Las Vegas Coronavirus Update
With the spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus) around the world we start to see some drastic consequences as many countries suggest social distancing and confinement in an attempt to stop the pandemic.
Vegas is no exception and every business in the city is starting to take measures in an effort to reduce the spread of the Virus.
Some of you might have pending reservation for a Vegas jaunt in the next days/weeks, others were starting to look for offers to book a trip a few months from now so the situation must raise a lot of questions and stress.
We'll try to gather as much information as we can about hotels/shows/restaurants etc...
Please note that we do not represent any of these companies. We are just trying to provide you with information as accurate as possible by relying on the companies press releases or official announcements.
STAY SAFE EVERYONE!
UPDATED 3/18/20
On 3/17/20, Nevada governor Steve Sisolak has ordered all non-essential businesses in Nevada to close for 30 days. This includes all casinos, bars, restaurants, hotels, health clubs...
I have spoken with the chief medical officers of all of Nevada’s hospitals to get their assessment of our current situation and most responsible next steps. They have advised that the most effective course of action is to direct all Nevadans to stay home and for all nonessential businesses to close to the public for 30 days.
My ultimate goal here is to come together as Nevadans to save lives. That requires aggressive strategies aimed at mitigating community spread. Medical professionals have made it abundantly clear that there is currently no treatment. While a vaccine is being developed, we don’t have time to waste. At this time, we must act aggressively and decisively to protect ourselves, our families, and our community. The following COVID-19 risk mitigation policies are proven to be effective at reducing death and illness and slowing down the rate of transition in prior pandemics:
- All Nevadans must ensure that 6 feet of social distancing per person for non-family members is maintained.
- Only essential services should remain open -- such as fire, police, transit, and health care services, in addition to businesses that provide food, shelter, or social services for disadvantaged populations.
- Non-essential services such as beauty shops, barber shops, and nail, tanning, and waxing salons should close until further notice.
- Only essential businesses should remain open such as, pharmacies, grocery stores, drug and convenience stores, banks and financial institutions, hardware stores, and gas stations. I am asking grocery stores consider special hours for the vulnerable populations
- All gatherings should be postponed or canceled. This is not the time for sleepovers, playdates, concerts, theater outings, or athletic events. Although you may not be experiencing symptoms at this time, you may be contagious. Do not risk your own heath or the health of others.
- Many of you will not be in your office or at work over the next few weeks. This is not a vacation and it’s not the time to catch up with friends. It’s definitely not the time to go to the movies. Every social contact increases your risk of exposure. The bigger the group, the higher your risk.
- This means that you should stay away from auditoriums, stadiums, arenas, large conference rooms, meeting halls, and cafeterias.
- I know in times of stress, many of you seek the release that comes from exercise. But this is not the time for you to be in a gym, healthclub, or fitness center. Until the risk goes away, find other ways to exercise such as home workouts, hikes, or other outdoor activities. But as you do so, remember to maintain social distancing from others doing the same.
- Some events are unavoidable. We still want you to experience the joy of weddings, but this is not the time to bring your friends together -- especially if this will require travel. Consider postponing the celebration to a time when the risk is low or eliminated.
- For my friends making preparations to say goodbye to loved ones, please limit the attendance at funeral services. Consider outdoor services where the risk of exposure is less than inside
- This is only common sense. In a time where people are getting sick from simply being near others, this is not the time for gyms to remain open. This is not the time for casinos to remain open. This is not a time for community recreation centers, clubhouses, movie theaters and malls to remain open. If your business brings groups of people together, it should not be open.
- Although I cannot and will not say that places of worship should be closed, I strongly urge our faith leaders to find ways to deliver to your congregation without bringing them together in person.
- Charitable food distribution sites, including the meals being distributed to our students in wake of the school closings, along with grocery stores should remain fully open and operational. Food services for healthcare facilities and other essential facilities should remain open. Any buffet or food stations used in charitable food distribution settings should transition to boxed meals or served through gloved staff members or volunteers.
- Restaurants throughout Nevada, in addition to pubs, wineries, bars, and breweries that include meals provided by a full kitchen should be reduced to serving food only in a drive-thru, take-out or delivery capacity. No dine-in at food establishments should be allowed until further notice. This also includes food courts, coffee shops, catered events, clubs, bowling alleys, and other similar venues in which people congregate for the consumption of food or beverages.
- Pubs, wineries, bars, and breweries that do not include meals provided by a full kitchen must close.
