The Lite Rock Hotel
Hoping to fill the gaping demographic void between hipster hangout Hard Rock Hotel and septuagenarian-saturated Caesar's Palace, the Lite Rock Hotel is the easy-listening way to enjoy Las Vegas. The blackjack dealers dress as lite-rock superstars--Kenny G., John Tesh, Yanni--while the waitresses sport straight, waist-length Judy Collins hairdos and serenade casino-goers with abbreviated, yet heartfelt, renditions of "Send in the Clowns." The luxurious guestrooms are equipped with vintage turntables and the entire musical catalog of The Internet Museum of Flexi / Cardboard / Oddity Records. After an exciting late-afternoon session of nickel slots, retire to the comfort of your twin bed and the blissful sounds of Lawrence Welk or perhaps The Five Americans. Then a cup of warm milk and it's off to sleep!
Dot City
A mega-entertainment mall for the masses, Dot City is a $900-million complex devoted to the fabled Algonquin Round Table writer Dorothy Parker. Inspired by Dot City: Dorothy Parker's New York, an online guide to the sulphurous scribe's various Gotham haunts, Dot City Vegas has it all: dine at the $7.99 Dakota Buffet or clown around at Literary Critic Crash 'Em Up Derby. Is that legendary New Yorker publisher Harold Ross playing the ponies? Could that be the lauded New York Times Drama Critic Aleck Woollcott sucking down a free Corona? If they're witty, alcoholic, from New York, and not alive anymore, you'll find them at Dot City!
Computer History World
Experience the tumultuous history of microprocessor technology at Intel's lavish new personal vacation entertainment environment, Computer History World. From the development of John von Neuman's cathode-tube-powered EDVAC in 1945 to the latest 450-megahertz G3 PowerPC chip, all the relevant landmarks of computing history are presented on the lobby walls with illustrated descriptions, biographical sketches, and pertinent photographs. Fans of The Computer Museum History Center, an extensive online exhibit, will surely appreciate this computer-oriented Las Vegas entertainment node. The Computer History World Lobster Shack also features a delicious jalapeno popper platter.
Surreal-Surreal
Not to be confused with casinos like Circus Circus, New York-New York or the upcoming Pago Pago, Surreal-Surreal offers gamblers a heady mind-expanding trip to the deepest reaches of the human subconscious. Not for the faint of heart, the gaming floor is a stunning juxtaposition of 1920s Paris and an abandoned bicycle factory. Some may find the unusual house rules a little jarring. For example, roll a seven at craps and you win the opportunity to draw a mustache on the croupier's forehead. If you're planning a visit, first consult the ArtScience Research Laboratory web site, a delicious collision of surrealist art and scientific analysis. Explore the world of Marcel Duchamp and his "Readymade" art, and in no time you'll be in Sin City, throwing the bones and calling out "Dada needs a new pair of shoes!"
Doug Henning's Cartographimagical!
Imagine, just for a minute, a world of illusion and mountains, phantasm and valleys, magic and deep gorges. Designed by master magician Doug Henning and the United Nations Cartographers, the hotel is a 1:100 scale of the earth's surface. A sherpa will carry your bags from the lobby to your penthouse suite on the Denali floor, only to disappear in a puff of smoke when you attempt to tip him. Jump on a pack mule and descend to our Grand Canyon Casino, featuring our famous card-trick-performing cocktail waitresses. And enjoy the most scrumptious buffet in Vegas--watch as the world-famous chef produces a rabbit from a hat and then uses three demonstrably sharp swords to prepare a tasty Rabbit Almondine.
Diego Rivera Riviera
This resort-casino combines world-renown muralist Diego Rivera's view on the marriage of the artistic expression in North America with the French Riviera's sexy frivolity. The hotel is crammed with more money, more champagne, more baccarat tables, and more jackpots than anywhere else in the world. In addition to the well-heeled tourists enjoying the tres chic French restaurants, the hotel features a rendering of the Diego Rivera Mural Project. This piece of real American art exhibits the struggles of the disenfranchised North American peoples and food-service-industry employees by blending the art of the Indian, the Mexican, and the Eskimo. Viva la hard eight!
Three! Two! One! Take Off!
How would you like to see a live space shuttle launch? How about one every 30 minutes? At NASA's new space-themed virtual happiness venue, Three! Two! One! Take Off!, 48 fully equipped space shuttles are launched into orbit every day. As part of NASA's Millennium Project, most of these shuttles travel into the solar system to make important scientific discoveries concerning the universe. The other ones shoot up about a mile, do a quick loop-de-loop, then splash down in the hotel's wave pool.