The Venetian Las Vegas is a luxury
hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...
and
casino
A casino is a facility for certain types of gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos are also known for hosting live enterta ...
resort located on the
Las Vegas Strip
The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard South in Clark County, Nevada, that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about long, and is immediately south of the Las Vegas cit ...
in
Paradise, Nevada
Paradise is an unincorporated town and census-designated place (CDP) in Clark County, Nevada, United States, adjacent to the city of Las Vegas. It was formed on December 8, 1950. Its population was 191,238 at the 2020 census, making it the f ...
,
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...
, on the site of the old
Sands Hotel
The Sands Hotel and Casino was a historic American hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Nevada, United States, that operated from 1952 to 1996. Designed by architect Wayne McAllister, with a prominent high sign, the Sands was the seventh ...
. Designed by
KlingStubbins
KlingStubbins was an architectural, engineering, interior, and planning firm headquartered in Philadelphia, with offices in Cambridge, Massachusetts; Raleigh, North Carolina; San Francisco; Washington, D.C.; and Beijing. In 1982, the Fran ...
, the hotel tower contains 36 stories and rises . The Venetian is owned by
Vici Properties and operated by
Apollo Global Management.
The Venetian resort complex includes the adjacent
Palazzo resort and
The Venetian Convention and Expo Center center, as well as the upcoming
MSG Sphere at The Venetian. The Venetian-Palazzo complex includes
the world's second-largest hotel, with 4,049 rooms, 3,068 suites and a casino.;
History
In April 1996,
Sheldon Adelson
Sheldon Gary Adelson (; August 4, 1933 – January 11, 2021) was an American businessman, investor, political donor and philanthropist. He was the founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Las Vegas Sands Corporation, which owns th ...
announced plans to create the largest resort on the Strip. This project would be situated on the former
Sands property. On November 26, 1996, eight years after it was purchased by the owners of The Interface Group—Adelson, Richard Katzeff, Ted Cutler, Irwin Chafetz and Jordan Shapiro, the Sands Hotel was imploded to make way for The Venetian Resort Hotel Casino. Groundbreaking for the hotel began on April 14, 1997.
The resort opened on May 3, 1999, with flutter of white doves, sounding trumpets and singing gondoliers. Actress
Sophia Loren
Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( , ), is an Italian actress. She was named by the American Film Institute as one of the greatest female stars of Classical Hollywood ci ...
joined Adelson, the chairman and owner, in dedicating the first motorized gondola. Built at a cost of $1.5 billion, it was one of the most expensive resorts of its kind when it opened.
On June 27, 2003, the 1,013-room Venezia Tower opened. It was built on top of the garage parking lot.
In 2004, the Venetian agreed to pay a $1 million penalty to settle a 12-count
Gaming Control Board complaint. One of the 12 complaints alleged the hotel had held a
drawing
Drawing is a visual art that uses an instrument to mark paper or another two-dimensional surface. The instruments used to make a drawing are pencils, crayons, pens with inks, brushes with paints, or combinations of these, and in more mod ...
for a
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquarter ...
that was rigged to be won by a
high roller
A high roller, also referred to as a whale or cheetah, is a gambler who consistently wagers large amounts of money. High rollers often receive lavish " comps" from casinos to lure them onto the gambling floors, such as free private jet transfer ...
who had lost a large amount in the casino.
The executives involved were fired.
2007 saw the opening of the sister resort in
Macau
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
,
The Venetian Macao, modeled after the original Las Vegas property.
In 2010, it was announced that it will be affiliated with
InterContinental Hotels Group
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), marketed as IHG Hotels & Resorts, is a British multinational hospitality company headquartered in Denham, Buckinghamshire, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the F ...
.
In October 2011, the Cantor Race & Sportsbook opened, which was the only Las Vegas
sportsbook that was open 24 hours a day. On June 11, 2012, the Venetian opened Carnevale, a summer-long festival that is anchored by a nightly 3-D projection show on the clock tower.
