Friday, February 19, 2010

The POTUS Pad, Caesars v Bellagio

It's a little shocking to have to say this, but the digs MGM Mirage provided to President Obama at Bellagio last night were shoddy compared with what Harrah's provided him when he came for the Harry Reid fundraiser at Caesars Palace last May.

That time, he stayed in a Penthouse Villa that, to quote my own New York Daily News report, is "a 22,000- square-foot mansion complete with six bedrooms, eight bathrooms, two kitchens, two outdoor decks with waterfalls, a sauna and much, much more. One of the eight marble bathrooms with an over sized jacuzzi tub. ... The suite occupies the entire top floor of Caesars Palace on the Vegas strip. Bronze-swirled marble floors and pillars accent the Roman themed abode."

Here were some blogged photos of it from back then and Obama himself even remarked on it: "I thought I had a pretty nice room" while campaigning, "but now that I'm president, they upgraded me. I got the upgrade, and it's a really nice room now."
Last night, though, Obama stayed in the presidential suite at the Bellagio Spa Tower. To answer my own question from my 5 Questions post, Secret Service had him stay at Bellagio and not Aria because they don't like to have him stay at the same place where he's appearing.

Here's the floor plan:

Here's what the Bellagio site says about it:

"Our Presidential Suite will have you marveling at the 4,075-square-feet of contemporary ambience. Upon crossing a walkway suspended above a tranquil reflecting pool, you'll enter this magnificent estate. Enjoy your own solarium, verdant indoor garden and fountain, fireplace, and L-shaped bar. Two master bedrooms, private bathrooms with whirlpool tubs, steam showers, and a conference room further sophisticate this dynamic Las Vegas Suite.

In addition, your stay in the Presidential Suite entitles you to customized complimentary services including 24-hour butler attention, VIP seating for Cirque du Soleil's “O™,” VIP check-in and lounge access, reservation handling and premium seating for any of the fabulous MGM MIRAGE® restaurants, clubs and shows. For your personal staff, three 1,000 square-foot Entourage Suites are available on the same floor."

Don't think O went to see O™.

4 comments:

David F. said...

If it had to be an MGM Property, I am surprised they didn't put him up at The Mansion.

Unknown said...

My guess is that the Mansion might be too "private" and possibly more easily accessible by intruders? Just a thought.

Michael said...

chiefroberts thoughts about the mansion and the issue of accessibility is my first though in the difference between Caesars and Bellagio room too, perhaps the Bellagio room they chose meets certain criteria for SS to protect. But that's just a guess, or it could mean that MGM actually has some high rollers and the room at Caesars was sitting empty :)

GregoryZephyr said...

Why would the President need 20,000 square feet? Americans are annoyed enough with politicians, they don't need to see the President slam Vegas vacations one week and the next week staying in the most palatial suite in town.