Two Bally’s and a Horseshoe

Mark Anthony on April 13, 2021

Tropicana Las Vegas

Bally's Las Vegas

As if we didn’t see this coming!  News has been leaking out the last few days of some major changes on the strip.  As each piece came out, it added a few more questions before the final piece dropped and it all made sense.

First, VitalVegas was reporting rumors about Bally’s Resort getting a name change.  Back in October, it was reported that Caesars had sold the Bally’s name but not the resort.  To most people that made no sense. But for longtime Vegas aficionados, we knew what was going to be next. Even as Caesars denied any changes were coming.  But with the Rio being sold and news it would become a Hyatt hotel, and with the two-year leaseback by Caesars was ending, we knew the World Series of Poker would be needing a new home.

 

The Name that Changed it All

In 2004, Las vegas were shocked to find that Harrah’s (now Caesars) had set their sites on acquiring the legendary Binion’s Horseshoe in Downtown Las Vegas.  It wasn’t the building they wanted or the actual name of the hotel (Binions). They wanted the name “Horseshoe” as well as the World Series of Poker (WSOP).  They sold the hotel then moved the World Series of Poker to the Rio. A hotel they recently purchased.

As a little mind jogger. Earlier, Harrah’s had purchased Jack Binion’s (son of Benny Binion) Horsehoe gaming empire in Mississippi and the rights to the Horshoe name and brand worldwide except in Las Vegas.

So now we learn that Bally’s will most likely be renamed the Horseshoe and the World Series of Poker will again call the “Horseshoe Resort” home. So what about the Bally’s name? is it leaving Las Vegas?  Nope.

Tropicana Las Vegas

Another Legendary Resort Changes Name

Today, the final piece of news fell and that helped it all fall into place.

“Bally’s Corporation says has reached a deal to buy the Tropicana Las Vegas on the Strip in a deal valued at about $308 million.”

Now you say “$300 million” ?? What’s with that high of a price for that legendary dump??
In a press release, Bally’s announced it will buy Tropicana’s non-land assets for $150 million and enter a 50-year lease deal that will begin at $10.5 million in annual rent.

Let me explain this.  This is the first real sale in the new era of casino ownership. ( See: Is the Tropicana for Sale?) Look at this like you do the Holiday Inn down the street from your house.  One company owns the land and buildings and another company leases the building to run a Holiday Inn.  Then after that lease runs out, they change it to a Choice Hotel.  Same thing here, except it looks like they took it one step further.

From what I can figure out this early in the process, Bally’s bought the rights to run the hotel as a Bally’s then made a separate deal to acquire the trust holding the deed to the land.  It also looks like the company holding the trust is also part owner in the new land trust. Confused yet??

 

Las Vegas 2021: My Thoughts, Predictions?

Mark Anthony on December 31, 2020

The Rio Las Vegas

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So here we are. At the end of what can only be described as the year we wished never happened and the year we want to forget even happened. With that in mind, what could 2021 possibly look like from what we know today? This being the end of the year, I thought it was time to make a few predictions, maybe even call them forward-thinking ideas??

The idea for this was actually sparked by a recent post from Scott Ruben and his popular website Vital Vegas. Where he recently shared some of his usually wacky predictions for 2021. Some of them I agreed with, others I don’t. I will explain here.

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Virgin Hotel las Vegas

The Virgin in Las Vegas

First Up, is the one that had a lot of people wondering about it. The Virgin Hotel. Formerly known as the Hard Rock Resort. Its Grand Opening was scheduled for middle January 2021. Now they have postponed it for “later 2021”. I think it will still open in 2021, Just not in January. I see it opening closer to summertime. For the popular and always profitable pool season.

The sticking point for having a successful grand debut is going to be their need for Virgin Airlines or whatever the reincarnation of that airline becomes in 2021, to start back flying into Las Vegas again. That will be their main clientele and they will need that British market to keep it alive and functioning.

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Tropicana Las Vegas

Will 2021 be the end for the Tropicana?

Now on to the Tropicana.

