For guests looking to enjoy the opening night festivities, the Fontainebleau parking garage will not open until 1 a.m. Thursday. Rideshare drop-off will also not be available at the resort until 2 a.m. Anyone driving to the resort is asked to either park at the Las Vegas Convention Center West Hall, which will have free public parking, or use valet. Ride-share users should request drop-offs at nearby sites. Opening Fontainebleau Las Vegas brings the project full circle. Fontainebleau Development began construction on the building back in 2007 before the project went into bankruptcy amid the Great Recession. Construction was about 75% complete before halting and the building stood dormant for years amid efforts to find a new owner who would complete it, becoming a reminder of the recession's devastating effects on Las Vegas.
In August 2017, the Witkoff Group bought the property and announced plans to finish construction and rename it The Drew, with Marriott International managing hotel operations. Nevada gaming regulators found Steve Witkoff suitable for ownership back in January 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic hit the U.S. just two months later, suspending construction and disrupting financing once again. Koch Real Estate Investments and Fontainebleau Development bought back the property in February 2021. Executives announced the resort would be renamed Fontainebleau Las Vegas, and Fontainebleau Development would take over hotel operations.
The resort will feature more than 3,600 hotel rooms, 550,000 square feet of convention space, and a 173,000 square-foot casino floor. The hotel tower stands 737 feet tall, making it the tallest occupied building in Nevada. For dining, Fontainebleau will feature what it calls 36 first-to-market concepts in its restaurant and bar collection. For entertainment, the BleauLive Theater will be a 3,800-seat venue. Post Malone is the first headliner, performing for New Year's Eve weekend. The resort will also feature the LIV nightclub and beach dayclub. The nightclub will open on Thursday featuring John Summit as its first headliner, while LIV Beach is expected to be ready for pool season next year.
