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LAS VEGAS Area Attractions
Las Vegas, Nevada
---- THE LATEST BUZZ ----
(12/18/2024) Primm Valley Update, One Casino Is Said To Be Closing For Good
(12/7/2024) AREA 15 Breaks Ground on New Interstellar Arc Attraction Plus Updates for Universal Horror and John Wick Experience
(11/30/2024) Dopeameme Opens at Area 15
(11/19/2024) Buffalo Bills Status Update
(11/16/2024) New Casino with NBA-Ready Arena Proposed For North Las Vegas Strip
(11/3/2024) Universal Horror Unleashed Details Confirmed for Las Vegas
(10/30/2024) Caesars Entertainment Makes Two Major Deals plus a Universal Horror Unleashed Update
 Las Vegas News - (12/18/2024) A quick update from the Stateline area Primm Valley casinos. According to a post on BlueSky, all three of the Primm casinos were actually open as of yesterday, though I believe the only one being used as a hotel is Buffalo Bills.
On a related note however, Casino.org has just reported that Whiskey Pete’s will close forever at the end of the year. The plan is apparently to keep Primm Valley and Buffalo Bills up and running, but I’m not sure what will become of Whiskey Pete’s. Since the later is located on the opposite side of the I-15 freeway from the rest of the resort, it does make it more likely that they may just try to sell off the property to another developer for some other kind of use.
Also, all the Stateline Casinos are open! Buffalo Bills is making a bit of a comeback, crowd-wise (though no operational rides). I saw people go in and out of Whiskey Pete’s.
The big shock: Primm Valley, despite looking abandoned, is actually open! If you can call it that. ??
[image or embed] — Rideguy70 (@rideguy70.bsky.social) December 17, 2024 at 8:15 PM
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(11/30/2024) Dopeameme, the latest new addition at Area 15 in Las Vegas has now opened. According to the description posted by Blooloop, the attraction designed by vinyl toy designer Superplastic, “offers a story-driven experience, with guests exploring 12 different activations and four interactive experiences.”
(11/19/2024) For those wondering, we’ve been sent links to photos showing off a current visit to Buffalo Bill’s, outside of Las Vegas. While things all look well at the casino (which is now home to the Bonnie & Clyde Death Car that originally was set up at Whiskey Pete’s), it looks like the casino is done playing with the rides. The entrance to Desperado, which is said to only test once a month, is now blocked off by a row of vending machines, the few old signs once in place have been removed, and the log flume that was seen with running water on and off through the summer is now dry as a bone once again. The monorail that used to travel between the three casinos at Primm is now entirely closed off as well.
Meanwhile across the road, as reported over the summer, the last two stores in the Primm Mall have closed their doors, so I’m not sure if anyone ever even stays at the Primm Valley or Whiskey Pete’s casinos any longer. So for now Buffalo Bill’s stands alone as the most visited of the three resorts, aided by the fact that they do keep a fairly busy concert schedule at the Star of the Desert Arena venue.
(11/16/2024) Developers hoping to plan a new casino resort on the northern end of the Las Vegas Strip that would feature an NBA-ready arena cleared the first step when the town advisory board gave the project a vote of unanimous approval if built on the site of the former Wet ‘n Wild waterpark that lies between the Fountainebleau and Saraha casinos.
Don’t start planning anything just yet though… just look at how long it took for Fountainebleau to get built, having been announced in 2005 and undoing several spats of financing, construction, sudden stops and then sales along the way betore it finally opened on Dec. 13, 2023. So unless you’ve got a big name casino-chain partner in your corner like Caesar’s or MGM, it can be a very long and windy road to get a new casino project off the ground in this era.
(10/30/2024) Caesars Entertainment hit the news headlines today with a couple of interesting developments. For starters the casino empire announced that they’ve come to an agreement to sell the LINQ Promenade in Las Vegas to a joint venture group formed between TPG Real Estate and the Investment Management Platform of Arcadia Realty Trust for $275 million. Again, I want to point out a key word here… they sold the LINQ Promenade… NOT the LINQ Casino. The LINQ Promenade is the pathway or restaurants and retail sites that sits between the LINQ Casino and the Flamingo that runs from the Strip all the way back to the massive High Roller observation wheel.
Caesars Entertainment says that this is a huge step in their plans to eliminate some non-core assets in favor of reducing their corporate debt load. The second announcement today also goes a long way towards that, as Caesars announced they sold their intellectual property rights for the “World Series of Poker” brand to NSUS Group for $250 million in cash and another $250 million promissory note due after the closing of the transaction. However, Caesars also built into the deal the rights to host the flagship World Series of Poker tournament series at their Las Vegas casinos over the next 20 years as well as being allowed to continue to run some WSOP branded online businesses.
So the final result is that Caesars Entertainment just made $750 million this week without losing any of their valuable casino properties. The company also released their Q3 2024 earnings results, which you can read through the numbers here for the companies last quarter.
(10/6/2024) The new Swingers (21+ only) mini-golf under construction inside Mandalay Bay has confirmed that they will open to the public on November 8th, 2024. You can already book your ticket to play on the official website: which is $30 for off-peak hours and $35 otherwise for a 9-hole game of mini-golf.
From the look of the schedule you can expect Swingers to be open daily over the first month, except for Mondays which are greyed out, however other than December 2nd, it looks like the location will then be open daily, except for New Years Eve. (I’m guessing they’ve been booked for a private party that night…)
(10/3/2024) According to the post below, the world’s largest In-N-Out Burger location is supposed to be coming to the BLVD Las Vegas retail development on the Strip. According to the video, the massive burger location is said to be 8,000 sqft and will be on the roof level, offering views of the strip while you eat. BLVD Las Vegas is being built across the strip from Park MGM, next to the retail area that is already home to Target, Ross and Walgreens and the FlyOver attraction and down to the empty plot in front of the Polo Towers.
Keep in mind that there already is a popular In-N-Out location on the strip a few blocks to the north, deep in the LINQ shopping strip. It’s a good walk from one to the other, so I wouldn’t expect to see the LINQ location close just because the new one opens, unless their lease is up. Oh, and for those a little to the south, keep in mind that there is a large stand-alone In-O-Out location just on the other side of the freeway from where Excalibur and New York-New York sit, so you’ve got options.
One more big news item for Las Vegas fans, the local news has confirmed that the Tropicanna hotel towers are scheduled to be imploded at 2:30am on Wednesday, October 9th! For safety reasons, there won't be any kind of public viewing areas set up to watch, but it will be live streamed over Twitter / X by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitor Authority and on BallyLive.com. All said and done, they say that nearly 2300 pounds of explosives will be used to bring down the two large structures in just 22 seconds.
(9/24/2024) The famous “Neon Museum” in Las Vegas will be preparing to move to a new location in “the Arts District” that will put it closer to the future site of the Las Vegas Museum of Art. If you haven’t heard of the Neon Museum, the eclectic attraction became famous for saving and salvaging the former famous neon signs from many former Las Vegas casinos and attractions starting in 1996 and opened to the public as an attraction in 2012.