This one is one of those Vegas resorts that is always on some doom or die list. In 2021, it may finally happen. The predictions may finally be accurate. With the market changing, the new growth from California markets and such, I will agree with Scott here, that the Tropicana could be gone next year. I mean, really gone!

Hilton owns the land and there is a lot there. With the market tanking like it is because of the closed tourist markets, the land is worth more than the buildings. So 2021 may finally be the finale for the Grand Dame of the Strip!  Not sure what would be built there, and I really hate saying this, but I do see the Tropicana being gone in 2021.

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The Rio Las Vegas

The Rio Will Survive in 2021

Speaking of Demolition

Now for the Rio. Recently sold. The new owners are letting Caesars continue to operate it as the Rio for 2 more years.  Plenty of time to move the World Series of poker over to what is currently called Ballys. After that, who knows.

Scott thinks it too will be up for demolition in 2021. I disagree. Too much land there for that right now. I see new markets opening for the non-gaming tourist sector and the Rio is in the perfect location to tap that emerging market.

The hotel is known for its oversized rooms that could make a great place for budget-minded extended stay people. Tapping into the new work from home tourism trend.  MGM and other gaming resorts are trying to tap into that market, but they are going for the upper-level executive who will have an expense account.

The larger untapped market is the one Airbnb and other rental groups are killing it in. This could be the perfect place for the average work from home staff member who doesn’t have to work from their home and doesn’t have an expense account to fall back on.  If they were to add some price friendly minimarkets and shops in the courtyard – you have a great opportunity to fill the place up all year round.

Meanwhile, you are generating cash to use for expansion or diversification of all that open land.  Make it into a sports field or something like that.

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The Palms

The Hard Rock to-be?

Across the Street

The Palms, currently owned by Station Casinos who are the largest off-strip casino/resort company in Las Vegas, and they have it closed with no plans to reopen it.  I talked about this earlier in another video and I am sticking to my prediction. In 2021 I see Stations unloading it at any cost and the Seminole Indians who own the Hard Rock brand picking it up for their rumored return to the Strip.

It’s close enough to be thought of as “on the strip” without being on the actual strip and still get the business from there as well as from the Vegas locals. The bonus would be having the Palms Tower across the parking lot.  This would tap into the new work from anywhere tourist who are starting to find Las Vegas to be a nice place to work from.

What about the North Strip?

To me, I think 2021 will be the year The Drew finally gives up the ghost. Here is where Scott and I agree. The Drew, or what I call the Big Blue Silo, will once again be out of business. The current owner has stopped work on the tower and creditors have started to put liens on the property.  I say it will go bankrupt again in 2021.

Maybe finally someone will have had enough and blow it up. Vegas has not had a good demolition in years.

And that brings us to that big hole in front of the big blue silo. The “All Net” arena that has never gone past being a big hole in the ground. Rumor has it that we are in line for an NBA expansion team in 2021. And that it could eventually go there

I think it’s not going to happen. The NBA is having a marketing and fanbase meltdown after pushing the Black Lives Matter propaganda into every game and allowing millionaire players to publicly protest whatever they were protesting while dribbling a ball. Their Fan base is shrinking rapidly.  The same issues that are going to kill off NASCAR in a couple of seasons as well.

So the hole will stay a hole in 2021 and Vegas, I predict will not get an NBA team (yet).

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MSG SPhere

The MSG Sphere is here to stay!

The MSG Sphere

Now if the Big Blue Silo happens to go bye-bye in 2021, then I could see another venue taking both plots of land in 2022 or later. And that brings us to Madison Square Gardens – AKA The MSG Sphere. That globe-shaped arena being built behind the Venetian.

Scott thinks this will be abandoned by MSG as the Las Vegas market continues to struggle to recover. I don’t see it that way. I see it as the opposite. Las Vegas offers MSG just Too much of an opportunity here and a great money-making challenge to beat out their competitor who has had the market to themselves for too many years.

Build this futuristic musical venue and they will certainly dominate over Axis/Ticketmaster, the company currently controlling the major entertainment venues in Las Vegas. I say it will continue to be built and it will open on the new scheduled date of 2023.

Ballys Las Vegas

Bally’s to be the Horseshoe??

