From the sound of some of the teary laments, you’re forgiven for thinking someone just kidnapped Santa Claus in Las Vegas.
The scandal worthy of Grinch imagery?
Some of the Strip’s casino giants announced plans to begin charging for parking.
Say it ain’t so, Sinatra. It’s the end of an era, Elvis. Make it no danke schoen, Wayne.
Without once asking permission from the ghosts of Vegas past or holding a Rat Pack seance, in January MGM Resorts announced a pay-to-park plan and received the big Vegas raspberry. There was immediate blowback from folks who imagine, as I like to do from time to time, that it’s still 1966 in Las Vegas. After some stammering, MGM’s officials set into action a fee system focused on tourists paying varying rates to use the parking garage. At last check, overnight parking run about $10 at Aria, Bellagio and most of its other properties.
Caesars Entertainment now has a paid parking policy and allows visitors to stick the valet fee on their hotel tab. Wynn Resorts is onboard with a paid valet service, and the Cosmopolitan recently announced it was joining in.
Although there wasn’t any hand-wringing over it that I noticed, downtown properties such as the Main Street Station and Downtown Grand have a ticket and validation system that provides a not so gentle reminder to spend your money on their properties. Neither tourists nor locals have been jumping out high windows at the prospect of being hit up a few bucks to park, or being compelled to play the ticket-punch game. It’s a practice that’s been in place in parts of Las Vegas for many years.
Some sober-minded casino industry observers credibly wonder whether tourists and locals on budgets will reach a breaking point with yet another fee associated with a casino visit. At the Las Vegas Advisor, Anthony Curtis tells the Las Vegas Sun that change is one but, “But eventually, people will have to decide if they want to pay (the fees) or simply go elsewhere. And in the case of probably quite a few visitors, decide if they even want come to Las Vegas at all. No one’s taking the news well.”
But let’s not be too hard on Cosmo officials. Given reports that customers were using that resort’s garage as a more convenient way to access City Center, the frustration is understandable.
And try to find a free parking space near the convention center during the big corporate confabs. You may see that nearby businesses are eager to provide parking spaces in their asphalt and dirt lots — for a fee.
Curtis makes a valid point, but this latest change is no grand scandal. And those in the local press caught whining too much will be accused of hypocrisy. After all, you haven’t heard a lot of groaning about the ever-increasing “resort fees” hotels tack on for a variety of empty reasons. Now there’s a scandal in this neon addict’s mind.
It’s not news. The days of a key to the fitness center or a free towel at poolside are over.
When it comes to parking, though, one of the more irritating trend has been the front-end valet hustle at some Strip resorts. On busy evenings, it’s common to have a friendly employee let a driver pulling up to a resort know that the valet is full. By custom, for a little monetary consideration the valet will manage to provide assistance. Call it the valet of the dollars.
That’s the funny thing about the news that the Strip’s corporate casino bosses will now charge customers to park and valet. It happens all the time in bigger cities, but longtime visitors will tell you Las Vegas used to be different. It was a place where even small customers were made to feel like they were getting.
Although the approach appears more sophisticated, the new pay-to-park hustle has a decidedly old Vegas feel.
John L. Smith’s is a longtime Las Vegas journalist and author. Contact him at jlnevadasmith@gmail.com. On Twitter: @jlnevadasmith.
