  SPEAKER_03: Well, thanks for joining the conversation, Maggie.
• 16:52
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, yeah.
• 16:53
  SPEAKER_03: There you go.
• 16:54
  SPEAKER_01: There you go.
• 16:55
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, Vegas obviously known for its glitz, its glamour, entertainment, nightclubs, things like that.
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_01: And I know obviously uh you're you're in the business of of promoting Las Vegas.
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_01: And I feel like um right now uh we all need to do the best we can to point out a lot of these things that are still open, still available.
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_01: And for for people that are listening, we have people that listen from all over the world.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, our a lot of our hotels are open, the pools are open, there's select restaurants open.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_01: So are you encouraging people to come, maybe stay, do a little bit of that, but then maybe take a day to do something outdoors like a trip up to Mount Charleston or all these things that you've mentioned?
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_02: Uh absolutely.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_02: So when you think about the destination uh we've got in terms of resorts, uh we've got 150,000 hotel rooms in Las Vegas, but at this moment, what's open are about 127,000.
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_02: But I can tell you that although that sounds like a big number, we're making sure, at least at the property level, they're making decisions to not have as many people or not have as many rooms occupied intentionally, so there's enough room for social distancing and also to enjoy amenities.
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_02: So if they've got a pool area that is X size and they know they can only accommodate so many hundreds of people, they don't want to sell too many rooms and then have people not be able to experience that.
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_02: So it's a more intimate experience in Las Vegas now.
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_02: You're able to actually go and make reservations in some cases at pools.
• 18:15
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, they encourage reservations at restaurants so that you can get your time at your table that you would like and make sure that you've got again that appropriate amount of distancing so that you can stay safe and healthy in that Las Vegas environment.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_02: So uh thankfully, when you take a look at the property's websites, you can go there and they've got the list of all the amenities that they've got open uh at this time, and they they will tell you what the hours of operations are and what the processes are.
• 18:40
  SPEAKER_02: So uh really got some great deals right now in Las Vegas.
• 18:44
  SPEAKER_02: So when you think about the midweek and weekend rates, midweeks have always been uh one of the uh more economic times to come in, and I would say it's even more so now, and you have more room to spread out, if you will, in terms of having less people around during that midweek period to go see things that perhaps you didn't get a chance to see before.
• 19:02
  SPEAKER_02: Uh right now for us, we have a campaign called Vegas Smart.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_02: We had launched it when the destination reopened in June, and it really talks about that when you come to the destination, we welcome you to come back, but we want to ensure we emphasize health and well-being and that people are washing their hands, wearing a mask, and uh, and and socially distant were unnecessary.
• 19:26
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 19:27
  SPEAKER_03: I know, and uh I had uh recently flown back from uh the northern part of the state.
• 19:34
  SPEAKER_03: I was up at Lake Tahoe and flew back into the uh McCarran airport and saw all that signage.
• 19:40
  SPEAKER_03: So that messaging is definitely getting out.
• 19:42
  SPEAKER_03: Uh the second that people step off the plane and and it's there to greet them and welcome them and remind them that uh this is a good time to keep safety top of mind while they're having fun.
• 19:55
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
• 19:56
  SPEAKER_02: And and when you think about coming to the destination, you mentioned that you had flown recently.
• 20:00
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, we're actually seeing that McCarran International Airport, in terms of number of passengers coming through, uh, we are recovering uh faster than most other uh airports in the U.S.
• 20:13
  SPEAKER_02: I want to say the uh number one, number two, and number three include uh Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Denver.
• 20:19
  SPEAKER_02: When you take a look at those groupings in terms of recovery.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_02: And it really shows that in terms of leisure destinations that people want to get back to, uh, where people are able to go and do things that, to your point, in terms of outdoors, whether or not it's some of the activities we talked about, or frankly, golfing as well, because there's great golfing in the Las Vegas Valley as well.
• 20:38
  SPEAKER_01: It's true.
• 20:38
  SPEAKER_01: There's still plenty, plenty to do, and we hope everyone will come here and enjoy it, that's for sure.
• 20:44
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I live right near the convention center, so I wanted to talk to you a little bit about the construction of the new convention center.
• 20:50
  SPEAKER_01: Boy, so much project uh progress.
• 20:52
  SPEAKER_01: I've noticed that that bridge go up that kind of goes right over paradise.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_01: And obviously, this is also a difficult time when it comes to conventions.
• 20:59
  SPEAKER_01: We've had a lot of them them cancel and we hope they'll return the following year.
• 21:03
  SPEAKER_01: But how is the progress there?
• 21:04
  SPEAKER_01: Is that going to continue to complete and and finish up and be ready for a great 2021?