Onward to El Dorado

From there, we head further south on the Strip. Eldorado Casinos bought up Caesers in 2020 and will be in full control of all the company assets in 2021.

They are focused more on the gambling market and will need to shed some of their properties that don’t fit that mold and to bring stability to the financial sheets.  Ballys will stay but it will be renamed the Horseshoe in 2021 and the World Series of poker will finally return to where it started. Well, at least return to the name of a casino where it all started in1970.

I see Planet Hollywood and the Cromwell being sold off in 2021. They just don’t fit the Eldorado/ casers mold and would be an easier sell than their other properties. This should open the door to allowing some new companies to come in and open up shop on the strip. Finally adding some healthy competition to the Strip and to Las Vegas itself.

Fiesta Henderson

Housing, Hotel, and Entertainment Project?

The Local Market

For us who live here or are part-time residents; snowbirds and such.

Station Casinos I think will have a big story in the first half of 2021. They own several popular off-strip casino resorts. By now, most of them have reopened. However, Three of their properties are still closed and I don’t see them opening up ever again. Texas Station, Fiesta Las Vegas, and Fiesta Henderson.

Back in the early 2000’s Station Casinos had been buying up cheap land with plans for major expansion as the valley expanded as well. Vegas expanded, but the local gambling market hasn’t. It’s actually degreased.  Now they have essentially overbuilt. They also have too many resorts already open that are too close together. So something has to give.

Like with Hilton and the Tropicana, it’s a situation where the land the closed properties sit on, is worth more empty than with the buildings on them. Look at it another way. Since they are in the residential areas and the housing market is booming right now.  So they can flip the properties quickly and easily for almost immediate demolition and construction of new housing.  Quick cash!

If they are using a subsidiary or a real estate trust for the building, they could make some nice continuous cash by managing the communities and owning the Home Owners Association (HOA). That’s easy cash for life with very little staff or maintenance to worry about.

I see all three going away in 2021. I see Stations announcing the surrender of the gaming licenses for these three properties and clearing them off. Something they are already doing with some of the vacant lands they own around the resort.

I need to make an asterisk here. Fiesta Vegas, Yes, gone. Texas Station, Yes, gone.  Complete demolition and flipping the land to housing.  However, with Fiesta Henderson, I see predict a different scenario in 2021.  They are already converting the vacant land to condos. However, as we begin to recover and attract more drive-in tourists and tourists more focused on Lake Mead or National Park tours than gaming or the Strip, I could see them salvaging the hotel part. Like the Rio, maybe more of an outdoor courtyard, entertainment district around the hotel.  Then whatever land is left over, build more housing on it.

Any way you look at it, I see 2021 as the year Las Vegas begins to rebuild itself into something newer, grander, and certainly much different than what we knew it as now.  Something it has been done constantly for the past 115 years! never staying stagnant for long!

That’s it. there we have it… My brief look into what could be the near future of the place we call las Vegas.
What do you think? Do You Agree??  Leave me your comments and questions down below.

Where to Put The Hard Rock Resort?

Mark Anthony on August 20, 2020

[arve url=”https://youtu.be/LPArVFCogUo” title=”Where Would You Put The Hard Rock Resort” description=”If the Hard Rock resort returns to las Vegas, where would you put it??” /]

The Las Vegas rumor mills are busy talking about a lot of things.  One of them is the idea that the Seminole Indians, the tribe that owns the Hard Rock brand, wants to bring the resort back to Las Vegas and they want to put it someplace on the Las Vegas Strip.

If this is true, where would be a good place to put it?

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A Little Hard Rock History

The Hard Rock Casino Resort opened in Las Vegas in  March 1995 as the world’s first rock-n-roll themed hotel. It was owned by Peter Morton, one of the founders of the Hard Rock brand. He controlled the American naming rights to Hard Rock west of the Mississippi River.

The Hard Rock Resort was an instant hit even if it was one mile off the famed Las Vegas Strip.  This was THE place for those who wanted to see and be seen (long before Instagram and selfies!) The Gods of rock music came here for shows, events and fans.  Sports legends even made it a point to have events here.  All the “A list” celebrities made it a point of either be staying here or at least being seen hanging out here.

