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Vegas’ newest kid on the block gets the WPT Poker treatment. Paul Sculpher takes a look inside.
The newest addition to Las Vegas’ skyline is the Aria casino, part of the enormous City Center complex. At a cost of around $9 billion, the scale of the development is quite staggering, comprising of a top end shopping mall, three hotels (of which the Aria, containing the only casino, is one) and two residential towers. It’s fair to say the whole project was a gamble, and possibly launched at the worst time in recent Vegas history; however, what they’ve delivered is simply astounding.
They say it’s a buyers’ market in Vegas right now, whether you’re after an apartment, a hotel room or even just a game of blackjack. So, with this in mind, we thought we’d see what kind of value you new Aria poker room is offering.
A BREATH OF FRESH ARIA
Adam Altweis is the Manager of Poker Operations for the Aria and having worked his way through the ranks from dealer to manager he clearly knows his stuff. WPT Poker caught up with Adam who explained to us that the room has a total of 24 poker tables. Of the 24, 18 are located on the main floor, 5 in an elevated high limit area and one table in an exclusive room (see box). Overall the card room is a massive operation with Adam being responsible for 146 staff, including the dealers, cashiers, managers, supervisors, game attendants and hosts.
The room itself is spectacular, a common factor throughout the casino and the complex as a whole. In addition to the Aria, MGM Mirage owns several Las Vegas properties including the two adjacent casinos the Monte Carlo and the Bellagio. Each complex is connected by a monorail system and the designers have consciously made each property deliberately contrast yet stylish. While the Bellagio is classical in style, the Aria is much more modern looking with both casinos aiming at the upper end of the market. The Monte Carlo, in comparison, on the southern end of the Strip, carries less of a premium price tag which means the MGM group is perfectly poised to offer something for everyone.
GAMES: THE LOWDOWN
In terms of the games on offer, Adam says they’ll spread any limit, any time. While I’m guessing that something approaching my local casino’s standard game – 25c/50c – probably doesn’t figure within that range, they do go as low as $1/$3 NLHE. At the top end the games are set to be the biggest in Las Vegas. The back room, where they’ll be trying to secure the monstrous games for which Vegas is legendary, is also a sight to behold. Kitted out with the most luxurious furnishings you can imagine and plasma screens in all directions, the room is about to be rebranded as “The Ivey Room,” an event marked by the first of an ongoing annual $1,000,000 invitational tournament. The astute among you will have figured that this isn’t a misspelling, but a reference to the legendary Phil Ivey.
During the tour of the facility, Adam showed me the Ivey Room’s party piece; a door that leads to a private cashier window and safety deposit boxes. For those at the very top of their game, it has to be appealing to be able to stash away your winnings (or reload in tough times) in private, and from a security standpoint, with a number of European casinos having been raided recently, there’s a peace of mind boost as well.
TOURNAMENTS
In terms of the regular tournaments for the average Vegas visitor the Aria has things well covered. Every day at 1pm and 7pm, they hold a $100+20 game with 8,000 chips and a 30-minute clock, which by Vegas standards is excellent value. Indeed, even though there’s a 3% withholding for the staff, you’ll see many worse deals across the city. At the moment Vegas is definitely a buyer’s market and it seems that Adam has pitched his schedule perfectly for the current climate; something that should certainly generate a healthy pool of players and start the rake rolling in.
2010 ARIA CLASSIC
As with many of the Vegas casinos, the Aria is running a festival of its own to run alongside the World Series of Poker, running run from June 27th to July 17th. With room rates across Vegas at an all-time low you can pick up bargains all over the city, including the Aria. Even the poker room at the Aria has been designed with the serious player in mind, offering some fantastic seating which is perfect for the all-night grinders amongst you. The tournaments aren’t exactly rock hard either, a little like the Bellagio, and at the weekends you tend to get a few people who like to stay in the luxury spots and play poker just as an experience. After my tour of the complex I came away pleasantly surprised and I’m sure that in the coming months the new Aria poker room will be one of the best places for poker players on the Strip. |
