Why no megaclubs?

[fordan]

As I was escaping the tightly packed dancefloor at XS last night, a thought hit me: why doesn't Vegas have any huge megaclubs, something on the scale of Privilege in Ibiza? (or are/were there some I don't know about?) Seems like like a good fit for the "Go big or go home" vibe that Vegas often seems to have.

[KristinK]

I would guess that it would be really really expensive to operate something that big. The rent that I know some of the night clubs pay to the casinos is hundreds of thousands of dollars per month. I can't imagine what a true megaclub would cost.

[WT661]

While there are patrons for these clubs that are in Vegas now, I just dont think there are enough to fill a megaclub in Vegas. There is just too many options to choose from in a 2 square mile radius. You're spreading the clientele around so much that 1 megaclub would have to be SUPER good to fill everytime it opens.
As popular as certain clubs are in Vegas, you just cant have it too big or else its just too big and too crowded. Service will start to suffer and quality can go down the drain.

Also like someone said, the cost is just way to much to operate for something that huge.

[Erock]

I dont understand the size of the dancefloors at Tao and LAX. Its ridiculous to have a club and the dance floor be that small. Especially at Tao.

[WT661]

Having more tables are going to be much more profitable than a dance floor. theyre putting just enough dance floor to accomodate the "dancers". But the business model of a club in vegas is all about table sales.

[fordan]

Good points. I was thinking with the drop in commercial real estate prices it might make it more viable, but that wouldn't affect built casinos the same way, and the instant you move out of a casino and/or off-strip you're going to lose a lot of the synergies that make the clubs work. And as you say, generally it's about the tables.

[WT661]

The nightlife is just a bonus in Vegas. Its a draw to many but you have to remember that what we drop in a club is minimal to what we lose at a Casino.
Lets say an average person is spending from $50-75 at a club on drinks and getting in. Some are dropping money on tables so they can spend on average $200-400 per person.

A usual Vegas gambler/visitor may have a bankroll of $200-500 a day, while many are even in the thousands. So the money spent on clubs is chump change to what casinos take in.

Entertainment, Restaurants, and clubs are the extras of Vegas to help draw people in. Even though many of us come for the nightlife, Vegas is still ran by the casinos' profits. All these clubs are, are rental income and ways to attract people into the casinos.

Gambling still runs Vegas, not the popularity of Dance Music. LOL . jk

[Nailer]

Ugh please don't compare Privilege with XS, that makes me sad!
I would gladly take a jammed dancefloor in XS over the same jammed dancefloor in Privilege bigger doesnt automatically mean better or less busy

[sfnate]

Entertainment, Restaurants, and clubs are the extras of Vegas to help draw people in.

haha well said.. since i don't gamble much I tend to forget that. I think my lifetime vegas gamebeling losses are in the neighborhood of 800 bucks... whereas I don't have the slightest clue how many thousands i've spent on alcohol over the past couple years. but i'm just crazy.

[fordan]

The nightlife is just a bonus in Vegas. Its a draw to many but you have to remember that what we drop in a club is minimal to what we lose at a Casino.
Lets say an average person is spending from $50-75 at a club on drinks and getting in. Some are dropping money on tables so they can spend on average $200-400 per person.

A usual Vegas gambler/visitor may have a bankroll of $200-500 a day, while many are even in the thousands. So the money spent on clubs is chump change to what casinos take in.

Entertainment, Restaurants, and clubs are the extras of Vegas to help draw people in. Even though many of us come for the nightlife, Vegas is still ran by the casinos' profits. All these clubs are, are rental income and ways to attract people into the casinos.

Gambling still runs Vegas, not the popularity of Dance Music. LOL . jk

Then there are clubs like XS which let you gamble in the nightclub. Your point holds true: I dropped about $500 at the craps table outside by the pool vs a bar tab of a bit under $200.

Ugh please don't compare Privilege with XS, that makes me sad!
I would gladly take a jammed dancefloor in XS over the same jammed dancefloor in Privilege bigger doesnt automatically mean better or less busy

Hmm. Admittedly based on my data point of exactly one visit to Privilege (saw Tiësto during a early July visit), I didn't think the crowds were too bad. The front dancefloor was jammed, but the back two you could at least thread a path through the dancers. Wasn't there in August though when I understand it gets really crazy. And yeah, not as high quality as most Vegas clubs (although I'd still probably put it well above Studio 54). Plus 18+ to get in vs. 21+, much much more casual dress code, and some insane mixed drink prices (€15-20/$20-$26).

I guess I was just hoping for a bigger club venue while keeping the Vegas quality.

[laidback]

A true megaclub in Vegas that was any good would obliterate all the other clubs.

That might work, and it might stay packed after it closed down every other club... but would Vegas be as big a party destination with only 1 huge club and 1 or 2 others that survived, like XS?

I think that would be worse, over all, for Vegas. I think a lot of the reason people continue to fly out is the sheer volume of choices.

Biggest isn't necessarily better... Sapphire is huge... both the Rhino & the OG are more fun, to me.

[McNulty]

The other thing that vegas thrives on his the changes in the nightclubs. If there was even space for a mega club, would it be the hotspot in a few years or would it be passed again. And if it was passed would it have been profitable, and will it be profitable enough to totally redo the space.

[chrisbru]

I prefer the number of choices in Vegas vs. places with megaclubs (Panama City Beach college spring break trips come to mind.) I'd never want to do long trips to Vegas if it was only a few megaclubs, because I'd get sick of going to the same clubs. Plus, I'd return less times per year. The good thing about the number of clubs in Vegas plus how often they change means return trips aren't repetitive.