W Hotels Worldwide logo lights up Las Vegas

Representatives of Marriott International illuminated their W Hotels Worldwide sign for the first time and opened the doors to their first Las Vegas property, the brand’s 50th in the world, Thursday night at the SLS Las Vegas.

“We have been waiting a long time to have a W in Las Vegas,” said Suzanne Cohen, director of North America brand marketing for W, seconds before counting down the sign’s proclamation of the hotel opening.

The W is the Strip’s newest hotel-within-a-hotel with 289 rooms of the SLS Hotel’s Lux tower being converted to the new brand. A similar concept is in place at Mandalay Bay with both the Four Seasons and the Delano brands, and a conversion also is underway at the Monte Carlo, which will host the NoMad brand.

About 200 people gathered at the SLS porte cochere to get a view of the sign and the W tower bathed in soft textured lights as SLS President Scott Kreeger, flanked by four showgirls, thanked the principals behind the project.

The W conversion at the SLS was first announced about 13 months ago by Starwood Resorts Worldwide and San Francisco-based Stockbridge Capital Partners, owner of the SLS. Officials were hopeful of introducing the new brand in September.

But instead, Starwood was acquired by Marriott in a deal that was completed in mid-September, and the W opening was set back.

The W Las Vegas has a separate hotel lobby — branded as the W Living Room — a dedicated entry and reception area for W Hotel guests, and a W-branded spa, outdoor pool and bar area.

A price wasn’t given for the renovation, which was funded by Marriott and Stockbridge.

When the deal was first announced last year, Kreeger said the move would help boost business at the north Strip resort that struggled financially in its early days.

Kreeger, who took over as the property’s president in 2014, called the collaboration to create the W “a bold, strategic move.”

The W brand is considered a luxury product geared to a young, hip crowd, much like the SLS target market, with 49 locations in the U.S. and internationally, according to the company’s website. The closest W Hotels to Las Vegas — in Scottsdale, Arizona, San Diego, West Hollywood and Los Angeles — offer room rates from the high-$300 per night range to well over $700 a night, depending on the size of the room.

Depending on dates, the W Las Vegas rooms go for between $216 and $464 a night.

Among the property’s rooms, designed by Philippe Starck and Gensler & Associates, is the 2,382-square-foot Extreme Wow Suite, designed by Lenny Kravitz, which includes a balcony with views of the mountains to the west.

The W also has three floors and 15,000 square feet of meeting and event space. The rooftop Wet Deck also offers panoramic views of the North Strip and desert mountains.

Through its partnership, amenities at the SLS are easily accessible to W guests.

The W brand is in the midst of a major international expansion with new properties scheduled to open in the next few years in Australia, China, India, Malaysia, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates.

Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on Twitter.