May 05, 2016 LAS VEGAS, NV-(Marketwired - May 5, 2016) - The Las Vegas Economic Impact Regional Center will open Lucky Dragon Hotel & Casino, the city's first resort delivering an. Lucky Dragon, Vegas’ First Chinese-themed Casino, Opens Early on Strip A giant glass dragon chandelier, fashioned from 762 individual customized glass scales and weighing 1.25 tons, is suspended.

Lucky Dragon is still in its early construction phase, but it’s expected to open in 2016. Photo courtesy of VEGAS Inc.

If you had a chance to drive by the Bonanza Gift Shop toward the north end of the Strip, you might have noticed some construction. Well if you’re into dragons, then you’re in luck.

Slated to open summer 2016, Lucky Dragon will be located on Sahara Avenue, just west of Las Vegas Boulevard. The property stands between Golden Steer restaurant and Allure condos, not too far from neighboring hotels like the Stratosphere and SLS. The cost for the build is $373 million. The Las Vegas Economic Impact Regional Center, the development firm behind Downtown Grand, is overseeing this project. The Penta Building Group is the general contracting company responsible for the hotel’s construction.

Other than that, we really don’t know too much about the Lucky Dragon. The property sort of remains a mystery. If you thought you missed a grand public announcement or press conference, don’t worry — you didn’t. But perhaps that’s part of the allure, leaving us in suspense about this future Las Vegas hotel.

Photo of hotel, taken Friday, Oct. 9. Photo courtesy of Las Vegas Economic Impact Regional Center.

What we can affirm is that construction started last spring.Just last week, the Las Vegas Economic Impact Regional Center website stated that they’re in the process of framing the hotel room walls, putting in fire stairs and building the garage, among other duties.

According to the website, it will be the city’s first casino resort designed from the ground up with “an authentic Asian cultural and gaming experience.” There isn’t an exact opening date, but let’s hope it sticks with its proposed completion by next summer.

In the spirit of the Chinese lucky number eight, here are eight reasons why we’re excited about this new Vegas hotel.

Well don’t you look swanky. Rendering of Lucky Dragon by EV&A Architects / Las Vegas Economic Impact Regional Center website.

1. It’s a boutique-sized hotel.

Listen, we’re all about fun size. From chocolate bars to Smart Cars, we’re hardcore fans. But in all seriousness, we love smaller hotels. They’re easy to navigate and you have time to fully appreciate everything within the property. This boutique Las Vegas hotel will only have 206 rooms in its nine-story hotel tower. It’s small, but just like The Cromwell and Delano, there’s this intimate feel you can only find in a boutique property.

Oh hi, Stratosphere. Looks like you’re getting a new neighbor. Photo courtesy of VEGAS Inc.

2. Location adds more excitement to the north end of Strip.

It’s no secret – being in the center of the Strip obviously has its advantages. But even though this is at the north end of the Strip, there’s some good that comes out of it. It’s a hop, skip and a jump from the north MGM Resorts Festival Grounds, which had the crazy turnout at this year’s Rock in Rio festival. Lucky Dragon is also close to SLS Las Vegas, Stratosphere and the future home to Resorts World Las Vegas, which will (ta-da!) be another Asian-themed hotel.

Hmm. We may just want to stay in bed all day. Rendering by EV&A Architects / Las Vegas Economic Impact Regional Center website.

3. Unwind in Feng Shui-designed rooms.

We’re totally digging the room. It’s both elegant and relaxing. We’re sure the Feng Shui and the giant cherry blossom mural have plenty to do with it. And if you think that’s relaxing, we’re betting the spa will deliver the same vibe. According to the Las Vegas Economic Impact Regional Center website, the spa will fuse China’s rich ancient culture with modern-day luxuries and amenities. We’re curious if this involves tai chi sessions and green tea facials – we kinda like the sound of those.

Rendering of Lucky Dragon’s fine dining restaurant / Las Vegas Economic Impact Regional Center website.

4. Savor authentic Chinese cuisine.

It’s great to have Chinese food in any hotel, but this is all Lucky Dragon will have. And if you’re excited about noodle bars, tea cafés, a buffet and high-end dim sum (which apparently is a thing), so are we. There’s also going to be a fine dining restaurant, featuring both Northern and Southern Chinese cuisine. From here, you can also enjoy views of the Strip.

Speaking of food, if you really want a full-on Asian cuisine experience during your vacay, Chinatown is short drive away. Hop on the 1-15 southbound and exit Spring Mountain, heading west. Boom. You’re there.

Unleash the dragon! We predict this will be a prime meeting spot. Rendering by EV&A Architects / Las Vegas Economic Impact Regional Center website.

5. Unleash the dragons.

We can’t stop saying that. It’s too much fun. Plus when we think about dragons, Sisqo’s “Unleash the Dragon” song comes to mind. We can’t help it! And who could forget Bruce Lee’s classic, “Enter the Dragon,” arguably the best martial arts movie of all time? You may also recall the Red Dragon hotel from “Rush Hour 2” and thought it would be cool to have a hotel like this. Lucky for you there’s Lucky Dragon and it will even have the red exterior like the fictional hotel. Cool, right? (Now, if only we can get Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker to reunite…)

Lucky Dragon Las Vegas News

Head to Lucky Dragon’s Center Bar and you’ll find a large dragon chandelier right above it. Now that’s what we call a conversation piece.

Rendering by EV&A Architects / Las Vegas Economic Impact Regional Center website.

6. Have fun with Asian-themed games.

The hotel’s 19,000-square-foot casino will focus on popular Asian-themed games like Pai Gow, Fan Tan and Sic Bo. The casino will also house private Feng Shui-designed gaming rooms. You never know – you might prosper from good fortune here. And if you do win, you can splurge at one of the retail shops, which will carry jewelry and apparel sourced from boutiques in Asia.

This has to be the coolest buffet rendering to date. Rendering from Las Vegas Economic Impact Regional Center website.

7. Convenient if you (or your friends) speak Chinese.

While Lucky Dragon is open to everyone, this hotel is designed for visitors from China in mind. The hotel will even have workers who speak the language. We know this doesn’t apply to everyone. But if you’re trying to impress someone or help someone out during their Vegas trip, they’ll be happy to meet folks who speak their language. It’s a pretty neat and convenient concept. Additionally, the hotel’s outdoor signage will be in both Chinese and English.

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Logo courtesy of Las Vegas Economic Impact Regional Center.

8. Sweet summer surprise.

Lucky Dragon Las Vegas Hotel

‘Tis the season: We’re always finding a reason to welcome summer back with open arms (even though it still feels like summer now!). But this just gives us one more thing to look forward to. We haven’t heard anything about a pool yet, but it would be nice if it had beautiful oversized lanterns, pagoda-style cabanas and live traditional music. We can dream, right?

In the meantime, you can check out our other Las Vegas hotels.

Lucky Dragon Las Vegas News

Lucky Dragon Casino Las Vegas Closed

Lucky Dragon Las Vegas Hotel

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