In 2013, the Venetian agreed to pay the U.S. Department of Justice $47.4 million to settle charges over "alleged money laundering activities".
Like other casinos in the state, the Venetian closed indefinitely in March 2020 in response to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...
and
its effects on the state. In April 2020, the Venetian announced plans to incorporate emergency medical personnel and automatic camera-based body temperature scans into its eventual reopening, which occurred on June 4, 2020.
By the end of 2020,
Las Vegas Sands
Las Vegas Sands Corporation is an American casino and resort company with corporate headquarters in Paradise, Nevada, United States. Its corporate mission is to create "Integrated Resorts" which feature a combination of gambling, accommodation ...
wanted to focus on its operations in
Macau
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
, as Asia was expected to recover from the pandemic's impact at a faster rate. The company was in early discussions to sell the Venetian, the
Palazzo
A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...
, and the
Sands Expo. Adelson died in January 2021, and Las Vegas Sands announced two months later that it would sell the three Las Vegas facilities for $6.25 billion. Through the deal,
Vici Properties bought the land under the facilities for $4 billion, and
Apollo Global Management acquired the operations for $2.25 billion as part of a
triple net lease agreement with Vici. The sale was finalized in February 2022. The two hotel properties retained their names, but the Sands Expo was renamed the Venetian Expo.
Design
The hotel uses
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
, as its design inspiration and features architectural replicas of various Venetian landmarks, including the
Palazzo Ducale,
Piazza San Marco
Piazza San Marco (; vec, Piasa San Marco), often known in English as St Mark's Square, is the principal public square of Venice, Italy, where it is generally known just as ''la Piazza'' ("the Square"). All other urban spaces in the city (exc ...
,
Piazzetta di San Marco
Piazza San Marco (; vec, Piasa San Marco), often known in English as St Mark's Square, is the principal public square of Venice, Italy, where it is generally known just as ''la Piazza'' ("the Square"). All other urban spaces in the city (exc ...
, the
Lion of Venice
The Lion of Venice is an ancient bronze sculpture of a winged lion in the Piazza San Marco of Venice, Italy, which came to symbolize the city – as well as one of its patron saints, St Mark – after its arrival there in the 12th century. Th ...
Column and the Column of Saint Theodore,
St Mark's Campanile
St Mark's Campanile ( it, Campanile di San Marco, ) is the bell tower of St Mark's Basilica in Venice, Italy. The current campanile is a reconstruction completed in 1912, the previous tower having collapsed in 1902. At in height, it is the talle ...
, and the
Rialto Bridge
The Rialto Bridge ( it, Ponte di Rialto; vec, Ponte de Rialto) is the oldest of the four bridges spanning the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy. Connecting the ' (districts) of San Marco and San Polo, it has been rebuilt several times since its fi ...
. The logo was designed by Ross Patrick at Maddocks & Company. The design architects for this project were
The Stubbins Associates and WAT&G. Interior design was provided by Wilson Associates and Dougall Associates for the casino.
Attractions
The Venetian includes an indoor shopping mall known as the
Grand Canal Shoppes.
The Venetian Convention and Expo Center serves as the convention center for the Venetian and Palazzo. In October 2001, the
Guggenheim Hermitage Museum opened within the resort, featuring its first collection.
In 2015, the resort's TAO Nightclub generated over $50 million in revenue, according to Nightclub & Bar Top 100. With an Asian-inspired theme, TAO features a 20 foot tall Buddha statue, an
infinity edge pool
An infinity pool, also called an infinity edge pool or a zero edge pool, is a reflecting pool or swimming pool where the water flows over one or more edges, producing a visual effect of water with no boundary. Such pools are often designed so t ...
stocked with
koi, eight private "sky boxes" with mini-bars, a 40-foot-long terrace with views of the Strip, and two dance rooms. TAO Beach, located on top of TAO Nightclub, is the Venetian's day club and pool party. It offers seven
cabanas, each with television, DVD player,
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox series. It competed with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generati ...
