The former Aladdin will officially become Planet Hollywood in mid-April with its major shopping destination, Desert Passage, becoming Miracle Mile in May.

Much of the interior work on the hotel is already headed toward completion with a new lobby, a revamped casino, and major changes to the rest of the public spaces designed to get rid of all traces of the Arabian Nights theme that dominated the old property. In its place is a sleek and modern, very upscale design that looks absolutely nothing like the over-the-top spectacle that is the Planet Hollywood restaurant chain.

Portions of the Desert Passage mall have already been converted to the more contemporary look that will eventually replace all of the Road to Morocco design that currently dominates the space. There will be no “theme,” per se, so don’t expect the kind of visual eye candy that is offered at competitors like The Forum Shops or Grand Canal Shoppes but the new look will offer a more seamless transition between the new Planet Hollywood spaces and the mall.

In addition to the makeover, a lot of new stores, restaurants, and entertainment facilities are going into the mall. The Steve Wyrick theater is already open as is home décor specialists Urban Outfitters, the chic British men’s and women’s wear of Ben Sherman, and the world’s leading outdoor sports lifestyle company, Quiksilver. Still to come are the Polynesian-fusion, food and fun at Trader Vic’s restaurant, the trendy women’s fashions of Marciano, authentic Greek cuisine at Taverna Opa, and Hawaiian Tropic Zone, a dining and nightlife destination.

The interior makeover will continue throughout 2007 and into 2008.

As mentioned, the outside of the building is, as of this writing, mostly covered in tarps and scaffolding but the bulk of that work should be complete by June, at least on the street level. Changes will include adding people movers for better access into the shops, a backlit sidewalk water feature, and state-of-the-art LED video offering continuous streaming imagery. Additionally, many of the mall's entrances and existing retail locations on the facade have already been made over with floor-to-ceiling glass vestibule doors and storefronts. A new patio and terrace is also being built to extend out to the sidewalk and invite potential customers inside.

The rest of the exterior of the building will get a freshening afterward.

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Question: I heard a new rental car facility opened in Las Vegas. How does that change the way people rent cars?

Answer: Yes, it did just open last week, Jack. And now renting a car just got a lot easier – or more complicated depending on how you want to look at it.

Previously, most of the car rental agencies operated counters inside the terminal and their own buses to lots that were within the airport property. So, renting from Avis? Go to the Avis counter by baggage claim, go outside and look for the Avis bus, and go to a nearby lot for your vehicle.

Now, a new $170 million consolidated facility is open south of the airport and the method by which you rent a car is drastically different.

The counters inside the terminal are gone and now instead of individual company buses, there is one bus for all of the car companies. Well, there are lots of buses, but they are all marked “McCarran Rent-A-Car Center” instead of branded with the corporate logos. Buses leave the main terminals roughly every five minutes so waiting won’t be a problem.

Hop on the bus and it’ll take you off of airport property to the new facility on Gilespie Street, near the intersection of Warm Sands and Las Vegas Boulevard South, which for the familiar is where the Las Vegas Outlet Mall is located.

The new facility has counters for Avis, Advantage, Budget, Enterprise, Hertz, Dollar, Alamo, National, Payless, Savmor, and Thrifty car rental agencies and most of the vehicles will be housed in multi-story parking garages, thereby making the prospect of hopping in that Ford Taurus a little less intimidating than it was when it was sitting in the middle of a hot July parking lot.

For more information on the new system, visit McCarran.com and click on the Ground Transportation link.

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