The Tropicana Casino & Resort has been one of the few bright spots in the revenue picture of Atlantic City recently—except for a few big wins by two players—and a big reason has been a policy of new CEO Tony Rodio to court high rollers with high limits at the blackjack and craps tables.

Last month, Rodio unveiled a big perk for those high-end players, hosting a media tour of the property’s new Cielo Suites—26 luxurious rooms in the Trop’s North Tower offering posh West Indies tropical decor and expansive ocean views.

The Cielo Suites—“cielo” is Spanish for “sky”—were designed by Paul Heretakis, principal of Las Vegas-based Westar Architects, along with Lora Hunsaker, project manager for Westar. Architect team members included Elizabeth Cohen and Ali Alonzo. Decorator team members included Rudy Hernandez, Sam Aton and Noli Sarmiento.

Westar used a $5 million budget to convert 88 regular North Tower rooms into the 26 suites in three different sizes. Extras like 24-hour butler service, billiard tables in the larger suites and, in the largest versions, private saunas add to a mixture of classic design and modern conveniences in Westar’s design.

Sizes vary from 450 square feet to 2,170 square feet. Each suite features well-appointed amenities while keeping with the similar theme, such as new wet bars and refrigerators, dining areas, new bedrooms and furniture, showers and vanities that offer transitional to modern fixtures and finishes, spacious living and some formal dining rooms with adjoining bedrooms.

By GGB Staff

Staff writers for Global Gaming Business magazine. Las Vegas, Nevada.