According to this article, the Neon Museum is expected to have its new site ready to open sometime in 2027 and will feature two display areas. The rooftop of a parking garage and some nearby open space will house most of the Neon Museum’s typical outdoor display of salvaged display signs, while the ninth floor of the parking garage will be converted into an enclosed exhibit space.
The interesting thing is that currently the existing Neon Museum still only has room to display only 35% of the Neon signs they have in their collection.
(9/21/2024) Interesting news for Las Vegas for those looking for better transportation options. According to the latest news The Boring Company who has previously dug the underground tunnel system connecting the Las Vegas Convention Center complexes and was previously approved to design a huge expansion of this network, known as the “Vegas Loop”.
According to their website Clark Country and the City of Las Vegas have approved of the planned network and you can see the map posted on The Boring Company’s website showing a tunnel system that would stretch 68 miles long under the city, with anywhere from 69 up to 104 different stations being served. This includes easy access access to virtually every major resort and casino on the Strip, the Harry Reid International Airport, Allegiant Stadium, UNLV and the Thomas & Mack Center, up to the Downtown and Fremont Street areas, and even under the I-15 to service locations like the Palace Station and The Palms. From the looks of the map, there will even be a tunnel that will head to the far south end of the strip that would likely meet up with the Brightline West high-speed rail station when it is built.
No timeline has been posted of course, but currently the Convention Center run is complete and active and they’ve opened an expansion from there that connects to stations at the Riviera and Resorts World.
In other news, A new attraction is on the way to AREA 15 in Las Vegas this fall called the Dopeameme Institute for Pleasure Reseach, or D.I.P.R. for short. The new Dopeameme attrtaction is actually a new experiential project from Superplastic, a creator of unique vinyl art toys and digital experiences using an assortment of their original characters. According to a story about the new attraction, this will be Superplastic’s first ever real-world location and it will offer an “immersive, story-driven experience” as guests travel through a series of rooms during the 40 minute long experience.
(9/17/2024) Just a quick word of warning… after a fairly disastrous first event in late 2023, the F1 will return to Las Vegas once again this November, with the official event set to take place from Nov. 21-23rd, 2024. Unfortunately, as we saw last year, this also means that for months prior to the event, you can expect to encounter all kinds of disruptions and unexpected construction taking place all over the the race course zone. So if you were thinking of visiting Vegas later this year, you might want to double-check your dates and exactly where you are staying.
(9/10/2024) Las Vegas’ Planet Hollywood casino announced that they’ve signed The Black Eyed Peas to a concert residency deal on select dates in February, March and May 2025. The group is calling the new show, “Black Eyed Peas 3008 - The Las Vegas Residency” with advanced tickets to go on sale later this week. Visit the official website for all the details if you are interested.
(9/5/2024) A new large development has been approved by the city planners for the Strip area just south of Fontainebleau where the Riviera was once located, across the street from Circus Circus.
The proposal is for a bit of a mixed use project that would include two 600-foot tall towers that would contain a 750-room non-casino hotel, 425 condos, a domed structure that would house a 3,310-seat performance venue, a proposed 439-foot tall “amusement ride” and an assortment of street-front retail / restaurant spaces.
They aren’t saying what the amusement ride will be yet, but based on the concept art released, the proposal looks to include a new strip-side Margaritaville location, and what appears to be a Margaritaville themed Star-Flyer style ride, complete with a large drink and straw poking out of the top at the very peak of the tower.
(9/3/2024) Is something interesting going on at Buffalo Bills outside Las Vegas? No, sadly they are not running the Desperado roller coaster again yet, but that doesn’t mean you can’t keep calling and asking them when they might reopen it.
Actually, strange things have been going on with the casino’s former Log Ride instead. A couple of weeks back, a reader sent in some pictures they took during a visit on August 5th, where they spotted water was actually running through the log ride course once again. There were even some logs now floating in the station, but based on the fact that there was some accumulated trash floating in the water along the backside of them, it did not appear that the logs had been run at all through the course. So just the water was flowing, but this itself is sort of a big deal, as I don’t believe anyone has seen water in the ride trough for years now. The bulk of those photos sent in show off the station area, but there is one showing off a thin sheet of water going over the outside drop as well.
My first reaction was thinking about what the casino has been telling everyone about Desperado anytime someone catching it making an empty test run. Buffalo Bills claims to test run Desperado once a month to keep it in working order just in case they ever decide to reopen it. The practice also proves that the casino is keeping a record of maintaining the ride in some form, and not just letting it sit idle and rust away from not being used. With that in mind, I was wondering if they were simply doing the same thing with the log ride… making sure the water pumps do seize up from non-use, and pumping water through the course once a month as well, and who knows… maybe let a log run the course at night when no one is looking.
That was all fine a good, but to be honest I didn’t give it much thought beyond that, until today when I reader came across a TikTok video that says it was posted on August 12th, and gives a great look at fast water flowing down the outside drop and splashdown pool, heading back towards the casino and indoor portion of the ride. Once again, no logs seen testing, but I am curious why they would be testing the water flow on the Log Ride two weeks in a row in August. Maybe, just maybe… there might be a little more to this than meets the eye. If anyone else stops by in the future and spots anything, please do let me know.
(8/24/2024) Long time Las Vegas visitors will fondly remember the free Pirate battle show that used to take place outside the Treasure Island casino several times nightly. The audience looked in on a pirate friendly port, with a pirate ship docked. The fun would be interrupted when a British warship kept out of sight around the right-side of the casino would come to life and sail into the port to engage the pirate ship, demanding they lay down their weapons and accept a British boarding party to come aboard for a search. Of course, the Pirates weren’t going to have any of that, tensions escalate, and before you know it the cannons on both ships erupt, buildings are catching on fire. The pirates eventually score a lucky shot on the lower half of the British hull, lighting their black powder storage on fire. The warship begins taking on water below decks and lowering into the water, just as fire erupts across the top deck. The crew all leaps into the water to abandon the sinking ship, except the Captain who stands proudly on the deck as the ship sinks below the waves, ending the conflict. The battle won, the audience is welcomed to enter ‘Treasure Island’ to celebrate the victory. Stay around a little longer and you’ll see the British warship rise-up from the water once again, Captain still standing on the deck, for show reset sequence that moved the vessel back around to the side of the casino again to get ready for the next performance.
Once the Treasure Island became the “T.I.”, the pirate battle that raged since the 1993 came to an end. The former battle show was replaced by a new “Sirens” themed show in 2003, with a somewhat similar concept, but the roles reversed. The Sirens vessel was docked in the port, and have captured a pirate Captain. The pirate crew now sailed into port to rescue their captain from the Sirens who quickly sink the pirate ship forced the pirates to surrender. The Sirens show only lasted half as long as the Pirates of Buccaneer Bay show, coming to an end in 2013 when the casino decided to re-take come of the former cove space to expand their retail space. The ships are still out on the water, but no live show ever replaced the Sirens show, with the waters sitting mostly silent for the past 11 years, other than some lighting effects and water fountains put in place since then.