It also had a famous or infamous pool scene. Some of the first “day-club pool parties” started here.  The weekend version of the pool parties was called Rehab and they even made it into a reality show. Rehab brought in musical celebrities and hot bikini models as well as those who thought they were celebrities.

The top dogs don’t always stay top dogs. The Hard Rock may have started the day clubs and pool parties, but the resorts on the Strip started to quickly cut into their action,  Then came the Palms Resort. This new place opened in 2001 with a larger, more aggressive marketing for celebrities. In 2007, the Hard Rock resort was sold to an investment group as the competition for parties and celebrity sightings intensified on the Las Vegas Strip.  Peter Morton ended his involvement in 2011

In 2018, an investor group including Virgin Hotels buys the property. It closed for good right after the Super Bowl in February of 2020.  The property is being extensively being remodeled and will reopen later this year as Las Vegas’ first Virgin brand hotel.

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The Rest of the Story

In 2006 the Seminole Indian tribe from Florida buys the Hard Rock café and casino business. Basically they owned The Hard Rock brand worldwide, except for whatever operations Peter Morton had set up west of the Mississippi River. Meaning they did not own the Hard Rock Resort Las Vegas brand.

In May of this year, the Seminoles using their corporate name “Hard Rock International”  acquire the Las Vegas Hard Rock brand. Giving them worldwide control of the Hard Rock name.

Now it is rumored that they are shopping around to see if they can bring it back to Las Vegas and if so, where to put it..  The rumor says they want to be on the Strip this time. Good Choice!  But where on the Strip?

That’s the Big Question!

This Is Las Vegas, Not Florida

During the time of the Rehab reality show, the Seminole Tribe tried hard to distinguish their brand from the Las Vegas brand. It was said they really didn’t like the pool scene. Even if that’s what was driving the business. And to be honest, the Rehab parties were drawing in some unsavory people and those with less than admirable intentions!

So now, if the rumors are true, are they wanting to bring back the Las Vegas version of the Hard Rock brand? Or are they wanting to bring their generic playbook they use in Florida and use it to operate here?

Speaking from experience, I can tell you that if they plan to bring their Florida Hard Rock version to Las Vegas, they may as well stay home. It will fail in Las Vegas.  Las Vegas is in its own universe and a lot of retailers learned the hard way that what works elsewhere, doesn’t work in Las Vegas.  Doing business here, you need to bring your “A” game and take that up a notch or two if you want to succeed here on the Strip. Name alone will not mean success.

My Choices for Locations

Ok, so let’s say they are going to be looking to bring back the las Vegas Hard Rock.  That’s what I base my choices on. is that they want to be a serious player in the Las Vegas Strip market.  They want to be the king of cool and regain the crown of “The Hot Spot” for Vegas celebrity sightings, amazing concerts and the coolest pool parties on earth.

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The Original El Rancho Site

The El Rancho Las Vegas

Nothing has succeeded here at The El Rancho in forty years!

This site sits right across from the Sahara resort at the north end of the Las Vegas Strip.  It has stood empty for over 60 years. The El Rancho was one of the first “resorts” to open outside of downtown Las Vegas and it met with an unhappy ending.  Supposedly the owner did not like the mob coming in and gambling, and they “86’d” the wrong guy. A few hours later, the main structure went up in flames.  And nothing has succeeded there ever since.

Today it is owned by Phil Ruffin. He’s the Oklahoma oilman who bought the Treasure Island and Circus Circus from MGM.  Just prior to the shutdown, he had the lot rented out for events and concerts. So he was already making his investment back really easy. Not sure if he would want to sell, but if so….

The location would be just a bit on the small side for what the Hard Rock would need to build on but it could work..   What the location lacks in size, makes up for in location.  A near-perfect location for the traffic and for marketing to both the Fremont Street fans as well as the hardcore Vegas Strip crowd.

The Old Frontier Site

Again, one of the original resorts on what became the Las Vegas Strip sat here and was a very popular place with a rich history of entertainers playing there.  This is where Elvis Presley was boo’ed off the stage in 1964 and the last place Diana Ross and The Supremes played together.

