Las Vegas to Reopen a Week from Now, with a Few Buts

(CNN) - Las Vegas will be back as of June 4, but it won't look like the destination people know and love. 

Detailed housekeeping checklists. Half-empty casinos. Reservations-only dining. No shows, nightclubs or sporting events. These are just some of the realities that travelers can expect when Las Vegas reopens for tourist traffic next week.

Like much of the country, the city effectively has been shut down to visitors since mid-March, an effort on the part of casino companies and local officials to slow the spread of Covid-19.

Now, after more than 70 days of locked resorts, shuttered restaurants, lap-less lap dances and a deserted Las Vegas Boulevard, Sin City is gearing up to lean into sin again — at least, as much debauchery as one can experience wearing a face mask, sanitizing hands regularly and standing or sitting six feet from everyone else.

Even a new television advertising campaign uses plain language to alert visitors that things may be unfamiliar in Las Vegas for the foreseeable future: "The world has changed, and Vegas is changing with it," the ad says.

That ad was produced by the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority (LVCVA), the organization charged with marketing Southern Nevada and the same group that put together the famous "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas" campaign. CEO Steve Hill said the idea behind the new ad is to reassure visitors that while Las Vegas might not look familiar, it's still the same place.

Without question, the most important aspect of reopening Las Vegas is reopening the hotels — people who are visiting from outside the city obviously need places to stay. At last check there were roughly 150,000 hotel rooms around the Las Vegas Valley; only a fraction of these will open June 4.

On the Las Vegas Strip, the 4-mile stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard that runs from the "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign to Sahara Avenue, casinos to open June 4 will include New York-New York Hotel & Casino, The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, Bellagio, Caesars Palace, the Flamingo Las Vegas, the Venetian and Wynn Las Vegas.

Off-Strip, many Station Casinos and Boyd Gaming resorts are opening on the same date.

All casino resorts will reopen with ample hand sanitizing stations throughout the properties. They also will give out free face masks (some even branded with company logos). 

Some, such as Bellagio and New York-New York, will have actual hand-washing stations with water and towels and soap. New signage will recommend that guests always wear masks, but the face coverings will not be required for visitors — just for employees.

Some resorts will embrace additional precautions. Wynn Resorts properties plan to use thermal imaging cameras at every entrance to intercept people with fevers. The Venetian has put together a team of 25 Emergency Medical Technicians to be on hand in case guests require immediate attention.

What’s more, many hotels will roll out keyless entry programs to minimize queues at the check-in desk, and most will reopen with free parking — a longtime Vegas amenity that gradually disappeared over the course of the last two years.

On the flipside, nightclubs, shows and some spas will continue to be closed for the foreseeable future — part of an ongoing order from Sisolak designed to minimize risk, promote adequate social distancing and protect public health.

One of the biggest differences between pre- and post-pandemic Vegas will be in-room housekeeping protocols.

In the past, each company had its own set of rules. Now, all hotels must comply with procedural cleaning standards as provided by the Centers for Disease Control, Southern Nevada Health District, World Health Organization and the local gaming control board.

Finally, dining rooms will be set in such a way that no table is closer than six feet from another table — even if the tables are outside.