Why do I bring this up today? An interesting post on Facebook caught my eye, as the for the first time in 11 years when the Sirens went silent, there is strange new activity in the Treasure Island cove. How strange? Well, the water has now been completely drained, exposing the special effects hardware that has been sitting below the waves all this time, giving you a great look at the ships, including the hardware that allowed the one ship to sink and move on a hidden underwater track system. While this is an incredible throw-back look to the history of this once world-famous attraction, it also makes you wonder just what T.I. has in store for the future of this location going forward?
(6/15/2024) While the MGM Grand in Las Vegas closed The Hunger Games” The Exhibition last year, it looks like they’re about to replace it with something new. Look for “The FRIENDS Experience” to open at the MGM Grand sometime later this year, featuring life-sized reactions of the TV show’s famous sets, as well as costumes and props used throughout the series’ many seasons.
Prior to this there has been a traveling FRIENDS Experience (now in Boston through Jan. 2025), and the creation of a first “flagship” location in New York City ahead of the opening of this second site in Las Vegas and a first international flagship location coming to London later this Summer.
(6/1/2024) Blooloop reports that a new attraction has opened within the Area 15 entertainment complex in Las Vegas. The newest offering is called “The Lab” where guests will encounter a number of “technology-driven games and interactive experiences.” Blooloop describes the experience as a “narrative-driven scavenger hunt” designed to unfold ‘the enigmatic origin story of Area15”. Through the use of your smart-phone and playing the games at the attractions six stations, you will uncover the truth about “Particle A15”. One such game within the attraction is called Bot Breach, and you can see a preview trailer featuring this game below.
(5/21/2024) For those wondering whatever became of Desperado just outside Las Vegas, one of our readers sent in a link to a trip report they posted that features some pictures of Desperado, the dry log flume and a few other Vegas area attractions, including a look at the start of Tropicanna demolition as well as picture of the old track for the former Speed: The Ride coaster as well that is just sitting there.
The way things are going, I have serious doubts we may ever seen Desperado reopen to the public ever again. It has been mentioned once or twice that apparently the casino will give it a test run at least once a month to make sure it is still functional, but that’s it. The question is… what happens when something serious breaks and they are not able to even test it any longer without a costly repair?
(5/19/2024) You may come across reports this week claiming that a plan is being made to create a new “theme park” in downtown Las Vegas. Well… Yes and No… I wouldn’t call this a theme park, but instead this is a proposal by the creator of Neonopolis to lease-out space to groups willing to build new rides and attractions.
Neonopolis is the building complex located on Fremont Street, but just outside of the covered roof, but as the last block of the street where only foot traffic is allowed, where they built the launch tower for the giant Slotzilla attraction in the street between Neonopolis and a parking structure. Currently the block is made up on a number of small retail shops, bars and a few restaurants (Heart Attack Grill, Dick’s Last Resort, Dirt Dog, Denny’s, etc…).
In response to the growing trend that ordinary retail malls are dying unless they can add a significant entertainment presence to keep the relevant, the owner envisions adding a $300 million package of new attractions to the landscape including roller coasters, skydiving simulators, and a plan name the complex “Mini Disni” as a way to get attention while trying to attempting to skirt a potential lawsuit from The Walt Disney Company.
It is true that the Fremont Street area is perhaps more popular than ever these days, with a lot of new life breathed into the area, especially with the opening of the impressive Circa Resort at the opposite end. So with that in mind, the concept behind this expansion of Neonopolis to create Mini Disni might really actually happen. It is also worth noting that it has been a long time dream of Neonopolis to become home to a major amusement attraction. Long time readers may recall that for a period of time, the owner of Neonopolis attempted to negotiate a deal to move and rebuild the wildly popular Star Trek: The Experience attraction when it shut down, but was unfortunately unable to close that particular deal.
The interesting thing about this latest plan however is that Neonopolis won’t own these news attractions, instead they are looking to twist the idea of a retail mall concept of leasing out space to other companies who will themselves compete for the success of their ventures against each other. While this concept is mostly foreign to the American marketplace, I believe it is far more common in Europe where various “Showmen” will arrive with their various rides and attractions to set-up and compete for success at Europe’s biggest fun-fairs and Octoberfest events each year. Another fine example is the Prater in Vienna, Austria, where the entire amusement complex features attractions built in spaces leased out to different owners that are constantly in a state of being upgraded and improved. So this is a concept worth keeping an eye on…
(3/17/2024) Anyone who visited the classic version of Las Vegas will remember the persistent metallic drumming sound of coins dropping out of the slot machines all around you. While the process took a few years, eventually virtually all of the old coin-dropping machines were replaced in the early 21st century by modern machines that simply spit out a paper voucher to exchange for your winnings. The move forever changed the audible landscape of Las Vegas forever, but now a small casino is bringing that nostalgia back.
Slots-A-Fun, a separate but connected casino space to the famous Circus Circus casino / resort has been undergoing renovations, and has now re-launched their gaming space featuring a mix of 85 coin based classic slot machines… all spinning wheels and no video touch-screens. The only downside is that these machines now operate with ‘tokens’ that need to be purchased rather than using dimes and quarters, but that sound and atmosphere of the pinking coins droppings is back. Plus there was something about the feeling of walking around with a plastic cup full of coins that was just appealing, especially if you had just scooped them up from a jackpot.
I believe The Cortez casino, downtown off Fremont Street also features coin machines, so in a way the renovations to Circus Circus’ Slots-A-Fun casino space is a way to bring a bit of that same classic downtown Vegas feeling back to the Strip, which over the years has lost much of that charm. If that wasn’t enough, the reports also claim that the days of cheap casino snack-food items ($2 beers, hot-dogs and shrimp cocktails) and the return of 20 tables games with low $5 minimums have also returned to Slots-A-Fun.
Certainly the downtown Fremont Street area has been revitalized as of late, especially with the creation of the new Circa casino resort, all with the intention of bringing back that old-school Las Vegas feel. Now it’s time to see if the crowds on the strip will respond to what Slots-A-Fun is trying to do as well.
(3/2/2024) I’m not familiar with their YouTube channel, but Blooloop reports that a “Spy Ninjas” themed attraction is opening this month in Las Vegas. This will be a 55,000 sqft “indoor adventure park” that includes the “longest indoor zipline” in the state, as well as various attractions, ninja warrior style obstacle courses, various climbing elements, Escape Rooms, VR games, Axe Throwing and more.
According to their social media, the new attraction called Sky Ninjas HQ, will open March 9 at 7980 W. Sahara Ave., or about 6 miles straight west from the Sahara casino on the Strip.
(2/2/2024) According to an official memo sent out from the GM of the Tropicanna to their Team Members, Bally’s is moving forward with the plans to close the Trop and turn the site into the future home of Major League Baseball’s “Athletics” team.