At the time of this writing (3/17/20), here is what we know:
Hotels / Casinos:
If you have a reservation in a Vegas hotel for March or April we advise you call or email the hotel as it is very likely that they won't be able to honor your booking.
Due to the circumstances, we believe most hotel should offer you free cancellation even if you booked a non-refundable offer.
Note that if you booked your stay through a third party travel agent, instead of contacting the hotel you should contact the travel agent or the booking site directly as they should be the ones responsible for cancelling the reservation.
If you have a reservaton for a stay after April you might want to wait a little bit to see how the situation evolves as nobody knows when the situation will be back to normal yet.
Wynn is closing its 2 Vegas resorts on March 17 for two weeks (for now):
- Wynn,
- Encore
Source: https://www.wynnlasvegas.com/
Wynn Resorts has decided to temporarily close Wynn Las Vegas and Encore as part of its continuing effort to reduce the spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus).
The Company has committed to pay all full-time Wynn and Encore employees during the closure.
The closure will be effective Tuesday, March 17 at 6 pm and is expected to be in effect for two weeks, after which time the Company will evaluate the situation.
A limited number of employees and management will remain at the resort to secure and maintain the facility.
For additional information and updates, please visit https://www.wynnlasvegas.com/
MGM is closing all its 13 Vegas hotels on March 17:
- Mandalay Bay,
- Luxor,
- Excalibur,
- NYNY,
- Park MGM,
- Aria,
- Vdara
- Bellagio
- Mirage,
- MGM Grand
- Signature
- Delano
- Nomad
MGM Resorts will temporarily suspend operations at its Las Vegas properties, effective Tuesday, March 17.
Casino operations will close at midnight on Monday, March 16, followed by hotel operations.
We are taking reservations for arrivals beginning Thursday, April 2nd.
At the time of this writing all CET properties remain open for business:
- Caesars Palace
- Nobu
- Bally's
- Paris
- Planet Hollywood
- Rio
- Flamingo
- Harrah's
- The Linq
- The Cromwell
Also the hotels are open, note that all buffets will be closed unitl at least April 9 as well as many restaurants.
Source: https://www.caesars.com/corporate/newsroom/press-releases/caesars-provides-business-update-related-to-covid-19-impact
Here’s where we are at this time:
We are reminding employees through multiple channels about washing hands often. We are talking to them about it, posting signage in key employee areas, and providing additional hand sanitizer dispensers as well.
- For guests, we are posting hand-washing signage in public areas (e.g., bathrooms) and providing more hand sanitizer dispensers across our properties in high visibility and high traffic areas.
- We are also increasing our reserves of hand sanitizers for use by our guests and employees over an extended period.
- We are buying even more cleaning and disinfectant supplies. We are increasing the frequency of cleaning high-touch surfaces in public areas in our casinos/resorts, including restaurants, bars, spas, fitness centers, public restrooms, hotel rooms, elevators, as well as frequently touched areas on the casino floor.
- We are reinforcing training procedures to ensure cleaning processes are implemented properly by our employees.
- We have suspended international business travel to areas with higher infection rates. And, if any of our employees travel to those areas for personal reasons, they will be required to stay home for three weeks upon their return.
- If an employee appears to be suffering from flu-like symptoms, they will be asked to promptly seek medical attention and to remain at home until they are free of symptoms.
- We are encouraging guests who are ill to seek medical attention and to avoid public exposure as much as possible. We have also established protocols to help guests get the medical attention they may need. We are using sanitizing procedures in hotel rooms where guests who become ill are staying.
The Cosmopolitan is ceasing all operations as of March 18, 2020 at 6PM through March 31, 2020
At The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, the health and safety of our guests and employees is always our primary focus.
As a result, we have determined to temporarily cease all operations as of March 18, 2020 at 6PM through March 31, 2020.
This action is in line with recommendations by local and federal health authorities encouraging limited social gatherings and travel, and Governor Sisolak’s recommendation that casinos consider closing to the public.
Starting immediately, we will initiate an orderly departure for our in-house guests over the next 48 hours.
As we continue to monitor the impact of COVID-19, we’ve updated our cancellation policy from 72 hours to 24 hours prior to arrival. Cancellations less than 24 hours before your arrival will result in a forfeit of the initial deposit. Refunds will automatically be provided to guests for any nights booked March 18 - March 31, 2020.