Like the El Rancho site, The Hard Rock would be built to their specifications and take a few years before they could open up and start generating cash flow.

The location is perfect for the Las Vegas brand of a Hard Rock style resort.  Sitting across from one of the newest and hottest pool party locations, the Encore Beach Club.  The resorts in that area are filled with the prime tourist that the Hard Rock would want in their resort.  Young, urban, big credit card limits and always wanting to be with the “in” crowd. You have the Wynn, the Encore and the new Resorts World. Not to mention being in front of the popular Trump International.

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The Tropicana Resort

Tropicana Las Vegas open land

The “always for sale” Tropicana was my original favorite choice and for so many reasons. Mainly, its currently being shopped around by its owners.. Looking for a possible new owner. And its perfect location for growth opportunities.

If Las Vegas ever gets to reopen, the south end of the Strip is about to enter into a high wave of redevelopment with the opening of the new Allegiant Stadium and the expansion of business surrounding the stadium. Getting in now would save them millions.

The Tropicana has separated buildings, the refurbished pool(s), and the open land for further expansion. They could literally walk in tomorrow and start making money.   You have an area for families, you have an area for the club crowd and you have an area for the party crowd.

Open up immediately, get the money flowing and as you do, take the open land and start to expand or remodel. Make it how you want it to be with no downtime.

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The New Entry is The Palms

The Palms to be the new Hard Rock?

This would be the best place to put the Hard Rock Casino in Las Vegas

What was once the undisputed champion of places in Las Vegas to see and be seen, has fallen on hard (ownership) times. For most of the first decade of this century, This was the place to party.  It was built for tourists and locals alike to come play, party, see the celebrities and be where the action was.

The now-shuttered Palms Resort awaits possibly a new owner who knows how to maximize its opportunities!

The resort that had multiple sized event venues from intimate party lounges to all-out, let’s open the roof and party under the stars (the roof on the second tower actually did open! )

In its two towers were hotel suites like no other place on earth. The fantasy tower was appropriately named.  One of its more famous fantasy suites was the Hugh Hefner Playboy Suite, also known as the Sky Villa.  The two-story Sky Villa on the top floor billed at $40,000 per night, is listed at number 5 on the World’s 15 Most Expensive Hotel Suites compiled by CNN!

It also had/has multiple restaurants for every taste and almost every budget. Multiple night clubs, the casino, and the famous concert venue, The Pearl. The Palms has so many options for how to spend your nighttime in Las Vegas, you could get a headache thinking about them all!

The third tower is the Palms Place condominium. separately owned. It is connected to the Palms main tower by a private walkway.  Palms Place was and still is home to some of the swankiest condominiums and private homes in Las Vegas. Many of them are available for rent online!

Today it is closed with the current owners telling the world that they have no plans to reopen it.  After extensive remodeling, the owners (Stations Resorts) have a place that is so far out of their comfort zone, they are feeling clueless and are scared about what to do with all of its possibilities and opportunities. It needs to be the new Hard Rock!

Better than the Tropicana, Hard Rock resorts could open tomorrow morning and have parties started in the afternoon and a big named concert on the same evening.   No need to remodel or expand. It’s all there, waiting for someone with experience in marketing to that crowd, to bring it back to life.  And it has a killer view of the Las Vegas Strip!

There is no better place to put the Hard Rock back in Las Vegas other than right here!

Do You Agree?  If the rumors are true, Where do you think it should go
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More From The Vegas Tourist

Other Links of Interest

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Is The Tropicana For Sale?

Mark Anthony on August 6, 2020

Mark Anthony at Tropicana

So what is the real scoop on the “Sale” of one of the most iconic and historic resorts on the Las Vegas Strip? Is it for sale? The Short Answer? Yes and No.


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The Tropicana first opened in 1957 and for most of its life was owned by if not operated by the mob.  It wasn’t until 1979 when it was sold to the hotel chain Ramada Inn, that it finally became a “legit” resort.

Tropicana resort las vegas

The Tropicana Resort Las Vegas Postcard. Early 1960’s (?)