The expected closing date for the famous Las Vegas casino is currently expected to take place on April 2, 2024. Anyone who currently has reservations for dates beyond April 2 can expect to be relocated to another property. Once the casino closes, they will begin demolition preparations and as part of the new master plan, the company expected to grant approximately 9-acres of property to the Athletics ‘to develop their stadium.”
(1/18/2024) Just as COVID-19 struck the world, an interesting bit of news hit the streets of Las Vegas that an ATARI themed hotel was in the works. While no further real-world development was seen on this project and most assumed it was canceled, a new update posted by Las Vegas Review Journal confirms that there is still life in the nostalgia-branded project.
A spokesperson for the Atari Hotel project confirmed in the report that the developer is currently “in talks for potential sites for the concept” and with various land partners. A final location has not been made yet, but they do confirm that further announcements about the Las Vegas Atari Hotel project will be made in the first half of 2024.
(1/8/2024) If you driven between Southern California and Las Vegas over the years, you may recall that about half way between the old Stateline casinos (Buffalo Bills, Primadonna) and Las Vegas proper, there used to be a couple of other old casinos sitting out in the desert off an exit marked as “Jean”.
This would have been the old Nevada Landing casino (which looked like someone parked a couple of paddlewheel boats in the middle of the desert) and the Gold Strike, which had a facade in front that resembled a western town. Nevada Landing was built in 1989 and was owned by a partnership that also included the owner of the Gold Strike, which was built two years earlier. The two were later sold to Circus Circus in 1995, but when Circus Circus was absorbed into MGM Mirage in 2004/2005 things started to go south. By early 2007 Nevada Landing was closed and demolition began about a year later.
On the other side of the freeway the Gold Strike remained open until 2014 when MGM agreed to sell the casino to Jett Gaming, owned by the Herbst family. The sale was finalized in 2015 and by 2018 they opted to change the name of the casino to “Terrible’s”, which was the name of the chain of truck stops and convenience stores owned by the Herbst family. Terrible’s remained open until it was forced to shut down in March 2020 due to COVID-19, and it never reopened. By 2022 the property was sold off to a company who wanted to build industrial park with distribution centers that would service the Las Vegas area with goods shipped in by truck from California.
If you pass by the Jean exit now you may catch a view of the former Terrible’s / Gold Strike casino buildings coming down, as demolition is now proceeding at full speed on the property. Don’t expect a new casino to rise here anytime soon, as the nearby Stateline casinos continue to struggle as well. At this rate, it may only be a matter of time before they vanish as well.
(1/5/2024) Some changes are coming to the attractions lineup in Vegas this year. The long running Avengers Station attraction at Treasure Island (from NEON) closed on January 1st and according to the official website, they will be replacing it with a brand new attraction set to open this summer. According to a post from VitalVegas the theme of the new attraction will be “Pirates”. Note, this is not Disney’s Pirates or anything like that, but should be a custom themed attraction about Pirates in general, which is only fitting for the T.I. (Treasure Island) themed casino.
VitalVegas also picked up that NEON’s Hungers Games attraction at MGM Grand appears to also be set to close soon. The official website for the Hunger Games attraction only shows availability through March 31, 2024. So something else new should be coming to replace it as well, probably by the later half of 2024. Stay tuned!
(11/7/2023) According to Vital Vegas, the Rio has announced that the closed former site of t he once famous Carnival World Buffet will be transformed into the new “Canteen Food Hall” that will feature numerous new food offerings.
(11/5/2023) For those wondering what the Las Vegas strip looks like this week, a couple of weeks out from the big F1 race, the video below essentially covers what you need to know about the current state of the Strip area.
(10/14/2023) A good friend of ours in Las Vegas sent in a collection of images showing off just what the Las Vegas strip looks like right now, a little over a month away from the F1 race event taking place from November 16-18th, with the race itself happening on Saturday, Nov. 18th at 10pm at night.
As for that last part… I’m not a racing fan by any means, so I was kind of surprised to learn that the race would be taking place after dark. This is apparently not a new thing for F1 and to be honest, this is Las Vegas, and the city shines the brightest after dark with all the cool visible icons lit up as the race cars pass by, including a section of the course that will of course run right under a section of the LV Monorail and right up next to the new Sphere. Visually, this race should be beyond stunning.
For those who have to live and work in Las Vegas, unfortunately the experience has been more shocking than anything else. On my last visit to Vegas in January I recall that many large sections of the strip and nearby roads were already being repaved to meet the race-course standards. Now if you take a look at the pictures below, you’ll see the huge array of lighting truss set up to light the course for the drivers, the massive grand-stands now rising into place, and perhaps the most odd thing of all, a huge building structure is now sitting in front of the Bellagio lagoon offering premium viewing suites for fans. Rumor has it those deluxe viewing suites were going for well over $10k a piece when first announced. And for those wondering, the view of the Bellagio fountain show is a mess right now, and mostly blocked from view.
But with the race still a month away, the typical Las Vegas experience for those just coming to visit right now is somewhat tarnished, with all the construction and extra structures blocking the view of all Las Vegas has to offer down in the mid-strip between the Venetian and Aria.
Oh, and if you are in town during race week, don’t think you can find a place to take in the view of the action for free. Apparently F1 was attempting to charge a huge fee to any business located along the race course, which I assume would allow those businesses to set up and charge for their own viewing areas. But for small business who didn’t have the ability or space to recoup those fees, if they opted to not pay F1, then I’ve been told F1 has built giant temporary walls to block all viewing between their property and the track. Getting around the strip right now is also extremely difficult for tourists as well as the locals who work there. As for how employees are going to get to work during the race event itself… apparently that issue is still being worked out by F1. (I’d suggest that the casinos comp their staff rooms for the week, but you know that isn’t going to happen…)
Regardless of the impact, the F1 Las Vegas should go down in the history books as one of the visually stunning race experiences, essentially bringing to life the kind of racing course previously only seen in video games. From the sound of things, this won't be the last one either, I believe F1 may have a 19 year contract with the city to return for future races.
(9/11/2023) Fees to Self-Park at the Wynn and Encore Casino Resorts will return starting on Sept. 27th as part of the fallout from the opening of The Sphere’s series of U2 concerts that start on Sept. 29 and the opening of the Postcard from Earth attraction at the Sphere starting Oct. 6th. According to the Wynn/Encore, parking for the first 4-hours will be free, but after that there will be a $20 per day fee to park in the self-parking lots or $40 to Valet park.
(5/15/2023) For thrill ride fans visiting Las Vegas, often a trip to the top of the Stratosphere Tower is high on the priority list. The top of the tower has long been home to several crazy rides, and the Big Shot sitting at the tip-top is a Las Vegas icon. Over the years a small coaster was removed and replaced by a pair of new thrill rides… the X-Scream which is like a giant teeter-totter that slides guests over the edge, and Insanity, a strange spinning creation where guests are spun at high speed while dangling over the edge of the tower.
