No Girls Allowed

There is such a thing as male bonding, Wisconsin visitor John Neff insisted as he warmed up to play a round of golf at the Badlands Golf Club, and there's no better time to do it than during a four-day getaway with buddies.

He said this during his recent trip to Las Vegas with 16 other men, an annual vacation paid for by his company. The itinerary for today, a Monday, was golf, golf and more golf. That would be followed by a late lunch, possibly some time at the craps table or swimming pool and then dinner.

"We bond. We talk about guy stuff, sports and business," Neff said, describing the nature of this visit.

Men have taken vacations together in Las Vegas since time immemorial, or at least since the beginnings of Sin City. But guys are taking so many trips together overall, sans wife and/or girlfriend, that travel industry professionals have given it a name: Mancations.

And though men have always come to Las Vegas with business-related groups, they seem to be pursuing more of the nongaming activities than in the past, said Jeanne Mills, chef concierge for the MGM Grand. And there seems to be more of them.

"It is a trend. I do see the trend growing over the last three years at least in Las Vegas. It definitely seems to be thriving," said Mills, who has 19 years of experience as a concierge and stays updated on the latest travel trends.

One way to gauge the mancation trend is to note the kinds of activities and amenities that specifically target men. "You're starting to see spa treatments geared more toward men, gentleman's facials, things that are designed to cater to men," Mills noted.

In the past five years, the percentage of male spa guests has increased from 25 percent to 35 percent, said Rachel Knapp, director of the MGM Grand Spa. She expects that to rise to 40 percent or more in the next year.

Guys who vacation with their buddies tend to come in large groups, Knapp said, but they don't take their spa treatments together like women do.

"They're either preparing for a night out or recovering," Knapp said. "Recovering is big."

A eucalyptus steam seems to be a popular remedy among men, but many also receive facials, pedicures, and, of course, massages. And they're getting manly sounding treatments such as the Icelandic fire and ice ritual or the Gentleman's Escape package.

"Waxing is huge," Knapp said.

Resorts are trying to hook into the mancation trend and build on it by offering man-tailored packages. JW Marriott offers a mancation package for four featuring two suites, butler service, a fully stocked bar and a Ferrari 360 Spider to take them to their manly activities, all for $49,000. The four-day, three-night package also includes golf, a visit to the Richard Petty Driving Experience at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, spa treatments and other amenities.

"We thought we'd offer a package that's over the top," said Jim Rose, the resort's general manager who recently returned from his own mancation in Mexico. "Las Vegas is a destination people come to multiple times a year. When they've been here two and three times they want to do something different."

So far, no one has booked the Marriott's mancation package, Rose said. But people have inquired about it and ended up booking similar but less expensive packages.

Mills' guests tell her that, while their mancations are important, they don't take the place of vacations with their spouses.

"They do their joint vacations together, then they each seem to be doing one separately," Mills said. "It's an interesting trend. It goes back to wanting to maintain individuality, maintain their friendships."

Male guests often ask concierge Mills to arrange for manly kinds of amenities and activities, such as stocking the suite with buckets of beer and pretzels; arranging for a customized outing to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway; white-water rafting trips; and ATV riding. She also has set up poker tournaments, hiking trips and outings to the gun range.

Then there are groups such as Neff and his friends, who sat by the pool one day, played golf every day and did some gambling. All the kinds of things that Neff could do with his wife. So how is a mancation different from a vacation?

"We don't shop," said friend and Idaho native Ken Voelker. "We golf. Hit a pub and grub and die. That's about as simple as it gets. We don't shop. If we did, it'd be in the pro shop and that's about it."