Star Trek The Experience Going to Neonopolis October 23, 2008
Posted by showmescifi in scifi.Tags: las vegas, las vegas hilton, neonopolis, Quarks, Sci Fi, science fiction, sciencefiction, scifi, Star Trek, star trek the experience
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Star Trek The Experience which had been at the Las Vegas Hilton for 10 years is moving to downtown Las Vegas. It closed at the Hilton back in September so this would be a big deal.
According to the Las Vegas Review Journal:
Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman and Neonopolis developer Rohit Joshi say the defunct Star Trek: The Experience attraction at the Hilton is moving downtown…If it works it would be the biggest resurrection since Mr. Spock reanimated on planet Genesis — both for the Experience show and the troubled Neonopolis development
Though I’m thrilled that Star Trek is coming back to Vegas – Neonopolis isn’t the right place. It’s not on the strip and it’s not accessable by the Las Vegas Monorail (like the Hilton). Location is everything – especially in Vegas.
While I still personally might try and make the trek to a Star Trek Experience – i suspect that most convention goers to Vegas won’t – it’s just too hard to get downtown which is why Neonopolis to date has been a total bust.
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Show Me SciFi 
Create parking (lots of parking) and they will come.
Nope, if convention goers are worried about getting there the best thing Neopolis can do is have a free shuttle during the convention to and from the experience.
If they want this thing to work the best thing they can do is start getting more people downtown but creating easier ways to get them there. If the travel is seemless people will go.
I hate saying this but being a LV resident, I think this is the best move they could have possibly come up with.
This crap about he monorail is nonsense. Nobody rides the flippin’ thing anyway. It’s been a phenomenal failure and is ridiculously expensive.
I don’t particularly like downtown but I understand its appeal and it’s more appealing as an address for ST:TE than its previous address.
Downtown is incredibly easy to not only get into, but it’s incredibly easy to get out of as well. The problem for Downtown is parking and they’ll need to address that.
This idea that a bunch of convention goers were flocking to ST:TE is unfounded. The only convention goers that flock to ST:TE are Trek Convention goers. It was a destination for Trek fans and people that already happened to be there.
Downtown, however, is a destination for those on a budget and hence its appeal. The facilities at Neonopolis are new and far larger than what the old landlord, the Las Vegas Hilton, had to offer and you don’t have to trek (pun intended) through a Hotel/Casino to get to it.
And another thing that can’t be dismissed is that before ST:TE was at the Hilton, Trek Conventions were downtown at The Plaza Hotel/Casino. It would seem to make sense to me that that association would be renewed and that Trek fans could actually get more bang for their buck all the way around by being Downtown instead of at the expensive Hilton and basically, stuck on the strip.
I hope it is up and running soon! I am going to LV over Christmas holidays. I have been looking forward to this for years & didn’t realize it had closed. Never mind the monorail issues…I was willing to take an international flight to see this!
Star Trek The experience is one of land mark attractions in Las Vegas. I think the Hilton will regret it decision.
Star Trek fans from all over the world have come to LV just to see the experience. Moving it to Freemont Street is a great move for downtown. Just think what they could do on the street during the convention!! Live star trek episodes playing overhead.
Easier access, less expensive hotels, and a huge area for fans to gather.
Live Long and Prosper!!! Star Trek and Las Vegas!!
I was trully disappointed to arrive in Las Vegas and find out the attraction had closed. We even stayed in the Las Vegas Hilton for that very reason. I was just glad to find out that the attraction was being saved. I don’t care if it is on the Stripe or downtown. We will be there.
I’m glad to see it has found a new home. I’ve been following the updates since its closing, but I have not seen anything new for the last two months (update wise). My wife and I are planning to be in Vegas the first week of March, and we plan on making a trip downtown to check out the progress.
I really would have loved to see it stay on the Strip (seems like Planet Hollywood might have been a good fit for this…I’m sure there has to be some area in the shopping area that would have worked) or even placing it in the Excalibur in place of the run-down Midway game area (Medieval meets Sci-Fi), but as a Trek fan I will make the journey to downtown. Hopefully they will add some missions to the experience. Quark’s was one of our favorite places to eat too as it was fun, good food, great drinks, and not terribly expensive.
As an English Trekkie I could kick myself for not flying to see ST:TE while it was open. I actually cried at the missed opportunity when I found out. I had a windfall a couple of years ago and I had two ways to spend the money – finish buying my Star Trek DVD collection (those box sets in ‘Rip-off Britain used to need a second mortgage to buy all seasons of all 5 Trek incarnations), OR fly to America to see the Experience. As tempting as it was, I envisaged what comfort owning all those DVD’s would bring me when times were hard…..the DVD’s won out. After all, you can’t be a Trekkie if you can’t watch the damn show when you like. But I take a Klingon oath that if it opens again I will be there. I will beg, borrow or steal to get there this time.
I was very dissapointed I arrived at the Hilton and found out that the have closed STTE. The sign outside, the decoration in the casino and than closed doors. Absolutely bad image for the Hilton.
I am sure they will be very annoyed when the found out how successfull STTE will be at Downtown.
No problem, of course I will visit the exhibition in Downtown
Michael from Germany
The reality is that attendance was down and had been for quite a few years. LV Hilton probably thinks that they can make more $$ if they put in something else. I think if they had revamped the experience it would have revitalized the attraction. I made it a point to go almost every trip to Las Vegas (I used to go quite often since I had friends who lived there) ever since it opened. I ate at Quark’s every chance I could and was glad that I had gotten to go so many times over the years. I had to make an emergency trip last year when I found out it was closing and there were a ton of people there (to see it for the last time like us). Quark’s was packed – I hadn’t seen it like that in almost 5 years. I was so sad to see it go (my guilty LV pleasure) and ecstatic to hear it was coming back. Neonopolis is a strange place to put it but I understand that the complex has made an agreement to expand their parking area substantially so I think that will help. Anyone who’s been downtown knows the parking is always a pain and you often have to pay for it even if you go into hotel parking lots. I like the shuttle idea a previous poster mentioned since I usually stay at LUXOR when I’m there. I have taken the bus from the Strip to Downtown – it’s not terrible but it’s also not very fast. I like the monorail but it doesn’t go to Neonopolis so that’s out. I’ll still go to check it out! I understand the Museum and Quark’s (or similar) is opening in May to coincide with the ST Movie and then the ride(s) will open early next year. So don’t go there thinking the rides will be available when they open – you’ll be disappointed. I’ll go there to get my favorite drink – the WARP CORE BREACH. Glad it’s coming back!