At the time of this writing both Las Vegas Sands Strip properties will be closed until at least April 1:
- The Venetian
- The Palazzo
Las Vegas Sands today announced that, out of an abundance of caution and in line with recent guidance from federal and state governments, it is closing its Venetian and Palazzo resorts in Las Vegas until at least April 1. A decision on whether to extend the closure or re-open will be made at a later date. The process of closing the properties will begin immediately and be completed as soon as possible.
The company said it is committed to paying its team members while the buildings are closed. No layoffs or furloughs are being contemplated and the closure will not impact health care eligibility the company stated.
These are clearly challenging times for our country and our community. We are in the hospitality and entertainment business and our team members work very hard to provide a great experience for the thousands of people who come through our doors daily. However, our most important commitment is the one we have made to the health and safety of our team members and guests. Right now, the best way to fulfill that commitment is by asking people to not come to work. While we hope this closure is a short-term necessity, we are realistic it may be a prolonged event. Our team members and their families will rightly be concerned about their health and safety, but we do not want them worried about their jobs, income or health care. Like we have done in the past, we are fully prepared to support our team members over an extended period should it be needed," said Rob Goldstein, president and chief operating officer of Las Vegas Sands.
The company also announced it is donating a total of $250,000 to several important local organizations to serve our community during this time of need. Those organizations include Three Square, Communities In Schools and Share Village Las Vegas. In addition, the company plans to bolster that financial support with donations of meals and needed equipment.
At the time of this writing Treasure Island remains open for business.
We are welcoming guests to our resort. However some of our operations may be affected by situations beyond our control. We are actively working with the Southern Nevada Health District as well as other state and national health and government agencies, and we are adhering to their recommendations.
We have increased our frequency of disinfecting our surfaces, including all hand contact surfaces and slot machines and table games. We encourage our guests and employees to actively utilize our hand-sanitizing stations which are located in our food outlets as well as other high-trafficked locations on property, including back of house. All of our public restrooms are equipped with touch free faucets, soap dispensers, paper towel dispensers and hand blowers.
Again, the health and well-being of our guests and employees is of utmost importance. We thank everyone for their understanding during this unprecedented time.
SAHARA Las Vegas will temporarily suspend operations beginning March 18, 2020.
Governor Sisolak has mandated closure of all Nevada casinos and hotels and we understand this is in the best interest of our team members, guests and our community at this time. Working with the governor’s office and the Nevada Gaming Control Board, beginning March 17, 2020 SAHARA Las Vegas will begin the process of temporarily closing the resort for a period of 30 days.
This temporary suspension in operations is a precautionary measure, implemented out of concern for public health. Currently, there have been no reported cases of COVID-19 at SAHARA Las Vegas. The casino will be closed to the public beginning at midnight March 18, 2020.
Station Casinos will temporarily close all Las Vegas and Henderson hotels as of the end of day Thursday, March 19th:
- Red Rock Casino, Resort & Spa
- Green Valley Ranch Resort, Spa & Casino
- Palace Station
- Sunset Station
- Boulder Station
- Santa Fe Station
- Texas Station
- Fiesta Rancho
- Fiesta Henderson
At the time of this writing all Downtown Las Vegas hotel & casinos are closed:
- Golden Nugget
- The California
- The D
- The Fremont
- Binion's
- Main Street Station
- Four Queens
- Golden Gate
Fremont Street is pausing all live performances on their stages. The Fremont Street Experience pedestrian mall will continue to be open to the public.
Shows:
We do not have a detailed list of all the shows that are closing but to make things simple expect any show to be closed already or in the next days.
If you have a reservation for a show in March or April we advise you call or email the venue to ask about their cancellation policy due to the circumstances.
Here is Cirque du Soleil press release:
Following cancellations and/or postponements of numerous Cirque du Soleil shows worldwide in recent days, and taking into consideration the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendations, as well as the escalation of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group announces today the temporary suspension of the resident shows in Las Vegas including Mystère, “O”,Zumanity, KÀ, The Beatles LOVE, Michael Jackson ONE, and Blue Man Group, effective March 15.
From the very beginning of the new coronavirus outbreak, the Group took rigorous measures to protect its work teams and the public. Our priority has always been, and remains, the health and safety of our artists, our partners, our employees and our audiences.
Tickets for canceled performances will automatically be refunded within 30 days.
If you have any questions, please write to lasvegas.customerservice@cirquedusoleil.com
Restaurants
Vegas Eater has a comprehensive list of restaurants and bars temporarily closed around town:
https://vegas.eater.com/2020/3/16/21178370/las-vegas-restaurants-closed-coronavirus-pandemic
Stay Safe!