 

The Tropicana was always a low-rise, bungalow-style hotel resort. Then in 1986, they added the 21-story Island Tower. Ramada wanted to be a “legitimate family friendly” hotel operator, so in 1989, they spun off all of its gaming properties, including the Tropicana. The name of the new company was The Aztar Corporation.

For the next twenty years or so, the resort changed hands multiple times. You needed a scorecard to keep up with the change of ownership.  As Las Vegas started to really bloom and flashier resorts started to come online, the Tropicana was just holding its own. Keeping it fresh looking with a new coat of paint and occasionally changing the towels.  The various owners were all out-of-town operators who just liked to cash the checks.   Why change anything if the bank account is full?  It was making money, who wasn’t back then?  But any profits seemed to find their way back to the new owners, nothing for the resort itself.

In 2008, everyone was over-extended on credit.  The Tropicana owner at the time was Columbia Sussex Gaming, they filed for bankruptcy. They had used the Tropicana as collateral for a $440 million secured loan that was bought by its creditors in 2009.  This buyout was led by Canadian private equity firm Onex Corporation and former MGM Mirage CEO Alex Yemenidjian, who took over as CEO.

Moving Forward.

In August 2015, Penn National Gaming purchased the Tropicana for $360 million.

April 2020 Penn National sold the property to its spin-off real estate holding company called Gaming and Leisure Properties for $307 mill in rent credits. So the Tropicana resort property is now owned by Gaming and Leisure Properties who are leasing the property to Penn National Gaming who run it as The Tropicana Resort. Got all that?

Penn National has two years of rent credits as well as the option of three one-year extensions.  They have the same deal with its sister property, The M Resort at the south end of the Las Vegas Boulevard.

 

Resort Property Leasing?

The idea of the resort leasing the building from a real estate trust is nothing new for most of the resort and travel industry.  Most hotels do not own the land or buildings but lease them from a development company.  That Holiday Inn Express down the street from you? It can quickly become a Comfort Inn or a Motel Six without much more than a different lease agreement and some new signs.

In Las Vegas, this is kind of a revolutionary idea. Up until about five years ago, the resorts owned and operated it all. The buildings, the land, and the resort were all one company.  Then the CEO’s and Board of Directors, in a hot streak of profitability and multi-million dollar bonuses came up with the idea to do the same thing here. Create a Real Estate Trust (RET) and let the big shots get the first option to “buy-in” to the RET.. Then the resort company leases the property from the trust. The resort now has to pay rent each month.

This new arrangement has helped fend off a few hostile takeovers and other issues they thought they were having over who had control of the Las Vegas Strip.

This new way of operating works now because gaming is no longer the breadwinner of the resorts.  In what many people call “the good old days” of Las Vegas, it was the casino profits that paid for much of the resort’s upkeep and guest perks.  That’s what kept the dinner buffets cheap and the drinks and lounge acts free.  But now gaming is only about 30% of the income for your typical Las Vegas resort.  The other areas of the resort are now required to pay their share of the expenses.

Tropicana Las Vegas open land

The Tropicana Benefits

The trust owning the land the Tropicana sits on has recently let the world know they are looking at offers for the property. With the potential new boom coming to the south end of the Las Vegas Strip, this corner could be a great deal given the right circumstances.

The Tropicana is a very historic resort.  The name carries some great history as well as some possible baggage.  It was here that you can say the real takedown of the Las Vegas Mob really began. When in 1979, the Kansas City Mobster Carl “Tuffy” DeLuna, had his home raided by the FBI, they found copious notes on who got what from each of the skims at the Tropicana.  Yes, that scene in the movie Casino took its cue from the real event.  Although in real life, he lived and was entenced to 30 years in prison, DeLuna was released in 1998 and died 10 years later.

It sits on one of the busiest corners in America, if not the world. Hundreds of thousands of cars (and people) from all over, (normally) pass that corner every week. Across the street sits one of the largest hotels in the world, the MGM Grand.

Why The Interest in Selling?

The Tropicana Resort property has one thing few if any other resorts on the Las Vegas Strips have: OPEN LAND! Lots of it! If, say, the Hard Rock wanted to get back on the Strip fast, this would be a great place for them to open. No real downtime.  Take it over, change names, and keep the doors open.  As you operate the resort, use the open land to start rebuilding as well as expand.No time lost.