• 21:11
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
• 21:12
  SPEAKER_02: So the convention center expansion uh for the West Hall is a 900 million, excuse me,$980 million expansion, uh adds another 1.4 million square feet to our existing 3.2 million square feet on our campus.
• 21:25
  SPEAKER_02: It will be done on time.
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, we know that yesterday uh CTA, which uh owns and operates CES, uh, actually did announce that they were going virtual for 2020.
• 21:37
  SPEAKER_02: Uh one, for us, we recognize that uh they needed to make a decision uh to go virtual this January because of the unknowns.
• 21:45
  SPEAKER_02: And and the most important thing for us is the health and well being of customers, clients, and guests.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_02: So uh we understand, and as a longstanding partner, they've been coming and doing business in Las Vegas for 40 plus years.
• 21:57
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, we are looking forward to hosting them in 2022.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_02: That aside, we will have our expansion done on time for January of next year.
• 22:06
  SPEAKER_02: In conjunction with that, we've got the new Convention Center Loop, which is an Elon Musk initiative.
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_02: And we will be able to transport people, convention attendees, back and forth on our 200-acre campus in under two minutes, free of charge in all electric Tesla vehicles.
• 22:23
  SPEAKER_02: So that's intriguing.
• 22:24
  SPEAKER_02: And the other component to this is if you read in the past couple of weeks that Resorts World as well as Wynn have contracted with or in the process of contracting with Elon Musk's loop company to bring a direct transfer from the convention center, so point-to-point from us to them.
• 22:43
  SPEAKER_02: And hopefully that is something that we believe will be viable in terms of transportation for the entire destination as we move on in the future years.
• 22:53
  SPEAKER_03: And obviously, uh due to the restrictions that are in place and the health and safety that needs to be taken into account right now before there's a vaccine available, we are kind of in a slower time of being able to get back to what we know is normal.
• 23:16
  SPEAKER_03: Once we get the green light, once that vaccine is out there, once people are able to move around, do what they want, and be able to do it without the worry of those health concerns.
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_03: Do you see Las Vegas just skyrocketing back to where we were?
• 23:35
  SPEAKER_02: I would say that if I made a prediction today in an hour, it would be wrong.
• 23:41
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 23:43
  SPEAKER_02: When you think about how dynamic the environment is and how quickly uh things change, uh I would say number one, when you look at our destination, we've always been very resilient.
• 23:53
  SPEAKER_02: Uh we have core fans that will continue to come here, and that's the group that's here today.
• 23:58
  SPEAKER_02: Uh the Vegas enthusiasts, uh knowing that yes, there are some risks to travel right now, as there are at any time, they still want to come and enjoy and do things in the destination they love.
• 24:10
  SPEAKER_02: So to that end, once we start to have other amenities open, like entertainment, like the great new Allegiance Stadium that's going to be opening, that's a$2 billion investment that not only will the Las Vegas Raiders play in, but we're planning on bringing in world-class international sports as well, whether or not that be football, also known as soccer, or great concerts or other things that we're doing uh in that stadium, will end up really helping us catapult in terms of becoming uh further to the sports capital of the world.
• 24:38
  SPEAKER_02: So uh to your question, it would be we have all the right infrastructure and investment that continue through the uh COVID uh crisis.
• 24:46
  SPEAKER_02: And once things are uh we're through uh with what the health crisis is, Las Vegas is well prepared and positioned uh to capitalize so that uh people can come back to the destination in the fashion that they love so much.
• 25:00
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and it's exciting to talk about the even the future and the things that we do have coming when when you talk about the the new hotels and the loop.
• 25:07
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it's it's just so encouraging to talk about those things.
• 25:10
  SPEAKER_01: And uh and like you had mentioned um uh a little bit there, um, as far as you know, people coming back.
• 25:17
  SPEAKER_01: I was thinking when Las Vegas kind of reopened the first time in June, I did feel like everyone was ready to get back.
• 25:24
  SPEAKER_01: And we had kind of a busy town, busy, as busy as we could be that first weekend or two.
• 25:29
  SPEAKER_01: And and then things you know scaled back a little bit as there were quarantines put in place and and people had to do the 14 day if they were coming in from somewhere else.
• 25:36
  SPEAKER_01: But I feel like that was encouraging, knowing the Vegas enthusiasts, like you said, and a lot of our friends in California and Arizona were driving in to get to get out because they're ready to have some fun again.
• 25:48
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
• 25:49
  SPEAKER_02: And I think as we take a look, the numbers, what we've seen in terms of our drive markets, we do monitor the the auto traffic on I-15 and I-11 uh from California and Arizona respectively.
