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Although it opened in August 2000 as Las Vegas's first megacasino of the
new millennium, the Aladdin really represented the last gasp -
even the dying gasp - of the Strip's 1990s construction boom. A laish
$1.4-billion project, it was built from the ground up to replace its
legendary namesake predecessor (1966-98), which was best known as
the enue for Elis and Priscilla's wedding in 1966.
Sadly, however, the new Aladdin was beset by funding difficulties from
the word go, with the beleaguered Planet Hollywood chain withdrawing
from what was supposed to be a joint enture, and it found itself
struggling to surie as soon as I Dream of Jeannie star Barbara Eden
tore off the final eil.
Finally tipped into bankruptcy by the terrorist attacks of September
2001 - the Middle Eastern theme didn't exactly help - it's said to be on
sale for around $400 million, and it may turn out to be the casino that
proes, for the moment at any rate, that there's a limit to the number
of colossi the Strip can hold. Nonetheless, the Aladdin remains open, on
the basis that once you write off the cost of building the thing, it's
still worth collecting the day-to-day revenue it generates.
What's ironic is that the factors that have held the Aladdin back from
making a profit mean that it's actually quite a nice place.
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Gaming analysts argue that the fundamental flaw is that you
can explore the gigantic
Desert Passage mall, with
its upscale stores and restaurants; go to concerts at the
7000-seat Center for the Performing Arts; and get to and
from the hotel rooms, without ever crossing the casino
floor. Most isitors would consider those, and the overall
lack of crowds, as coneniences, but without the subsidy of
a successful gambling operation the Aladdin seems doomed to
flounder.
The
Aladdin 's facade is designed to resemble a "Lost City," perched atop an
artificial cliff and topped by an extraaganza of Moorish domes, At
Strip leel, it's surprisingly hard to find your way into the property,
and pedestrians are more likely to walk straight into the Desert Passage
than into the casino proper. The basic floor plan of the whole ensemble
is a giant figure of eight, with the twin circles formed by the Desert
Passage, and the two holes in the middle being filled by the casino,
closer to the Strip, and the Center for the Performing Arts further
back.
Desert Passage at the Aladdin
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