Personally, I would hate to lose the Tropicana name from the Strip. It has a legacy there that could be tapped for some great marketing for the right owner.

 

The Answer to the Question

Recently, the real estate trust and the operators of the resort have made fresh comments regarding the potential of the sale of the resort.  With the possible opening of the new stadium a few blocks away, with the potential for the new businesses that are also in planning stages for the south part of the Strip, they were sending out signals out to evaluate the potential of any sales.  Not needing to actually find new owners right now, but to see what the interest was(?).

However, if such a deal had made them go to the next step, this was the idea.  The Tropicana property is for sale. The 31 acres and all structures on the land (Gaming and Leisure Properties) are what’s offered for sale.  The Tropicana Resort operator (Penn National Gaming) has to years’ worth of rent credits, plus potential extensions that would be passed on to the new owner of the land.  OR the new landowner could purchase the land and purchase the resort rent credits and take over the resort as well and start new.

Did That Make Sense??

 

Ask: How Many Rooms on That Corner in Las Vegas??

Mark Anthony on October 18, 2017

How Many Hotel Rooms on That Corner in Las Vegas

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Looking down the Las Vegas Strip, at all those tall, impressive towers of hotel rooms.  Don’t you ever wonder just how many hotel rooms and suites are there? It’s a popular question on my walking tours and according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, the people who are supposed to know those things, there are 148,000 hotel rooms/suites in the Las Vegas Valley. (Read: LVCVA Vegas Stats)

About 120,000 of those rooms are right there on the Las Vegas Strip.  On one of the busiest street corners in the Las Vegas valley, Tropicana and Las Vegas Boulevard, there are over 12,000 hotel rooms between four properties.

The MGM Grand

How Many Hotel Rooms on That Corner in Las Vegas

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The MGM Grand opened in 1993.  A total of 5, 124 rooms in one structure.  That makes it the largest single hotel building in the United States.  That number does not include the three MGM Signature towers in the back of the property or the exclusive MGM Mansion tucked away behind the Showcase Mall along Las Vegas Boulevard.

MGM Grand sits where The Marina Hotel and Casino was located. When they started to build the MGM Grand, instead of tearing the old hotel down, they incorporated into the west wing of the current structure!

New York – New York

The New Yrok New York Hotel in Las Vegas

The newest kid on the corner. The New York – New York hotel and casino opened in 1997 with 2,024 rooms and a world-famous Manhattan Express roller coaster.

The hotel includes several towers built to resemble famous New York City landmarks such as the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building. In front of the property is a replica of the Statue of Liberty sitting in a reconfigured New York harbor.

The Tropicana

Tropicana Las Vegas, the grande dame of the Strip

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Yes, what I call “the Grande Dame” of the Las Vegas Strip. Originally built in 1957, it is the oldest operated casino hotel on the Strip with 1, 467 rooms. This lovely lady has seen it all.  The Mob, the boom and bust of the Las Vegas economy.  A lot of people said this was “the next one to go” and yet it still stands with a recently refurbished, south Miami vibe to it.

The Excalibur 

The Excalibur Hotel in Las Vegas

One of the more unique hotels on the Las Vegas Strip.  It opened in 1990 and has 3,081 rooms.   When it first opened, guests entered by walking across a drawbridge with a fire-breathing dragon lurking in its moat.  Laugh as you may, As of 2016 Excalibur is the seventh-largest hotel (by the total number of rooms) in Las

Laugh as you may, As of 2016 Excalibur is the seventh-largest hotel (by the total number of rooms) in Las Vegas and the eleventh-largest hotel worldwide!

On March 21, 2003, Josh Ford of Los Angeles hit the largest Megabucks Jackpot to date of $39.7 million at Excalibur.

That gives us a grand total of 12, 596 hotel rooms on one street corner!  Give or take a few hundred to account for puffed up room counts in marketing materials (after all, Las Vegas is home to the “World’s Largest (fill in the blank)”.  Plus taking in to account reconfigurations over the years, I think I got a pretty accurate count!

What Do You Think??