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Imagine taking an exciting vacation to a popular tourist destination...
Paris.
New York.
Venice.
Detroit.
Detroit? How did that get in there?
According to some folks in Las Vegas, there's no reason for it not to be on the list.
That's why the next big new hotel-casino to open in Las Vegas is going to have the theme of--wait for it--Detroit!
Yes, the place alternately known as the Motor City or Motown has joined the likes of the City of Light, the Big Apple and the Land of Canals as the latest international big city to become the basis for a Las Vegas hotel and casino complex.
Many hotel-casinos in Vegas are themed after world cities: the Paris, New York New York and Venetian hotel-casinos are among the most popular.
Now comes word that a hotel and casino complex set to officially open in downtown Las Vegas later this year will have the odd name of the D Hotel.
That's D as in Detroit.
The D hotel is actually a refurbishment and rebranding of the old Fitzgeralds Hotel and Casino, which had the theme of Ireland.
And although it remains open while the refurbishment is going on, the official grand opening of the complex is scheduled for October.
To enhance the illusion that you're in Paris, France and not actually in the middle of a vast Nevada desert, the Paris Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas has its own Eiffel Tower, albeit a smaller version.
Likewise, the New York New York Hotel and Casino in Vegas boasts mini versions of the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building.
And of course the Venetian Hotel and Casino in Sin City has its own indoor canals, complete with gondolas and Italian gondoliers.
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Abandoned homes line the streets throughout the city of Detroit
So what can be expected at the D?
So far, the owners have only announced that a Detroit-area restaurant chain, American Coney Island, will open its first outside-of-Michigan franchise at the hotel.
And that there will be a sports bar at the D with televisions always tuned to Detroit sports teams.
But is Detroit really a good idea for a theme for any hotel anywhere?
After all, crime-ridden Detroit in recent years has been known not just as Motor City but as Murder City.
And instead of Motown it should be Mugtown, as in you'll get mugged if you go there.
Because of the crime and urban blight, Detroit has lost half its population in the last generation, and of the folks still around, half their houses are in foreclosure.
And of course the city's last mayor went to jail.
So what could be in the offing when the D officially opens in the fall?
Bellhops in prison jumpsuits? Badly-built cars in the parking lot? A gun under the pillow instead of chocolates atop it?
Only in America, and only in Las Vegas!
By Tom Somach
Gambling911.com Staff Writer
