Las Vegas

Get ready for more change along the  Las Vegas Strip: Look for alterations to the faces of the New York-New York and Monte Carlo hotels and the addition of an expansive public plaza featuring a variety of new restaurants and shops. The new outdoor space, expected to open early next year, will bring significant changes to the facades of both properties, it was announced Thursday. New York-New York's mock skyline, including its replica of the Brooklyn Bridge, is to be modified to make room for the new development.

Beer drinkers who enjoy quaffing the creations of craft brewers can slake their thirst April 27 at the Great Vegas Festival of Beer . Those who don't live in Las Vegas will be provided with free rides to their hotels if they overindulge. Guests can sample more than 200 beers from about 50 local, regional and international breweries. The promoter, a Las Vegas group called Motley Brews , has collaborated with the Nevada Craft Brewers Assn . to create a new product, Pyrite Pale Ale, for the festival.

LAS VEGAS -- The cavalcade of A-list stars continued to descend upon Caesars Palace here Wednesday, as Johnny Depp turned up to wow movie theater owners at CinemaCon, days after Brad Pitt put in a surprise appearance. Depp's arrival to tout Disney's "The Lone Ranger" film wasn't actually all that shocking, of course. The actor has often showed up as an unannounced guest at Comic-Con. Last year, he popped up at CinemaCon to promote his movie "Dark Shadows. " PHOTOS: Billion-dollar movie club In the Disney movie, Depp stars as Tonto, a Native American who forms an unlikely partnership with uptight Texas Ranger John Reid (Armie Hammer)

Las Vegas is heating up -- weather-wise. Temps next week are expected to be in the 90s. Visitors can take the plunge at pools other than the one at their hotel. In fact, even the swanky Mandarin Oriental is allowing those who aren't registered there to enjoy its exclusive pool and first-class amenities (and more on that in a minute). There's generally (but not always) a charge for non-guests, and the fees can change if, for example, a pool is hosting a special event. Some pools welcome families; others are for adults only.

Amateur cooks are invited to don their chef's aprons and prepare three-course meals during a series of culinary classrooms throughout the year at Bellagio in Las Vegas . Executive chef Edmund Wong will conduct the lessons inside the resort's Tuscany Kitchen. Once a month, beginning at 7 p.m. Wednesdays, a maximum of 15 participants will gather at individual work stations prepped with the ingredients and tools needed to create an appetizer, entree and dessert. Members of Wong's team will circulate through the kitchen to provide hands-on assistance as he prepares the dishes.

LAS VEGAS -- Movie theater owners aren't known for being the most raucous crowd. But plop Brad Pitt in front of them and anything can happen. "I love you!" one woman shrieked from a balcony in the cavernous 4,100-seat Caesars Palace Colosseum, where hundreds of exhibitors from around the world had gathered Monday night for CinemaCon. At the annual convention, studios show off footage from their most hotly anticipated releases and fly in movie stars to help promote their films to those who book them in cinemas.

Competitive eaters will don their bibs and face off Saturday in Las Vegas in a hot dog-eating contest at New York-New York . The competition, which will take place on the resort's Brooklyn Bridge, is a preliminary round for the international championship, which will be July 4 in New York City. The pigout gets underway at 1 p.m. as hotel employees compete for bragging rights. At 2:30, local first responders and military personnel will go head-to-head in a chow-down for charity.

LAS VEGAS -- A dirt road just outside this desert city ends in chills: 40 caged lions roaring and ready for visitors. But the crowds aren't coming.  The Lion Habitat Ranch is a sanctuary for big cats, the legacy of the original MGM Grand lion that growls before each feature film. For more than a decade, the wild cats were the main attraction at the MGM Grand Casino's lion habitat, a 5,000-square-foot, glass-encased structure that was closed in 2011 as part of a major renovation.

A month before he set off on a rampage gunning down law enforcement officers in Southern California, ex-LAPD Officer Christopher Dorner walked into a North Las Vegas pawn shop and sold a .38 revolver for $50. Now the shop, Bargain Pawn, has put the gun up for sale in an online auction, hoping to donate proceeds to victims' families. Three days into the two-week auction, 18 bidders had driven the price up to $585 as of midafternoon Friday. “Appears to have been refinished and exterior is in very nice shape,” reads the posting, accompanied by a surveillance camera image of Dorner and a copy of the sale ticket with his signature.

Las Vegas ' latest fusion of dining and night life will be launched Thursday with the opening of the Hakkasan nightclub inside the MGM Grand . The signature restaurant is to open May 3. The upscale Cantonese restaurant will be the 10th from the global group, but the multi-story nightclub will be a first for Hakkasan. Various night-life venues featuring eclectic entertainers and innovative mixologists will occupy the upper three floors of the five-story mega-venue.