Overview of the Wynn and Encore Casino Hotels in Las Vegas
Wynn is not just a Las Vegas landmark, it is a multi-award winning hotel by the highest global standards. With awards including a top rating from Forbes an AAA five diamond, and 5 Michelin stars among many other accolades. The Encore was created later as an extension. While the official name is ‘Encore Suites at the Wynn’, this is normally just known as Encore – and treated as a separate, though linked hotel.
This page gives you an overview of what to expect from the Wynn and Encore. First of all below you will find the history and background to this casino, along with some of the key features found there. After that the casino is looked at, this includes an impressive range of table games and slots, plus a poker room. Shows, clubs and other attractions are featured at the end of the page.
You can find the Wynn Hotel at the northern end of the Main Las Vegas strip. This is directly opposite the giant fashion show mall (which is connected by a walkway) and next door to the Venetian. The easiest way to reach this hotel from McCarran international airport is to take a taxi, which will take around 15 minutes depending on traffic.
Wynn Encore Hotel – Features and History
This hotel is built on the site of the former Desert Inn. The plan to build it was first announced by Steve Wynn in 2001. At that point the name of the resort was not released, instead the project was called ‘Le Reve’, which is ‘the dream’ in French. This impressive resort was finally opened 5 years later, in the 28th of April 2008.
Encore was built separately, in the same style as the main building. This was opened in 2008, which coincided with a big economic downturn. This hotel is linked to the main Wynn via a shopping mall, and administratively the staff of both resorts work as a single team.
To say that these are big hotels as well as luxurious ones would be an understatement. The main Wynn Hotel has 2455 rooms, and the additional Encore added another 2034. There are also extensive conference facilities, theatres, nightclubs, a huge shopping mall and a golf course. There is no significant tourist attraction at this hotel, which does buck the trend of many rivals. Outside there is a fountain and waterfall setup which is designed to attract the attention of passers-by along the strip – hopefully encouraging them into the shopping mall or casino.
This resort contains a number of luxury stores in the mall, aiming for the high-end customers that are attracted here. A highlight is a luxury car dealership, high rollers can walk right from the casino into a showroom which features Ferraris and more. Many of the restaurants are world class, including the famous Tableau, Bartolotta and Mizumi.
The Casino at the Wynn
With a huge 10,000 square meter casino, you can find games and stakes to suit everyone from tourists though to genuine high-rollers here. This casino feels more spacious and luxurious than many of the others in the center of the strip. The minimum bets at many tables are correspondingly higher, for example $10 blackjack being the smallest tables.
Most of the casino floor is taken up by slots, which cover the full range of new and old titles. The newest games are a hybrid of entertainment and slots play, including TV tie-ins and crazy themes. For the purists there are plenty of traditional slots, many with multi-million dollar jackpots. Video poker can also be found here. Table games include all the usual favorites of Blackjack, Roulette and Casino Poker variations. You’ll find plenty of Pai-Gow and Sic Bo games here too.
You’ll find a very classy poker room in this hotel. This does not play host to the big tours which come into town, which tend to go for the casinos better known for poker like the Bellagio, Rio or Aria. What you will find are some big prize pool tournaments which run through the week. The biggest of these is the Saturday $25,000 guarantee, which has a $225 buy-in and kicks off at 12PM. There are daily tournaments too – including games with bounty payments for knocking your opponents out. These are in addition to cash game action which is around the clock.
Wynn also has a sports book, where you can bet on professional sports, take entertaining pro bets and get involved in the occasional race handicapping challenge contests too.
Shows at Wynn Encore
If the casino, restaurants and shopping is not enough to keep you occupied, then there are shows to keep you entertained too. The main attraction is called ‘le Reve’, and is a dance spectacular with surreal dream-like qualities. There are also singers including Garth Brookes and Michael Monge here regularly. Famous nightclubs at the Wynn Encore include XS, Surrender and Tryst.