Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino

Casino infobox
casino=Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
theme=Southeast Asia
address="'3950 Las Vegas Boulevard South
Las Vegas, Nevada 89119"'
logo=MandalayBayLogo.svg
logo_size=200


rooms=3,309
date_opened=March 2, 1999
space_gaming=135,000 ft² (12,541.91 m²)
attractions="Shark Reef"
shows="Mamma Mia!"
restaurants="Aureole"
"Fleur de Lys"
owner=MGM Mirage
casino_type=Land-Based
renovations=2002, 2007
names_pre=Hacienda (imploded to make way for Mandalay Bay)
website= [http://www.mandalaybay.com/ Mandalay Bay]

Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino is a 39-story luxury hotel casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas. It is owned by MGM Mirage. The top five floors (floors 35-39) of the main hotel building are used by the Four Seasons Hotel Las Vegas. [cite web | date = June 9 2006 | url = http://www.fourseasons.com/lasvegas/guest_rooms_and_suites.html | title = Guest rooms and suites | work = Four Seasons Hotel Las Vegas | accessdate = 2006-06-15] It is connected by the free Mandalay Bay Tram to its sister properties, Excalibur and Luxor.

Mandalay Bay has 3,309 hotel rooms and a casino of 135,000 ft² (13,000 m²). The adjacent Mandalay Bay Convention Center has almost one million ft² (93,000 m²) of space. In addition, the Mandalay Bay Events Center hosts events including boxing, the UFC's MMA pay-per-views and concerts.

Attractions

As of August, 2007, "Mamma Mia!" was the long-term stage production at Mandalay Bay. Mandalay Bay features the 11 acre (4.5 ha) Mandalay Beach with three heated pools, a wave pool with connecting pool for small children, a European-style pool and a lazy river that features a small waterfall. The wave pool features 1.6 million gallons of water and waves in 90-second intervals with heights ranging anywhere from two to four feet. Because of this, it has a strict 48" height requirement. The European-style pool called Moorea, features its own private bar as well as the allowance of female guests to bathe topless. Because of this, Moorea is separated from the rest of the pool by smoked glass windows and has an over-21 requirement. There are also two restaurants at the Beach. The pool area is considered among the best in Greater Las Vegas, winning the 2006 Las Vegas Review Journal's Reader's "Best Pool of Las Vegas" award for the 7th year in a row. [cite web | year = 2006 | url = http://www.reviewjournal.com/bestoflv/2006/LongReturns.jsp?bestID=8777&shortList=true | title = Best Pool | work = 2006 Best of Las Vegas survey | publisher = Las Vegas Review Journal | accessdate = 2006-06-15]

In keeping with the resort's tropical theme, it features a saltwater aquarium, the Shark Reef Aquarium, which contains the third largest tank in North America. Shark Reef Aquarium contains numerous other exhibits, including two tunnel-shaped, walk-through aquaria. Another popular attraction is the House of Blues, a venue for live music and a restaurant, with a capacity of approximately 1,800. On the top floor of the hotel is the House of Blues Foundation Room, featuring a dining room, private dining rooms, and a balcony looking down the Las Vegas Strip.

There are 24 restaurants and cafés at the resort. [ [http://www.mandalaybay.com/dining/restaurants.aspx Mandalay Bay dining] ] Michael Mina, Charlie Palmer, Hubert Keller, Wolfgang Puck and Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger (Too Hot Tamales) are all associated with restaurants on the property.

History

On December 31, 1996, the Hacienda was imploded to make way for the Mandalay Bay.

During construction engineers discovered that one side of the tower had sunk about two feet (600 mm) stopping construction. Construction was delayed while a solution was designed and tested. Eventually they were able to add material below the structure to carry the weight. Since then, there have not been any reports of this problem recurring.

The resort opened on March 2, 1999, with actors Dan Aykroyd, Jim Belushi, and John Goodman headlining a parade of Harley-Davidson motorcycles through Mandalay Bay's front doors to celebrate the grand opening.

The convention center was added in January 2003. When it opened, it was ranked as the fifth largest in the United States. It also offered the largest unobstructed ballroom in the country, at 100,000 ft² (9,000 m²).

In 2004 a new 43-story tower was opened with 1,120 suites, called THEhotel at Mandalay Bay. The hotel contains 1,117 one-bedroom suites, each at least convert|750|sqft|m2.

The Las Vegas Review Journal reports that a condo-hotel called THEplace is planned on land across from the hotel belonging to the Luxor.

Film and television history

* "Play It to The Bone" 1999
* "Las Vegas" 2003-2005
* "Rocky Balboa" 2006
* "" 2006-2008 -- From opening credits as a symbol of Las Vegas.
* "Ocean's Thirteen" 2007
* "Yanni Live! The Concert Event" 2006

Musical references

* "The Return of the Spice Girls" by Spice Girls on the 2007 album Greatest Hits
* "Me and My Monkey" by Robbie Williams on the 2002 album Escapology
* "Rap O'Clock" by Plastic Little
* "It's What You Thinkin'" by Tech N9ne on the album Everready (The Religion)
* "Life Vegas" by Felt on the album

See also

* Red Square
* THEhotel at Mandalay Bay
* Mandalay Bay Tram people-mover

References

External links

* [http://www.mandalaybay.com/ Mandalay Bay website] (plays music)
* [http://www.a2zlasvegas.com/hotels/history/h-mandalay.html History of Mandalay Bay]
* [http://www.lasvegas-nevada.com.ar/ Las Vegas guide]
* [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Mandalay+Bay+Resort+and+Casino,+Las+Vegas,+NV&ll=36.091547,-115.175053&spn=0.005137,0.007206&t=k&hl=en Satellite view of the site]