While I don’t know if a final decision has been made, it seems that the Insanity ride may have been retired earlier this year, and the website edited to remove any mention of it from the current list of attractions.
2023 - The Sphere / MSG Sphere - (7/5/2024) The Las Vegas Sphere now has a new feature. Last night, for the first time, the massive visuals presented across the outer surface of the Sphere was accompanied by synced audio. The visuals presented on the outside of the Sphere structure is sometimes referred to as the Exosphere, so now they’ve added an “XO Audio” element to enhance the experience as needed, which was put to use for a special 4th of July presentation on the Sphere that also included an aerial armada of 500 drones in the sky forming various shapes.
Going along with this new audio concept, the Sphere has also launched the “XO Stream”, an official livestream webcam allowing everyone to watch and listen to what’s on the Sphere 24/7.
In the meantime, enjoy a replay of the 4th of July show as shot by an aerial drone in the video embedded below that also serves as the one-year anniversary of the first official illumination of the Exosphere during last year’s 4th of July celebration. The video is fun and features a number of flash-backs to all the crazy displays the Sphere has shown over the past year, including special promotions and clips put up for the various holidays and events taking place nearby.
(6/16/2024) The Sphere in Las Vegas has confirmed that The Eagles are now scheduled for a series of eight performances on select dates in September and October 2024. This was rumored to be in the works shortly after U2 premiered inside the Sphere last year while The Eagle’s were finishing up their Long Goodbye Tour and looking to extend it to include some extra North American dates in early 2024 followed by some international dates taking place right now.
(5/25/2024) U2 left the Las Vegas Sphere many weeks ago, bringing an end to their amazing concert series, leaving the world wondering who will be the next artist to step-inside the Sphere. The answer came in the form of a more limited time, four-performance schedule for the band Phish that took place in April.
That brief concert series may be over but working with Moment Factory, the group pushed the limits of what was possible within the unique Sphere venue. Some of the background story behind the creation of this unique performance event, along with pictures and video footage, has been posted over at Blooloop this week and is worth checking out.
Meanwhile the next concert series has started with the arrival of “Dead & Company” (Grateful Dead plus others) who are putting on the “Dead Forever - Live at Sphere” shows from now through to July 13, 2024.
(11/13/2023) While The Sphere has been a bright and entertaining superstar in Las Vegas so far this year, the performance numbers for the venue being reported as less than stellar. According to a local news report The Sphere reported an operating loss of $98.4 million during the venue’s first fiscal quarter that ended on Sept. 30th, 2023.
Of course, The Sphere did not actually open until Sept. 29th when the first performance of U2’s residency took place, so only two shows were on the books for that reported quarter. We should have a clearer idea of how things are going at The Sphere when next quarter’s performance data is released.
(10/21/2023) It seems the band, U2, have taken a shine to performing inside the now world-famous Las Vegas Sphere venue. At first it was expected that U2’s initial deal to perform 25 concerts inside the Sphere would come to an end with the final performance on Dec. 16, 2023 but it seems U2 and the Sphere have now extended that run. A total of 11 more concert dates have now been added to their schedule, adding performances on Jan. 26, 27, 31, and Feb. 2, 3, 7, 9, 10, 15, 17 and 18th, 2024.
Previously there was some speculation that a new act was in the process of being signed on to perform inside the Sphere when U2’s run was over (with The Eagle’s expected to add a series of farewell concert dates). According to an interview, U2 apparently has the option in their deal with the Sphere to add on extra dates for up to 2 years, but sources also indicate that the Sphere does already have one, if not two other acts signed to possibly perform dates during 2024 as well.
Given just how viral the initial concert for U2 inside the Sphere took the world, I would not be surprised if various performers are now lining up to take their own performance art to the next level inside the Sphere.
(9/30/2023) The first performance of U2 within the MSG Sphere in Las Vegas is now in the record books, if you want to see just what it looks like in side the Sphere, check out the videos below for some amazing footage of the band while everyone is surrounded by the massive 18K wraparound screen technology. Seriously, this is an insane looking experience and sure to be a game-changer in the performance venue industry for years to come as it adds such another level to the live performance experience that is enjoyable from every seat in the house.
(9/17/2023) Darren Aronofskyt has shared a ‘first look” at the inside of the Las Vegas Sphere as they work to put the final touches on his immersive film attraction, Postcard from Earth, that will be featured inside the Sphere in the times where U2 or whatever other acts are not performing on the stage. While the massive video display covering the outside of the Sphere has been getting most of the attention since it went live earlier this year, we now get a look at what they are calling “the largest screen on the planet” set inside the Sphere itself.
Currently crews are said to be working to set up for the first of U2’s performances inside the Sphere, set to launch on September 29th, while Aronofsky is finishing up Postcard from Earth, which is set to premier on October 6th. A video clip posted by the direct shows off the massive 160,000 sqft display in action, as a massive elephant approaches the camera. The video also serves to show off the view from the seats inside the sphere, giving us a look at the stage itself and a quick look around the massive domed theater.
(8/8/2023) According to various rumor reports, The Sphere may be in talks with another major band to take to their Las Vegas stage once U2’s dates are complete. If the rumors are true, they could be close to signing The Eagles to set up shop in Vegas in 2024 once they finish their current “The Long Goodbye” final tour which is set to come to a close on November 17th in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Currently U2 is only scheduled to perform at the Sphere from September to December 2023.
Late 2023 to 2024 - Atomic Golf - (12/29/2022) A new attraction is coming to The Strat in Las Vegas in 2023. Construction is already said to have begun to build “Atomic Golf”. Yes… Atomic Golf and on the surface is kind of seems like they are building their own version of a Top Golf interactive driving range attraction that will stand four stories tall and feature 103 hitting bays. In addition they promise it will feature a whopping four bar areas (one for each floor I guess?), meeting space, a 12,000 sqft “Astrocade” play area and more. From what I’m told this is going into the cleared out lot on the North side of the Strat complex. I’ve also seen the complex referred to as “Atomic Range” and there is another website under that name that features some better aerial artwork of the site showing off the location better. I haven’t heard anything, but they could just be covering bases with both names in case there is some kind of objection to one name over the other from someone like Top Golf.
Late 2023 - Fontainebleau - Now Open - (12/13/2023) At long last the new Fontainebleau casino in Las Vegas has finally opened. This now brings to a close what will likely be the longest construction timetable for a Vegas casino ever. According to the news reports, work first began on the project way back in Feburary 2007.
(10/1/2023) The final countdown is on for the opening of the Fontainebleau casino resort in Las Vegas. The evolution of the resort, which started construction back in 2007, is a long story filled with financial woes, construction holds, sales to other owners, new names and eventually a sale back to the original developer who is finally seeing this project through.
The Fountainebleau is now set to open on December 13th, 2023, and according to the Hollywood Reporter, it will feature a number of super-sized features the resort’s original Miami location is known for. This includes the LIV nighthclub (which will offer a special LIV Beach dayclub as well in 2024), as well as giant sized versions of the Komodo and Papi Steak restaurants.
