Redesigned Golden Nugget is Fabulous January 31
Tonight I was showing a friend that recently moved to the Las Vegas Valley around town and we ventured downtown for a bit while I was helping him learn the major streets. We decided to go into the Nugget and walk around for a little while. The last time I was in the Golden Nugget they were in the middle of the renovations. I could see work progressing in the pool area and could tell it would be really nice once completed, but the whole place was a mess. I recall it taking twenty minutes just to find a restroom which was hidden upstairs near the buffet.
Today my visit was much different. Walking from the parking garage into the pool area entrance I could tell right away that the makeover was either complete or very nearly so. The new pool area is, to me at least, the centerpiece of the new design. They’ve added multiple decks for lounging above a bar and water slide, which arcs down and through a huge, multi-story saltwater tank full of tropical fish, including various types and sizes of sharks. The shark tank dips down and through the middle of the pool area and at the pool level the slide drops you into the pool itself… which separates itself from the shark tank by some clear material that makes it look like you are swimming with sharks. Awesome! This is something akin to what Landry’s organization did with The Aquarium in downtown Houston, where there is a tunnel you can go through that has fish swimming all around you…. except swimming with and around them is just the ultimate! The rest of the pool area is much more modernized and got a shot of “hip” in the proverbial arm. It should be a great place to hang this Spring and Summer, provided they bring in some good house dj’s and make for a welcoming clubby vibe…
Inside the casino they have made a lot of design changes with new, elegant lighting fixtures and paneling. There’s an area near the craps pit that the ceiling seems to have been “lifted” somehow giving the effect that it was actually taken up several many feet around the entrance to the buffet’s escalator. I couldn’t decide it if was actually higher there or if it was the great lighting design that gave it the effect, but either way it works wonders because of how the older style casinos downtown have always suffered with low-slung ceilings, making them feel a bit too closed-in for comfort. Aside from the overall look that has been greatly improved inside the resort, they’ve added some first rate restaurants from their chain, including The Grotto and Vic and Anthony’s, Landry’s signature steakhouse, as well as a nice bar and lounge called Rush. The new race and sportsbook looked really slick and comfortable and I’m sure will be getting tons of action this coming weekend for the Superbowl.
In all, I have to say the new design and layout gives the venerable Golden Nugget the feeling of all but a new property downtown. I was impressed!