THE VENETIAN AIR FRESHENER (a problem)

[Brain]

They had the doors open when I was there on Friday afternoon and I smelled it from about 8 feet away. I like it though and remember thinking to myself that I bet it annoys a fair amount of people.

[mebedaman]

I smelled it from my car one time. It is a little strong, but I kinda like the smell.

[terrapin314]

Most of the large/upscale casinos in LV have specific designer scents that they release. There was an article I read about it recently and I will try to find and post.

Most of the clientele in these places don't stink. It would seem to make more sense at Circus Circus...

[mebedaman]

It was a question of the day at LVA for 2/19/06 -- http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/artic...re.cfm?QID=582

You have to subscribe to read it though.

[davebwell]

[ QUOTE ]
Chalk up one more vote for "The Venetian air freshener reeks". The entire casino smells like bathroom air freshener. It's too much...

[/ QUOTE ]

Right before my friend and I entered the Venetian last Sunday I told him there was a 2p2 thread about the smell. When we entered we both said it smelled like a sanitized bathroom.

[surfinillini]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Chalk up one more vote for "The Venetian air freshener reeks". The entire casino smells like bathroom air freshener. It's too much...

[/ QUOTE ]

Right before my friend and I entered the Venetian last Sunday I told him there was a 2p2 thread about the smell. When we entered we both said it smelled like a sanitized bathroom.

[/ QUOTE ]

glad to see I'm not losing my mind

[terrapin314]

Question of the Day
February 19, 2006

Q: What makes the distinctive smells inside the casinos? Mirage and TI have a sweet tropical smell of coconut. The Tropicana smells of smoke and incense sticks. Are these "scents" created and how does the smell stay so strong throughout the casino?

A: This is an interesting question and one that we know has been the subject of a thread on the LVA message boards, where readers commented on the addictive aromas at various Strip properties, including favorites Mandalay Bay, Bellagio, and Mirage (not to mention some of the equally memorable but altogether less desirable smells at some of the less salubrious establishments around town!)

While stories about casinos circulating oxygen to keep players awake have been discounted as urban myth—not least because of the increased fire hazard that pumping pure oxygen around would pose—many properties freely admit that they use fragrances in their casinos and other areas. Why? For a start, it masks the kinds of unpleasant odors that you often detect in the unperfumed casinos: When you combine several thousand perspiring, smoking, beer-spilling people in a confined area, you’re just asking for olfactory trouble.

Although the human sense of smell is feeble when compared to that of many animals, it’s still acute enough, and smells can evoke strong emotional reactions. Our olfactory receptors are directly connected to the limbic system, the most ancient and primitive part of the brain, which is thought to be the seat of emotion. As the ever-growing number of air fresheners, scented candles, essential oils, and perfumes on the market confirms, smell seems to be becoming a sense that we pay more attention to, and certainly a pleasant aroma is more likely to make you stick around than a noxious one. As far as casinos are concerned, we understand that the Mirage pioneered the whole casino-aroma fad back in 1989, when it opened: They wanted to reinforce the resort’s tropical theme and experimented with circulating the scent of coconut butter and suntan oil throughout the property—and people liked it. Mohegan Sun casino in Connecticut is now apparently the largest scented building in the world.

As the burgeoning science of aromachology (not to be confused with the less-than-scientific world of aromatherapy) is beginning to establish, certain scents do appear to have a genuine psychological and physical effect on us when we inhale: vanilla apparently has a calming and comforting effect, for example, while lavender is a clinically proven relaxant. And, of course, from the casinos’ point of view, odds are that if the place makes you feel good and stay longer, you’ll wind up spending more money. (We read of one study that allegedly took place in an unidentified Las Vegas casino, where the amount of money gambled in a slot machine increased by 45% when the site was pleasantly odorized.) Other than that, the scents are entirely innocuous and in no way harmful (although one person on our boards commented that something in the air at the Venetian, which, we understand, uses a combination of herbs, woods, and citrus scents, with a hint of lavender, had made their mother sneeze!)

In order to try and get to the bottom of all the various fragrances we’re assailed with as we wander through the Strip’s megaresorts, we placed calls to a number of PR departments around town. MGM Mirage-Mandalay proved to be particularly helpful in supplying the names of their aromas (see below), which are in a liquid form that is atomized in a very fine mist through the HVAC system. The bad news is that with theirs, as with other properties around town, the scents are custom-made for the casino in question and a) involve complex formulae disguised by trade names that don’t necessarily give you a good insight into what the composition is, and b) the aromas are not available to the general public. But for general interest’s sake, here are the official names of the various smells you’ll experience as you wander around TI and Mandalay Bay:


LOCATION AROMA
TI
Main Casino/Front Desk Coconut Breeze
Tower Center Core Key Largo
High Limit Restrooms Outdoor Fresh
Executive Offices Sunrise
Race/Sports Rest Rooms Yang L. Grass
Sirens Lingerie Shop Sensual
Breeze Bar South Seas

Mandalay Bay

Main Casino Coconut Spice
Front Desk Wildflower
Spa Mandalay Breath of Fresh Air
THEhotel and BATHHOUSE Lavender
Island Lounge Lily