• 26:00
  SPEAKER_02: And in general terms, we're literally at about 80% of what the volume was last year's same month in the month of July.
• 26:07
  SPEAKER_02: So we've seen things stabilize there.
• 26:09
  SPEAKER_02: Uh July 4th weekend, we actually on one day were about even near to year.
• 26:13
  SPEAKER_02: So because it was a holiday weekend, obviously there was a lot more demand.
• 26:17
  SPEAKER_02: Uh and when we look at uh at Arizona, it's about 70% recovered uh in terms of year over year.
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_02: Uh on the airport side, uh, yesterday McCarran uh released the numbers for the month of June.
• 26:28
  SPEAKER_02: They had just over a million passengers that went through McCarran.
• 26:31
  SPEAKER_02: And normally in a normal month of June, June of last year, uh they had just over 4.4 million people.
• 26:38
  SPEAKER_02: So you can see that that's at about a quarter of what it was.
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_02: But those drive markets, to your point, those people that really uh are yearning to get back to their Las Vegas are hopping in their cars first and coming to the to the destination.
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_02: So uh at least for us, that's very good news in terms of those Vegas enthusiasts and and the properties that create the value for those folks to come in and enjoy what it is and get out of their homes that they're quarantined in and come in and relax and have a normal experience or whatever the new normal is, at least right now, uh, while COVID's going on.
• 27:11
  SPEAKER_03: And don't you think that our hospitality industry here in Las Vegas, not only the hotels, but uh the dining and everything that that goes along with the industry has done a great job in putting measures in place to make sure that people are as safe as they can be when they come here?
• 27:30
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, they have.
• 27:32
  SPEAKER_02: Uh when the properties reopen in June, they put the right protocols in place.
• 27:36
  SPEAKER_02: But we did recognize that there were people that came to visit that did not want to wear a mask.
• 27:40
  SPEAKER_02: So unfortunately, or fortunately, the governor made the decision on the 26th of June to have a mask mandate.
• 27:47
  SPEAKER_02: Uh and as I mentioned, uh we've got our campaign with Vegas Smart.
• 27:51
  SPEAKER_02: We had a little bit of fun with masks, and then you can come in and still have fun wearing a mask uh when you're in Las Vegas.
• 27:57
  SPEAKER_02: So uh we're actually right now creating branded masks that have some very fun sayings on them.
• 28:02
  SPEAKER_02: So more ad.
• 28:04
  SPEAKER_02: We'll let you know when they're for sale.
• 28:05
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, but we are taking a look at a couple of retail opportunities with some pretty fun Las Vegas masks.
• 28:10
  SPEAKER_01: Hey, we'll support those.
• 28:12
  SPEAKER_01: You guys are the best at slogan.
• 28:13
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, we have like literally the slogan that everyone knows, you know.
• 28:17
  SPEAKER_01: Whenever you come up with something, it's always great.
• 28:19
  SPEAKER_01: So we look forward to that.
• 28:20
  SPEAKER_01: Any other tips or intel you want to share with us?
• 28:23
  SPEAKER_01: Anything else going out?
• 28:24
  SPEAKER_01: We have people, we we have some hardcore uh listeners from all around the country, and they do actually uh like direct message us and email us and say, we love listening to the podcast, and we cannot wait to get back.
• 28:34
  SPEAKER_01: They're just like they're dying.
• 28:37
  SPEAKER_02: So the answer would be right now, your mid midweek is going to be your the best value.
• 28:42
  SPEAKER_02: If you're taking a look at coming to southern Nevada in general, uh when you look at whether or not it's mesquite or Laughlin, uh great values there.
• 28:50
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, they've got Mesquite Smart and Laughlin Smart campaigns there too, so that people are doing the right thing.
• 28:56
  SPEAKER_02: So uh a lot of different opportunities to travel to southern Nevada, and uh we're ready to welcome people when they're comfortable and they're and they want to come back to Las Vegas.
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_03: So a reminder that when you do come back here to Las Vegas or to Southern Nevada, there is a lot of nature outside of the neon on the Las Vegas Strip.
• 29:14
  SPEAKER_03: Fletch Brunel from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
• 29:17
  SPEAKER_03: Thanks so much.
• 29:18
  SPEAKER_03: We appreciate it.
• 29:19
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you, Sean.
• 29:19
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you, Dana.
• 29:20
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, it was great talking to you.
• 29:22
  SPEAKER_01: And I just want to point out it's visit losvegas.com for a lot of information about Las Vegas.
• 29:27
  SPEAKER_01: And then if you do a backslash Vegas Smart, you can find out more about the Vegas Smart camp campaign.
