Vol. 5 No. 1, January 2008
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Making a Splash
Facing new competition, the Water Club promises to pamper A fire last fall postponed by several months the grand opening of the 43-story Water Club at Borgata. If VP and General Manager Drew Schlesinger was concerned, he never let it show.
At a November meeting of the Atlantic City PR Council, Schlesinger dismissed the blaze as “a small setback,” though it will enable Harrah’s new 45-story hotel tower to debut first. (The first eight floors of the 941-room tower at Harrah’s will open by March 1; a similar 800-room hotel expansion at Trump Taj Mahal will open on Labor Day.)
All three properties will be vying for the same customers: those in search of premium pampering, and the kind of luxury once reserved for the rich.
At the Water Club, a $400 million hotel now scheduled to open by summer, Schlesinger promised a “Four- or five-diamond experience” with lavish amenities: ayurvedic spa treatments, 400-thread-count Egyptian sheets, an unnamed celebrity chef, and a 25-meter infinity lap pool overlooking the water. Even the pillow covers are deluxe, made of linen with jade buttons.
“There’s a saying in the Waldforf-Astoria kitchen: ‘The difficult we do now. The impossible takes a little longer.’ I take that to heart,” said Schlesinger, former GM at upscale hotels in New York, Miami and Los Angeles.
“‘No’ is not an option at the Water Club,” he added. “If you bring your pet, I will take care of your pet. If we don’t have something you need, I will get it within 24 hours.”
On arrival, guests will be greeted with complementary champagne, wine or a signature beverage delivered by a Water Club “ambassador.” There’s 24/7 room service, twice-daily turndowns, and glass-enclosed Italian marble showers big enough for two. Rooms will include Sony 40-inch flat panel TVs and iHome stereo systems, complete with iPod docking stations.
Immersion, the Water Club’s two-story “spa in the sky,” will feature five heated pools and one of the largest Jacuzzis in North America. The meeting facilities should be equally impressive, with glass-enclosed boardrooms and technology “straight out of the Jetsons,” Schlesinger said.
An adjoining retail mall will feature brands like La Perla, Cavalli, Cameo, Hearts of Fire and Hugo Boss.
When finished, the Water Club will bring the total investment in Atlantic City by Boyd Gaming and partner MGM Mirage to $1.7 billion.
Though Schlesinger referred to Borgata as “the mother ship,” he emphasized that the Water Club is a cosmopolitan hotel and a destination unto itself.
“Obviously, Borgata is the entity that brought Atlantic City to a new level, bringing in $10 billion in new development,” Schlesinger said. “I see Vegas as competition (for the Water Club). I see some hotels in New York and Philadelphia as competition.” But the Water Club, he said, will “knock your socks off.”
