The Park Place Entertainment Company, formerly Hilton Gaming, is the largest gambling operator in the world, due to its merger with Baily's and the purchases of Grand Casinos and Caesar's World. In September 1999, Park Place opened Bally's/Paris Casino Resort in Las Vegas. 1:his property is a prime example of how far casino companies willgo to attract customers and what a successful property can achieve. No expense was spared during the preopening phase. Planners were sent to Paris and Provence in France. An Eiffel Tower replica, an in- tegrated part of the hotel/ casino structure, was built to be exactly one- half the size of the original. The copy of the Arc _de Triomphe, set in the porte-cochere, is also exactly to one-half scale. The French theme is carried through in the 3,000-plus rooms. The eight restaurants in the complex are styled as sidewalk cafes, with staff who greet everyone in French; the streets are authentic cobblestone. Bally's/Paris has been re- ceived with enthusiasm by both the general public and Wall Street. Its return on investment is the envy of all the other casinos in Las Vegas.