Hyatt set to open Lake Las Vegas Resort

Gary Thompson

Thursday, Dec. 16, 1999 | 10:50 a.m.

Hyatt Hotels Corp. is banking on its world-renowned brand name, a booming economy and the spectacular setting for its newest resort to make the Hyatt Regency Lake Las Vegas a success.

The 496-room, $150 million Moroccan-themed resort opening Friday is the first of several upscale resorts planned for Lake Las Vegas, a $4 billion residential and resort community being developed off Lake Mead Drive in Henderson.

The Hyatt Regency's management team believes the resort can compete against bigger properties in the congested Strip and downtown resort corridors by attracting upscale tourists and incentive-travel business to a scenic locale.

"It's a benefit to be away from the Strip," says Hyatt Regency Marketing Director Robert Purdy. "There's a sense of peace and serenity here that you can't get elsewhere."

Eighty percent of the resort's rooms overlook the 320-acre man-made lake that's the centerpiece of the Lake Las Vegas project launched by Transcontinental Properties Inc., a Santa Barbara, Calif., company owned by the billionaire Bass family of Texas.

Other rooms offer views of the Jack Nicklaus-designed Reflection Bay golf course that winds along the lake shore and through the mountains framing the entire development.

Purdy and Mark Heinzelman, the Hyatt Regency's general manager, believe the rooms will be the primary revenue source for the property, while the small casino will contribute about 20 percent to the bottom line.

Purdy and his staff have already booked 40,000 room nights at an average rate of $200 a night. They've been helped by a strong economy that has made the incentive business -- in which corporations award resort vacations to employees who meet certain goals -- one of the fastest-growing areas of the travel industry.

They've also been aided by the Hyatt name, which is recognized for offering high levels of service and quality at its 193 hotels in more than 34 countries. This project, Hyatt's first in Las Vegas, has been developed in partnership with Transcontinental Properties, Woodbine Development Corp. and Cook Inlet Region Inc., which administers investments for Alaskan natives.

The resort's casino offers 191 slot machines, eight blackjack tables, one craps table, one roulette table and one Let It Ride game. Though small by Las Vegas standards, the casino's size offers "an intimate atmosphere that will enable us to establish one-on-one relationships with our customers," says Steve Sterrett, director of casino operations.

"The casino is an amenity that's just one part of the total resort experience," says Heinzelman. "We've got a full-service spa, three excellent restaurants, standard rooms, 47 suites and four two- and three-bedroom casitas with private entrances."

The casitas, or villas, will rent for an average $1,900 a night.

While the Hyatt team expects small to mid-size conventions to be the resort's primary customers, it also hopes to attract Las Vegans to the facility.

"We'll embrace the locals market," Heinzelman says. "We see this as a place where locals will come for a short getaway, for the entertainment, and perhaps to play in a quiet, intimate casino. We truly believe we won't be successful without local business."

The resort's Japengo restaurant will serve Pacific Rim-inspired foods and feature a sushi bar. Cafe Tajine will offer Moroccan-themed dishes as well as traditional American foods in a gourmet setting 24 hours a day. The Marakesh Express will provide poolside salads, sandwiches and grilled-to-order items.

The Hyatt Regency's opening begins at noon Friday and continues through the weekend with free seasonal refreshments and entertainment.

Special drawings will be held Saturday and Sunday nights for tickets for two to the resort's millennium celebration featuring Grammy Award winner Christopher Cross.

On Jan. 14, Hyatt Regency will host an invitation-only "grand opening" that will include the largest fireworks show ever produced for a Las Vegas resort debut.

The resort won't reach full occupancy until late winter or early spring, as the management team wants to fine tune the property. Employment is expected to grow from the current 500 jobs to 720 by then, Purdy says.

Still, as the first to open, the Hyatt Regency will have a big head start against any competing resorts planned for the 2,245-acre Lake Las Vegas resort complex.

"We understand there are a couple of resort operators looking at a site near the west end of the lake, with an eye toward building a high-end boutique type of resort," Purdy says.

To date, though, no one has made firm plans to build there.