Alan Gruskoff
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Alan Gruskoff
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« on: January 25, 2009, 11:43:10 AM » |
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Here in the L.A. area, they show this clever ad with Steve Wynn on top of the new 63 story Encore hotel, which appears to be a clone of the original Wynn that it sits next to. They show this ad on TV every 10 minutes, so I had to leave town to get away from it. Since the Wynn sent me a complimentary invite to stay at the Encore a few days in January, I certainly took them up on that gracious offer. They are smart about introducing the product by giving it away at first to get the word out.
At first glance there is not too much difference in this Wynn extension. The smaller gaming floor is still quite elegant, with lots of RED. Looking for the Chinese players I suppose. Its a comfortable playing environment. The were two live Craps tables going the afternoon I arrived and was ready to play. A nice group of players, all sitting with $10 on the Pass Line. They bump it to a $15 minimum in the evening, not the $25/$50 minimums like at the Wynn in the evenings. I had some nice games there, no problems at all.
The real prize and value of the Encore are the suites. Like the Rio, the Encore is an All Suite hotel. While the Wynn is super nice, the rooms are the same size as any average hotel. The bedding and features make it a deluxe stay. The Encore takes this a full two notches up the deluxosity scale, as they have added a Den/Office room with a Chaise/sofa. The rooms are floored in beige marble with black and gold trim. Some designers did their best work on the decor, its just jaw-dropping beautiful.
The Wynn has a control panel on the wall to electrically control the drapes and sheer drapes. Nice. At the Encore, there is now a black control center box at bedside that controls the drapes (from your bed) and controls all the lights (from your bed) and offers a Privacy button. In the old days, we placed a cardboard "Do Not Disturb" sign on our door handle. No longer. Now, at the Encore, the room's outside door area has a small display and doorbell, that display shows the room status, like "Privacy" or "Clean Room". The doorbell will not ring if you have set the Privacy button on the control center. Very advanced and very easy to deal with and easy to like. Add to that, they now supply two free half liters of bottled water, instead for the $7 room charge at the Wynn. Sure the morning paper (choose 1 of 3 types), bedside slippers and chocolates will spoil you. I do wish the large HDTV would swivel and be visible in the Den/Office, instead of only in bed. If I want to show a client a DVD or My Craps Game on that screen, I don't expect them to literally hop in bed with me!
In my mind, the Encore has set a new standard for the finest hotel experience.
There is a long shopping hallway that connects the Encore with the original Wynn. Its a bit of a walk, but my favorite restaurants (Red 8, Stratta) and the Sports Book are in the Wynn. If you don't want to pay the $14/day fee for very good WiFi in your room, you can get WiFi service free at the Wynn Terrace Point Cafe which is open extended hours.
The beds are so nice and rooms are so nice, it makes you want to stay in the room or in bed all day. Nah! I gotta hit a live table with real money, honey.
I am looking forward to staying at Wynn or Encore any time in the future.
- Big Al
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