• 29:33
  SPEAKER_01: And if you're tweeting or Instagramming, use the hashtag VegasSmart as well.
• 29:38
  SPEAKER_01: Thanks so much, Fletch.
• 29:39
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
• 29:40
  SPEAKER_01: Bye-bye.
• 29:40
  SPEAKER_01: Stay with us, Vegas Revealed is back after this.
• 29:43
  SPEAKER_04: Let's go.
• 29:48
  SPEAKER_01: It's time for Dana and Sean's tips.
• 29:50
  SPEAKER_01: And Sean, I know you wanted to expand a little bit more on the kayaking because we were talking about it earlier in our interview with Fletch that you know people are loving some of the stuff that incorporates, you know, the outdoors, but a little bit of water to cool off too.
• 30:04
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, so I kind of jumped the gun on my my tip for the week.
• 30:08
  SPEAKER_03: But there are uh some kayaking trips that that you can take uh out onto Lake Mead and um on the Colorado River that are moonlight kayak trips.
• 30:21
  SPEAKER_03: So you set out at night and I think you you pack a little lunch.
• 30:26
  SPEAKER_03: And I mean, what better way to take in the the desert sky than to do it uh under moonlight and to be able to see the stars?
• 30:36
  SPEAKER_03: You're out away from the bright lights of the Las Vegas strip, you're on the water, paddling, like what a serene experience that would be.
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_03: I'm actually um looking into looking into doing it, as I said earlier, because I just think that it sounds like such a cool experience, but you beat the heat of the of the summer sun, and you still get outside, you still get the activity, um, and there's not a ton right, especially right now, that you can do at night.
• 31:11
  SPEAKER_03: So, you know, hop in a kayak and and paddle.
• 31:14
  SPEAKER_01: So I have a question, like, because I've never kayaked.
• 31:16
  SPEAKER_01: I'm not I'm not a huge outdoorsy person.
• 31:19
  SPEAKER_01: When you talk about night, and I think about creepy crawly things and all that kind of stuff.
• 31:25
  SPEAKER_01: But no, kayaking, now do you have to have experience kayaking to kayak, or is it pretty simple?
• 31:30
  SPEAKER_01: Like you get in, you do the paddles, and you figure it out.
• 31:33
  SPEAKER_03: It's not really that hard.
• 31:35
  SPEAKER_03: And I mean, unless you uh make a deliberate attempt to fall out, like they're pretty stable too.
• 31:44
  SPEAKER_03: Like once you're in there, you you know, especially your first time, you might wobble around a little bit, but you just engage your core, you sit up, and you know, once you get paddling, you get into a rhythm, and and it you're good to go.
• 31:59
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, got it.
• 32:00
  SPEAKER_01: I think I could do it.
• 32:01
  SPEAKER_01: As long as you go, obviously, you should always go with another person.
• 32:03
  SPEAKER_01: You have to go with two people, right?
• 32:04
  SPEAKER_01: Anyway, in the top.
• 32:05
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, absolutely.
• 32:06
  SPEAKER_03: And these are guided tours too.
• 32:07
  SPEAKER_03: So you have professionals going out with you, which I wouldn't go out on my own.
• 32:12
  SPEAKER_03: Okay, that's what I was picturing.
• 32:13
  SPEAKER_03: No, no, no.
• 32:14
  SPEAKER_03: These are all tours.
• 32:15
  SPEAKER_03: So you're with a group, you have a tour guide, so it it's uh it's all good.
• 32:19
  SPEAKER_03: Safety precautions are all taken, everyone in a life vest.
• 32:22
  SPEAKER_03: So yeah.
• 32:23
  SPEAKER_01: Good.
• 32:24
  SPEAKER_01: That makes sense.
• 32:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, definitely.
• 32:25
  SPEAKER_01: Sounds really cool and beautiful, like you said.
• 32:27
  SPEAKER_01: Something different.
• 32:28
  SPEAKER_01: I think a lot of people are using this time to do something different.
• 32:31
  SPEAKER_01: So this might be a first for you, but it could be a first and and something that you'll continue to do.
• 32:36
  SPEAKER_01: Um, my tip is an is a new book that's out.
• 32:38
  SPEAKER_01: How about that?
• 32:39
  SPEAKER_01: We talk a lot about what what we watch and and all that kind of thing.
• 32:42
  SPEAKER_01: But a mutual friend of ours has a book out, and it's actually um someone that I worked with here in Las Vegas at uh Channel 8, the CBS affiliate here.
• 32:50
  SPEAKER_01: It's named Byron Lane, and he wrote a book called A Star Is Bored.
