Cirque du Soleil Offering Christmas Ornaments

If your family loves Cirque du Soleil, here's a unique gift idea: Cirque du Soleil Ornament Balls. Priced at $34 each, these glass ornaments feature little bits of original costume fabrics, trims and sequins from the costume workshop.

These ornaments are handmade in Canada by artist Holly Dean and are offered exclusively by Cirque du Soleil retail at Bellagio.

Plans Announced for New Henderson Resort

Plans have been announced for the new M Resort, Spa and Casino to be located on approximately 80 acres of land at the southeast corner of St. Rose Parkway and Las Vegas Boulevard. The project, expected to be completed in the Spring of 2009, will be the largest resort built within the city limits of Henderson.

The 11-story resort will consist of 390 rooms and suites with a 20,000-square foot spa as well as multiple restaurants, dining and entertainment options to provide guests with a top South Strip experience.

M Resort, Spa and Casino, located in the southern area of the Las Vegas valley, will be situated 400 feet higher in elevation than the resort-casinos on the world-famous Strip, providing optimal views of the Las Vegas skyline from every room, suite, restaurant and lobby within the resort. The resort will also include a 100,000-square-foot canyon feature pool area with waterfalls.

We'll keep you posted as we learn of family-friendly aspects of this promising new resort.

Floating Ice Rink at Lake Las Vegas Resort

It's almost time for the holidays and, for the fourth year, Lake Las Vegas Resort will celebrate the season with a Rockefeller Center-style ice rink. The rink will open November 16 and remain open until February 17.

The ice rink floats on the 320-acre lake off the shore of MonteLago Village and will be open to skaters of all ages. It uses 110 five-gallon buckets of water and 12,000-pound chiller units to help keep the ice cold, and can accommodate up to 60 skaters at one time.

As the ice rink freezes, stay warm with other activities at Lake Las Vegas Resort, including a ceremonial tree lighting, appearance by Santa Claus and a special musical performance by Green Valley High School Choir and Helen Joy Choir on Friday, November 16.

Holiday Photos at Shark Reef

Mark your calendar: Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay will be giving children a complimentary photo with Santa in the Shipwreck and a candy cane with every paid admission. The photos will be available December 21 through 24 from 10am - 4pm.

VEGAS.com Arrow Transportation Launches

We're always looking for a new way to get around in Vegas so this is good news: VEGAS.com has launched The VEGAS.com Arrow. The VEGAS.com Arrow fleet of buses and trolleys conveniently pulls right up to hotels, city landmarks and local attractions.

Easily accessible and recognizable (you can't miss the 10-foot-long, light-up VEGAS.com arrow logos on the side!), the fleet of VEGAS.com Arrows will be outfitted with video screens featuring updates on the city based on where the customer is physically, and high-tech touch screens for on-the-go purchases of show tickets, front-of-line club passes and tours.

Special Ticket: VEGAS.com is introducing a new $10 combination ticket that provides unlimited daily rides on The VEGAS.com Arrow and on the Las Vegas Monorail. The VEGAS.com Arrow follows routes that encompass Downtown Las Vegas and Fremont Street, the Las Vegas Convention Center and the north, center and southern parts of the Las Vegas Strip. The Las Vegas Monorail has seven stops running from the Sahara Hotel-Casino at the north end of the Las Vegas Strip to the MGM Grand at the south end. Single ride tickets for The VEGAS.com Arrow cost $2.50.

Buying Tickets: All tickets can be purchased on VEGAS.com , www.espanol.vegas.com/transportation/trolley.html and at VEGAS.com retail and concierge locations at Bally’s Excalibur, Flamingo, Harrah’s, Imperial Palace, Luxor, Mandalay Bay, THEhotel at Mandalay Bay, Monte Carlo, New York-New York, Palace Station, Palms, Paris Las Vegas, the Rio and more.

Photo: VEGAS.com President Howard Lefkowitz announces the launch of a new transportation experience, The VEGAS.com Arrow, with touch-screen devices for purchases on-the-go. Photo courtesy VEGAS.com

The Mirage Unveils Aquarium

The Mirage lobby has always been a favorite with families thanks to its spectacular aquarium and now it's better than ever. After a two-month transformation, The Mirage’s famed lobby aquarium – located directly behind the front desk– now offers visitors a new sensory escape.

Now you'll find nearly 1,000 marine life forms thriving in this 20,000-gallon undersea community. Sharks, stingrays and porcupine fish can be seen swimming side-by-side with eels, sea bass and puffer fish behind four-inch thick acrylic walls.

Top aquarium design experts collaborated to enhance the 53-by-8-foot display. The aquarium’s filtration and life support systems also were replaced with new technology to improve visibility and monitoring.

The New Frontier Hotel Set to Implode

In true Vegas fashion, another hotel is set to implode to make way for something bigger, better and newer.

A longtime icon of the Las Vegas Strip, the New Frontier Hotel & Casino, will be imploded Tuesday, Nov. 13 promptly at 2:30 am PST to mark the beginning of the new home of the internationally recognized brand, The Plaza, a multi-billion dollar project set to open in late 2011.

True Religion Opens at Miracle Mile Shops

If you've got a teen in the family, you know the True Religion brand, one known for its high-end denim.

The first Las Vegas location for True Religion has opened at Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino. Shop for denim plus colored corduroy pants, skirts, shirts, shorts, jackets, blazers, hoodies, T-shirts and more for men, women and children. Its expanding product line includes high-quality and distinctively styled denim, denim-related sportswear and licensed products.