(1/24/22) While work is now taking place to finish the Fontainebleau casino, we’ve been sent a couple of images showing off the different look of the tower as seen from the North and South sides. You’ll also notice the kind of small and minimalist logo they’ve now added to the tower.
2024 - Swingers - (7/29/2023) You got to love the crazy attractions that open in Las Vegas, and an appealing new one is now on the way that will set up shop inside the Mandalay Bay casino. According to Eater, an “Adults ONLY” mini-golf attraction called Swingers is on the way. And when I say massive, they say it will take up 40,000 sqft, span across three floors, and have five different courses with theming ranging from a crazy carnival to an English Countryside theme.
The “Adults Only” bit isn’t due to any risque content, but rather to create a child-free environment where Caddys will roam the course to bring you cocktails and “street food-style bite”, DJ’s will be placed to play music and engage the crowd with mini-games and more.
This won't be the first Swingers location however, as the concept first launched in London and has since expanded to the US with locations in New York City and Washington DC. They hope to open this Las Vegas “flagship” location before the end of the year.
The concept of adult mini-golf has been one that has also been taking the first baby-steps in the US over the past year as well as a growing trend from various groups. Drive Shack, known primarily as a top competitor to Top Golf in the modern evolution of the Driving Range concept has created “Puttery” with the help of PGA’s own Rory Mcllroy as a major investor and has already built up an impressive collection of 9 locations across the US for their own indoor adult only (age 21+) mini-golf concept. Then there is also Puttshack, which described themselves as an upscale indoor Mini-Golf concept that currently has 9 US locations, posted plans for 13 more to come to the US. Like Swingers, Puttshack started in the UK however, but the big difference is that Puttshack will allow children in during the daytime hours and switches to a 21+ model after 8pm. It is worth noting that in the case of all three companies, a round of golf at these locations is actually only 9-holes and not the traditional 18-holes you would get to play on a traditional mini-golf course.
Blooloop also reports that this expansion is part of a $52 million investment round received by the company that will also see the Swingers brand expand into the Dubai attractions market in 2024 with plans to grow into at least 15 world-wide locations by 2026.
2024 - Play Playground at LUXOR - (9/11/2023) A new attraction is coming to the Luxor’s “atrium” level in 2024 called Play Playground. Located near the backend of the upper level where all of Luxor’s main attractions and food court reside, Play Playground will serve two purposes as a non-gaming area of the casino that will cater to “family” guests during the daytime hours, it will transform into a adult-only version at night.
According to an update at the Review Journal, guests will enter Play Playground via a playground slide. Once inside, prepare yourself for what sounds to be a unique area free of the stimuli of most modern electronics. No Casino Games. No Video Games. No Virtual Reality. Play Playground is 14,000 sqft of “tactile games for everyone, physical, memory, puzzle and word games”. The co-founder describes the experience as “being dropped into your own game show.” All together, there will be 17 different attractions to experience during your visit, which is expected to take at least 90 minutes to try everything, though you can stay inside as long as you like.
While Play Playground may not offer video games, the colorful world and experiences are designed to delight those who are fond of posting anything and everything to their social media feeds. While this will be the world’s first Play Playground, the group is planning on opening two more locations later in 2024, one of which will likely be somewhere in New York City.
2024 - PopStroke - (8/14/2023) Another new golf themed attraction is set to break ground in Las Vegas later this month from co-owner Tiger Woods called “PopStroke”. PopStoke seeks to join the growing trend of adult mini-golf concepts like PuttShack, Swingers and Puttery, except PopStroke courses all appear to be outdoor, and instead of crazy themed obstacles, the course is design more to look like a mini version of a proper outdoor golf course, but with more wonky terrain as you put across the green. Look for PopStroke Las Vegas to feature two 18-hole courses built along with south end of the Las Vegas Strip in the Town Square retail development.
2024 - Paris Casino Expansion - (9/29/2024) For those who are curious, it seems the new aerial bridge connection between the new Paris casino and the new “Versailes Tower” is now complete. As you may recall the new “Versailes Tower” is actually the former Jubilee Tower from the Bally’s casino (now renamed as the Horseshoe) which has been remodeled and handed over to the more popular Paris casino to use as a hotel tower for the Paris resort instead.
While the Versailes Tower rooms have been available for guests to stay at for most of 2024 so far, the actual connecting skybridge that leads guests from Paris to these rooms remained unfinished until now. This means if you booked one of these rooms, you had to check in at Paris, and then take a very long walk all the way from the front desk at Paris into and through to the far side of the Horseshoe casino to find the elevators up to your room.
(5/3/2023) Caesar’s has announced a kind of odd new expansion to the Paris Las Vegas casino. According to the story the plan is to convert one of the hotel towers attached to the Horseshoe Las Vegas casino next door (formerly Ballys) for use by Paris. The current “Juibilee Tower” which is the one towards the front of the casino, and closest to the Paris resort, will become the Paris resort’s “Versailles Tower” at a cost of $100 million. The project will see the tower and rooms renovated, inside and out, adding 756 redesigned rooms for the Paris guests, as well as a new pedestrian bridge to connect the tower directly to the Paris resort. Look for the room renovations to be complete by the end of 2023 and the bridge and other updated to be finished in early 2024.
Say what you will about this idea, but it certainly does indicate either the growing popularity of the Paris casino, or the “Meh…” feeling that Las Vegas guests may have towards the rebranding of the Ballys into the Horseshoe.
2024 - Dreambox360º - (9/22/2023) A new attraction called Dreambox360º is coming to The LINQ on the Las Vegas Strip in early 2024. According to the article at Amusement Today, the immersive 5D projection experience is coming from the team behind the Minus5º Icebar and will offer a number of different themed adventures.
Unlike other projection based environment attractions, Dreambox360º stands out as being designed for a smaller, more intimate experience, with the intended audience for each performance expected to only be around 35 people at a time. Look for Dreambox360º to rise next door to the Minus5º Icebar at The LINQ.
2024 - Majestic Las Vegas - (10/17/21) A few new details about the planned Majestic Las Vegas resort were released this week, including a rendering. As you recall, the plan is for this to not only be a non-smoking resort, but also a non-gaming resort as well. Instead the Majestic will feature a 70,000 sqft “wellness center” to be called the Spa Majestic that would include a spa, fitness center and a medical area that would have the ability to conduct ‘whole-body scans, thermography technology, and some advanced diagnostic and screening exams”.
It sounds like it is placing itself as the ultimate getaway for someone looking to focus inward on themselves and their health. Of course, this is somewhat ironic, as it will be located in the middle of Las Vegas, home to virtually every vice known to man, where virtually anything you might want has been made legal in the region, for a price.