, a stocked mini-fridge and a safe for valuables.
The adjacent
MSG Sphere at The Venetian, which is being built in partnership with
The Madison Square Garden Company, will open in 2023.
Entertainers
The Venetian is home to four theaters: The Opaline Theatre, The Palazzo Theatre, The Sands Showroom, and The Venetian Theatre. In October 2005,
Blue Man Group
Blue Man Group is an American performance art company formed in 1987. It was purchased in July 2017 by the Canadian company Cirque du Soleil. Blue Man Group is known for its stage productions, which incorporate many kinds of music and art, b ...
opened at the Blue Man Theatre and continued performing there until September 2012, when the show relocated to the
Monte Carlo resort. On June 24, 2006, the show, ''
Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular,'' opened at a new Paris Opera House styled theatre at The Venetian. The show concluded on September 2, 2012.
Tim McGraw
Samuel Timothy McGraw (born May 1, 1967) is an American country singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He has released 16 studio albums (11 for Curb Records, four for Big Machine Records and one for Arista Nashville). 10 of those albu ...
and
Faith Hill
Audrey Faith McGraw (; born September 21, 1967), known professionally as Faith Hill, is an American singer and actress. She is one of the most successful country music artists of all time, having sold more than 40 million albums worldwide.
Hill ...
headlined their Soul2Soul concert series which began in December 2012 and ended in April 2014.
Gallery
File:The Venetian LV bridge.jpg, The Rialto Bridge at the Venetian
File:Las Vegas (22096749969).jpg, View of the outside Gondola rides from second floor balcony just outside the casino.
File:The Venetian outside.JPG, Another outside view of the front from the balcony, at night.
File:The Venetian Lobby.jpg, This grand gallery connects the reception area and the casino.
File:Grand Canal Shoppes entrance ceiling centerpiece.jpg, The centerpiece of the Grand Canal Shoppes entrance hall ceiling.
File:Las Vegas-5603 (The Venetian).jpg, St. Mark's Square at the Grand Canal Shoppes is surrounded by restaurants and shops. It is also the site of live costumed shows.
File:Lobby of the Venezia at the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino.jpg, This Venezia reception area is located on the 10th floor of the Venetian/Palazzo complex.
File:Campanile Tower and fountain at The Venetian Las Vegas.jpg, St. Mark's Campanile and outdoor fountain at the Venetian
File:The Venetian bridge.jpg, Footbridge at the Venetian facing toward The Strip
File:Gondola ride at The Venetian.jpg, Gondola ride at the Venetian
In popular culture
;Films
*The Venetian's casino, lobby, and exterior were among the filming locations for the 2001 film ''
Rat Race''. The hotel rooms were also portrayed in the film, although these scenes were shot on a
sound stage in Canada.
*The Venetian was a prominent filming location for the 2005 film ''
Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous''.
;Television
*A 2005 episode of ''
Megastructures'', titled "Ultimate Casino", focuses on the resort's design and construction.
*The U.S. TV series ''
What Not to Wear'' shot its series finale at The Venetian and Palazzo in 2013, inviting more than 100 past contributors from the show's 10-year run to participate.
*
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish language, Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the List of United States cities by population, 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the U.S. state, state of Neva ...
season two episode titled "The Count of Montecito" shows Nessa & Freddy on the gondolas as well as exterior shots of The Venetian.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Venetian, The
Architecture of the Las Vegas Valley
Casinos in the Las Vegas Valley
Skyscraper hotels in Paradise, Nevada
Resorts in the Las Vegas Valley
Novelty buildings in Nevada
Las Vegas Strip
Casinos completed in 1999
Hotel buildings completed in 1999
Hotels established in 1999
Casino hotels
1999 establishments in Nevada
Sheldon Adelson
2022 mergers and acquisitions