• 32:56
  SPEAKER_01: Get it?
• 32:57
  SPEAKER_03: B-O-R-E-D.
• 32:59
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 33:00
  SPEAKER_01: Um, Byron was a personal assistant to Carrie Fisher, the late Carrie Fisher who played Princess Leia.
• 33:06
  SPEAKER_01: Um, huge following.
• 33:08
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, a lot a lot of us like didn't even really, he never really talked about it, right?
• 33:12
  SPEAKER_01: It was a private moment in his life.
• 33:14
  SPEAKER_01: It was a job that he had, and and you know, working for a big celebrity and that kind of thing.
• 33:19
  SPEAKER_01: You keep things quiet.
• 33:20
  SPEAKER_01: But but now he's written this book, which is like getting huge reviews all over.
• 33:25
  SPEAKER_01: It's finally released, and you can now purchase it.
• 33:28
  SPEAKER_01: And it's kind of about his experience as her personal assistant.
• 33:32
  SPEAKER_01: The laughs, the ups, the downs, you know, the difficult parts.
• 33:36
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I've just ordered it, so I haven't read it yet, but the reviews seem to be incredible.
• 33:40
  SPEAKER_01: I'm so happy for him.
• 33:41
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I mean, and and Byron has been getting write-ups all over the place about his new book.
• 33:48
  SPEAKER_03: Again, it's called A Star Is Bored.
• 33:51
  SPEAKER_03: Uh, there have been write-ups uh in publications, everything from the New York Times to just this past week.
• 33:58
  SPEAKER_03: There was a big write-up in the life section of USA Today that actually had some screen time on the Today show last week.
• 34:07
  SPEAKER_03: Hoda Cotby held up the um page of USA Today, and there was the big write-up and Byron's picture right in the center of the page.
• 34:16
  SPEAKER_03: It turned out they were talking about Al Roker's new book.
• 34:19
  SPEAKER_03: But Byron's picture was bigger.
• 34:21
  SPEAKER_03: Byron's picture was bigger, and he had more words.
• 34:25
  SPEAKER_01: That's right.
• 34:26
  SPEAKER_01: Listen, I uh enjoyed my time working with Byron at Channel 8.
• 34:28
  SPEAKER_01: He was the overnight reporter when I was a morning anchor and traffic person uh there.
• 34:33
  SPEAKER_01: Can't remember which I'm trying to think if I was the anchor at the time or in studio traffic.
• 34:37
  SPEAKER_01: But anyway, we worked together on the overnight shift, and and he was a great reporter, uh, left here, moved out to Los Angeles, and and wanted to do something different.
• 34:45
  SPEAKER_01: And and this was an experience that was unforgettable, and he decided to write about it.
• 34:50
  SPEAKER_01: Um, he uses different names in the book, so you know it's kind of a story where you're like, wait, is this real or not real?
• 34:56
  SPEAKER_01: But you know, he said it's a real account, just you know, fictional characters, I guess, in in a way.
• 35:03
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, so big congratulations to Byron on having the book out, on having such great coverage for the book.
• 35:12
  SPEAKER_03: And yeah, I still need to pick up my copy and and sit down and read through it too.
• 35:17
  SPEAKER_03: But I was so excited to see that he's getting uh you know so much coverage and to see his his face on a national morning news show.
• 35:25
  SPEAKER_03: That's so great.
• 35:26
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, uh, we were all up in what Lake Tahoe.
• 35:29
  SPEAKER_01: What was that might be like was that four years ago now?
• 35:32
  SPEAKER_01: For a wedding.
• 35:34
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 35:34
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we had a blast.
• 35:35
  SPEAKER_01: So um, congratulations to Byron.
• 35:38
  SPEAKER_01: A star is board is out now if you're interested in purchasing that.
• 35:42
  SPEAKER_01: So a little bit of everything this uh podcast, Sean.
• 35:45
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, and uh we are working on some great stuff for next week.
• 35:50
  SPEAKER_03: We uh have an international star who will be joining us.
• 35:54
  SPEAKER_03: We'll keep it at that for the time being.
• 35:57
  SPEAKER_03: You'll need to tune back in next week to see who that is.
• 36:00
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, I can't wait.
• 36:01
  SPEAKER_01: It's gonna be a good one.
• 36:02
  SPEAKER_01: Have a great week, everyone.
• 36:04
  SPEAKER_01: It's hot here in Las Vegas, so we're going to take a dip in the pool.
• 36:08
  SPEAKER_01: See you next week.
• 36:09
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, so let's take a holiday.
• 36:16
  SPEAKER_04: The desert sky is cold, but then the eyes will ride.