Construction on the $850 million, 620 foot tall resort is expected to begin in early 2022 and planning for an opening in 2024. The resort will offer 720 suites, and 270,000 sqft of “Corporate Sky Suites”, with sales on the later to begin any time now. It is located right in the heart of all the Convention Center action, right across the street from the new wing of the Las Vegas Convention Center that opened earlier this year, sort of in the middle between Wynn’s Encor tower and the old original wing of the Convention Center, with the new Resorts World on the fourth side, making this a key location for those seeking to conduct business without distraction.
(2/12/21) According to Travel & Leisure a unique new resort is planning to open in Las Vegas in 2024 called the Majestic Las Vegas. This will be an off-strip resort (about 2 blocks) located not far from the Convention Center, and what will set it apart is that not only will be not allow Smoking of any kind on the property, but it will also not feature any kind of gambling at all. That’s right… no casino… no slot machines… not even Keno.
According to the article the $850 million 5-star resort will feature 720 suites, six restaurants and a courtyard featuring dancing fountains and other live entertainment.
So what do you think? When you visit Vegas do you want the convenience of a casino inside your hotel or does all the noise, hustle and bustle just get overwhelming and you are ready for a more relaxed experience?
Late 2024 - John Wick Experience at Area 15 - (12/7/2024) Area15 also previously announced that they were bringing in a “John Wick Experience” attraction as well, though we haven’t heard any updates about that particular project since it was announced in early 2024, but Winston also mentions it in the interview as opening in early Q1 2025. They also describe the John Wick Experience as being an almost “escape room” style experiential concept, within the setting of “the Vegas Continental” hotel. There will be “escape room like qualities” mixed with “engagement and play” opportunities along the way.
(2/16/2024) While most have been focused on the construction of the new Universal Horror’s Unleashed attraction building that will serve as an expansion to Area 15 in Las Vegas, it seems the famous attraction has another innovative project that will open before the end of this year. In a deal between Area 15 and Lionsgate, the attrtaction will open the “John Wick Experience”, which will transport guests into the world of the John Wick action film series.
The John Wick Experience will be a unique 12,000 sqft extra-ticket attraction that will allow guests to enter the world of John Wick through the doors of the “Las Vegas Continental” where they will “participate in a high-stakes adventure”. There will also be a themed bar and retail store experience open to the general public.
The producers are working with Egan Productions to create the experience, which is a name that should be familiar to those familiar with themed attractions in Las Vegas, as they also created two other Lionsgate IP attractions: Escape Blair Witch and the Official SAW Escape attractions.
Late 2025 - Interstellar Arc at Area 15 - (12/7/2024) Area15 has broken ground on a new space-themed attraction experience that will also be anchored in the 20-acre expansion area near the Universal Horror Unleashed attraction, with both set to open in 2025. While we don’t have a date yet for Universal’s year-round Horror attraction, the new “Interstellar Arc” attraction is planned to open in Fall 2025, built inside a 20,000 sqft venue, that will send guests off on a 26th century deep-space mission “across the far reaches of the cosmos.” Elsewhere it was referred to as possibly a VR style experience which makes sense as the attraction is coming from Felix and Paul Studios, who are well versed as creators within the VR and AR technology realm.
Elsewhere, an interview with Area15’s CEO, Winston Fisher, talked with MPR’s Mike Prevatt this week to talk about the expansion of Area15, an area being referred to as the “District 2” Give the audio interview a listen and about half-way through (starting around the 8:30 mark) they talk about Universal Horror Unleashed and Winston mentions that a drop tower ride and “psychedelic carousel” along with some other experiences that will be built alongside the Universal Horror Unleashed attraction.
???? - Game of Thrones Dragons: Las Vegas - (10/22/2023) You may recall back in December 2022 a pretty exciting sounding new attraction was announced to be coming to Las Vegas, Game of Thrones: Dragons! At the time, it was just the first public announcement that the project was coming along with the launch of the teaser website for it, with a promise that more details were to come.
Unfortunately, 10 months later, we still haven’t seen any kind of update on this project. The closest thing was a follow-up article from CDCGaming claiming that the attraction was to be built within a “prefabricated venue just east of the Horseshoe on Flamingo Road.” where fencing with the “SPiE” logo was spotted. SPiE being “SP Immersive Entertainment”, a design partner in the project with WB and HBO and Caesars Entertainment. In fact you can see this fencing up around the site still on Google Maps StreetView in images captured in February 2023 on a parking lot attached to Caesar’s Horseshoe property (formerly Ballys)
Reaching out on social media to question the current status of the site, VitalVegas was kind enough to respond, saying that they had not heard a thing since the announcement and that it was still just an empty parking lot. So what has happened?
Well, the subject of the attraction came up in a conversation with another good source of mine who had run into some other industry folks who had been involved with doing some work for GoT:Dragons. Of course everyone is operating under NDAs, so very little solid info can be shared, and I get that, but based on the conversation it did sound like the project is still active. If you’ve followed along with the build out of any kind of major attraction project in Las Vegas over the years you will know they all have a tendency to suffer long construction delays. Just look at the MSG Sphere, when it was originally announced, the Sphere was supposed to be ready to open in 2021, not late 2023. Keep in mind the fact that many big projects are announced very early these days, while they are still in the design phase rather than waiting until construction is about to start. In the case of GoT:Dragons, they were also likely trying to make the announcement while the spin-off series, House of the Dragon, was still in heavy viewing on HBO as well, having aired the first season between August and October 2022.
So, keeping all this in mind, it was already expected that it might be a couple of years before GoT:Dragons would be ready to open. With season 2 of the series said to have been shot and planing to be released in Summer 2024, that could also mimic the timeline as to when we might get more solid information about the Las Vegas attraction. Assuming things are still moving forward, we still don’t know officially what kind of attraction this will be. According to Screamscape sources, the word from the Master of Whispers is that the highlight of the Game of Thrones: Dragons attraction may be some kind of new form or evolution of the Flying Theater concept. In much the same way that Disney evolved their own Flying Theater concept from Soarin’ over California to Avatar: Flight of Passage (which ironically is another Flying Theater concept where you ride on a flying creature), GoT:Dragons may be attempting to create a similar concept, on a smaller scale. Obviously being able to fly on the back of a dragon over the lands of the Seven Kingdoms could be a great attraction concept. Think of it as Soarin’ Over Westeros if you want, but I’m hoping they add some battle sequences and maybe a trip over and beyond the Wall where you feel the cold gaze of the Night King, or smell the fumes of Dragonfire.
Ok, with that bit of dreaming out of the way, lets just hope that the attraction is still in active development. It would certainly add a nice new attraction to the Horseshoe Las Vegas, who is still struggling to find its new identify after dropping the Bally’s name and is actually in the process of an interesting redesign that will change the front of the casino, while linking and handing over control one of their hotel towers to the Paris casino next door.
