Wynn Magazine - Las Vegas
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/725934
22 photography by roger davies Ornate green tassels hanging from the ceiling are just some of the design elements in Wynn Palace that keep guests looking up. above: The interior of Wing Lei Bar was designed to feel like an antique jewel box. golden tiger's eye, and mother-of-pearl inlays in the wall. Standing beneath it, I feel like I'm in an antique, mirrored jewel box. And on a later visit with Steve Wynn, it also becomes something of a metaphor in my mind for the Wynn ethos. "So, what did you take away from your visit?" Wynn asks me on my return to Las Vegas. I am still processing some astonish- ment, for all the reasons you'll read about in this issue of Wynn and many you'll discover on your own. But I'm curious about this unusual chandelier. "It's undeniably beauti- ful," I say, "but why put a rare piece in a room when few people may ever appreciate its significance?" The simple answer, Wynn tells me, is "We wanted to. It may be true that the public will never understand that chandelier, but like so many lovely things, you don't analyze it— you feel it. If the place is consistent, then you know you're in the best place there is." But the decision to procure the chandelier wasn't made lightly; the room's distinct beauty depends on that particular piece—and that, says Wynn, is something you can't fake. "If you're Roger or me, you have to ask, Was all this worth it for one resort? Could we have value-engineered it for $200 million less on décor? And Roger's answer would be, 'The premium we paid for the best wasn't so much higher than for something mundane.' In this case, I encouraged him to [buy a chandelier whose rarity might not be obvious to most people]. Should there be a price tag for the best hotel in the world?" Planning for Wynn Palace began six years ago, several years after the opening of Wynn Macau, and it was conceived as a destination as much as a resort, Wynn explains. (Incidentally, the cost to open Wynn Palace was roughly that of Shanghai Disney, "Like so many lovely things, you don't analyze it—you feel it. If the place is consistent, you know you're in the best place there is."—steve wynn