Grand Bazaar Shops
Information
At a Glance
What is it?
A marketplace of more than 100 shops and restaurants that is designed to evoke the marketplaces of Europe and the Middle East.
Where is it?
At Bally’s on the Center Strip.
What do they sell?
Tenants include Swarovski, Pro Image Sports, Lush, Wahlburgers, Starbucks, and a new outlet of the popular Tix4Tonight discount show ticket consolidator.
What are the prices like?
Moderate although higher priced than what you would normally pay for this kind of merchandise.
What should I be sure to check out?
There is a thing called the Crystal Starburst by the Swarvski outlet. It’s sort of a Times Square thing that lights up, accompanied by music, every night at 9pm and midnight.
Why should I shop here?
Because Crystal Starburst is the best stripper name ever. That’s about it.
What else do I need to know?
A big CVS is right next door.
What’s the bottom line?
Crystal Starburst…
Full Review
The idea behind the Grand Bazaar at Bally’s is a good one, I think. They transformed what was a fairly boring entryway into a colorful sea of boutiques and quick-serve restaurants done as a modern interpretation of an urban marketplace. People love to shop and eat in Vegas so offering more of that seems like a solid concept, especially since it replaced what basically amounts to a sidewalk and an escalator.
But somewhere between idea and execution, something got lost in translation and I’m left wondering if they had just been better off sticking with the sidewalk.
There is space for about 150 stores although although a lot of them are empty. None of them are very big – remember, this is mean to evoke a marketplace so they are more like glorified stalls than actual stores. That’s not a bad thing at all but if you are expecting a giant CVS… well, now there’s one of those, also, on the south side of the complex.
There are a few name brands including Swarovski, Lush Cosmetics, and Havaianas but most of the rest are independent and small chain stores selling clothes, health and beauty products, sunglasses, jewelry, pet accessories, art, magic supplies, vaping supplies, and various other stuff you probably don’t actually need.
There are a few dining options including a branch of Wahlburgers, Starbucks, Giordano’s Pizza, Subway, and the Waffle Bar plus some bars including one called Redneck Riviera from country star John Rich of Big & Rich. The Starbucks and Wahlburgers, specifically, have increased the foot traffic here but not by a lot. The first time I walked through the place – and this is not an exaggeration – I was literally the only person there on a Saturday at around 1:00pm. Seriously. The sidewalk out front was packed with tourists but not a single, living soul other than me was walking through the Grand Bazaar. The only other people I saw were the ones working there, all of whom looked at me with a bit of desperation (or was it simply despair), hoping against hope that I might actually stop at one of their stores. I felt a little guilty that I didn’t.
Now, to be fair, it was roughly 172 billion degrees on the day I was there so a casual stroll through an outdoor concrete and metal shopping complex may not have been high on anyone’s list, but as mentioned The Strip was teeming with people so you’d think at least a few would veer off to see what was up. Nope.
Since then things have picked up but it really is not a huge draw for people to veer off the sidewalk from getting where they are from to where they are going. If you don’t have any specific destination in mind it might be an interesting distraction but that’s about it.