When you think of shopping malls, do you think of huge, plate-glass windows, neon signs and endless, straight-as-an-arrow corridors of stores?

After experiencing Desert Passage, you won't think that way anymore. The new, indoor, $300-million mall at the Aladdin is called "experiential shopping." There are no huge display windows, no over-sized signs or blaring Muzak. Instead, Desert Passage transports you into the earthy, open-air marketplaces of Morocco, Arabia and India.

Everywhere you turn, there's something to excite the senses. You'll experience exotic scents wafting on manufactured (but, oh, so realistic) breezes; peer through small, arched windows at the wares inside, and walk the cobbled streets -- always offering a glimpse at something architecturally interesting up ahead.

The streets come alive with special performances - -acrobats, singers and storytellers imported from the Middle East. For the walk-weary, there are Arabian style pedicabs.

Within the 500,000-square-foot mall are distinctly different areas. Sultan's Palace, for example, is rich in gilded gold, Lost City reminds one of Raiders of the Lost Arc and The Harbor offers drifting fog, lapping water and the bow of a freighter looming above the square.

"We considered adding a cloudburst," says Paul Beirnes, marketing executive, "but then we thought of all those ladies in the Versace dresses they just bought and said, 'On second thought, better not.'"

There are more than 130 retailers in Desert Passage. Stores include bebe, Tommy Bahama, Max Studio, Speedo, Gap, Eddie Bauer and Victoria's Secret. You'll also find Clinique, Teuscher Chocolates, Houdini's Magic, Toys International, Sunglass Hut, Footworks, with fashions by Joan Vass, Betsey Johnson, Hugo Boss and Herve Leger. There are also 14 restaurants, including Commander's Palace, Blue Note Jazz Club, Prana and Beluga Bar. Within the mall is a 7,000-seat, performing-arts center for headliners.

The $300-million venture, which is scheduled to open Aug. 17, promises to change the way we think of retail -- and keep people coming back for more.