(1/20/2023) Game of Thrones fans… take note. It seems that a new attraction of some kind is coming to Las Vegas. The official title of the attraction on the website is “Game of Thrones Dragons Las Vegas” according to the website, but very little information has been released thus far. There is a cool looking animation of dragons flying over the burning remains of the “Welcome to Las Vegas” sign and ext claiming that “Game of Thrones Dragons is one of the latest attractions to elevate the entertainment world” and that it will “provide fans with an experience unlike any other.”
What I can tell you is that this is not another creation by Neon / Victory Hill such as the Avengers Station or Hunger Games that are currently running in Las Vegas, and according to the FAQ on the website Game of Thrones Dragons “is not a themed theatrical or special effects show, nor will it be located inside a hotel or casino.” They also confirm that this will be a “permanent attraction open year-round’ to be located somewhere “within the heart of the Las Vegas strip”.
Consider me officially intrigued.
2025 - Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights Las Vegas / AREA 15 Expansion -
(11/3/2024) As expected, Universal announced all new details for their new year-round haunt experience coming to the Las Vegas Area 15 complex in 2025 called Universal Horror Unleashed. Within the experience will feature four different haunted house experiences, each with a unique theme: Universal Monsters, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Scarecrow: The Reaping and Blumhouse’s The Exorcist: Believer. Surrounding each of the haunts will be four “sinisterly themed and immersive areas, featuring unique live entertainment experiences” as well as some eerie eating and themed bars that will feature “horror-centric food and drink offerings”.
Universal Horror Unleashed won’t be a set and forget experience either, as they promise that returning guests can expect to find a continuously updated experience, plussed with must-see seasonal events and the launch of one-of-a-kind merchandise. While much of the secrets behind the actual experience is being kept close to the chest for now, they did release an awesome teaser video to showcase the thrills and chills to come. Fans of Orlando's Halloween Horror Nights should watch to the end, as Florida’s favorite clown-icon Jack, does appear to be planning to make himself at home in Las Vegas as well. I can’t wait!
I did have a question myself that has not yet been answered, and I’ve reached out to Universal to see if they can answer it, but I was curious about any potential age restrictions for the attraction, or if this was planned to be a more ‘adult’ experience in terms of content. While much of Las Vegas is known for offering experiences for age 21+ only, the Area 15 complex does allow guests of all ages to visit during most daytime hours, with 21+ access only to select bars and areas within. However, after 8pm, Thursday - Saturday nights, Area 15 takes on an 18+ age restriction for all general access, so it would stand to reason that Universal Horror Unleashed, which is likely to have a more after-dark style operation schedule, may possibly also be an 18+ attraction experience much of the time. I hope to get a confirmation from Universal about this question in the near future.
(10/30/2024) Get ready, because Universal is going to make a big announcement on Halloween regarding their Universal Horror Unleashed attraction coming to Las Vegas. Stay tuned!
(4/4/2024) A reader stopped to take a few pictures of the AREA 15 expansion the other day, where we will see Universal’s year-round HHN attraction, “Universal Horror Unleashed” set up shop.
Unfortunately, while we are about to get something really grand as a new attraction at the Area 15 complex, sadly another popular attraction has just announced they are closing their doors forever. A post from the Lost Spirits Distillery has confirmed that after 14 years, the attraction will close its doors for good after the final performance on April 29, 2024.
According to the memo, the amount of debt the popular attraction has now on the books, caused by both the COVID pandemic days, as well as the slow return to reopening, has become an insurmountable obstacle. The show, described as an “immersive circus’ style show, is successful, but the debt load has just become too great. This is sad, as I really wanted to try and visit Lost Spirits Distillery on my next trip out to Vegas, but sadly that will never happen now. Perhaps the concept can be retooled and rebooted in a new location in the future for another run someday.
And on a semi related news, another Vegas icon has now closed for good, as the Tropicana casino closed their doors for good on Tuesday. The games started shutting down in phases at midnight, the final guests signed out of their rooms in the morning and the casino doors were locked shut at 1pm. The casino is expected to be demolished (imploded?) before the end of the year to make way for a future MLB baseball stadium for the moving Oakland Athletics.
(3/23/2024) While we don’t have a timeline as to when the new Universal Horror Unleashed attraction under construction in Las Vegas is expected to open, it is worth mentioning that Universal is now taking job applications for those looking to work there! Follow this link.
While we’re talking about attractions at Area 15, Blooloop reports that Area 15 has brought back the popular Army of the Dead themed VR experience to the complex in a “refrehsed venue”.
(1/9/2024) Special thanks to one of our readers for going by Area 15 to take some new pictures of the building going up for the “Universal’s Horrors Unleashed” attraction and other Area 15 expansion projects.
(12/21/2023) Vertical construction is officially under-way for the expansion building at AREA 15 in Las Vegas that will contain the “Universal Horror Unleashed” attraction. The massive pre-made walls for the new structure are quickly rising into place. You can see official pictures from Area 15 as the first wall section goes up and scroll over to the next photo showing off several wall sections now in place, along with the large foundation already poured.
Meanwhile a local area reader went by this afternoon and sent back some new photos showing off just how fast this structure is coming together.
(10/18/2023) Universal has officially dropped the name and logo for their new year-round haunted attraction coming to Las Vegas. “Universal Horror Unleashed”
(7/23/2023) iFLY has announced that they will add a new indoor skydiving attraction to the Area 15 entertainment complex in Las Vegas. According to a statement from the CEO of iFLY, the design of the Las Vegas location will make it one of the company’s flagship locations. While the timeline to open the new iFLY was not mentioned, they did confirm that it will be part of the new 20-acre expansion to the Area 15 complex, which should also include Universal Studios year-round Halloween Horror Nights attraction.
(6/5/2023) A series of photos and video clips showing off the land clearing next to Area 15 that is expected to be for the future Universal Halloween Horror Nights attraction in Las Vegas can be seen below.
The amount of space being cleared is quite large, so hopefully this bodes well for the size and scope of the future attraction.
(4/30/2023) Area 15 is wasting no time it seems, as demolition work to remove the industrial buildings located just north of Area 15 is now under way. For those wondering, this expansion is also supposed to be the home to the new year-round Halloween Horror Nights attraction from Universal Studios, so I’m happy to see that this project is moving full steam ahead without delays!
(1/12/2023) Halloween Horror Nights Las Vegas… where have you heard this before? Oh yeah… right here on Screamscape back in May 2022. Universal Studios famous Halloween haunted house loving seasonal event will soon have a year-round home in Las Vegas, built as part of an expansion of the Area 15 complex. According to various sources the plan is to create this 110,000 sqft year-round horror-plex as a way to bring many of Universal’s famous horror characters to life. Rumor has it that this won't just include film characters, but the Sin City site could become a year-round home to some very popular characters created for the Halloween Horror Nights events over the year. And yes… I’m talking about the HHN Icons… starting with Jack the clown, who can actually be seen standing in front of the creepy looking building in the new concept art released for the project. Behind Jack in the shadows, I see what looks like Chance standing next to another more hunched over looking silhouette.
What’s interesting about this project is that the location will feature a horror themed bar and restaurant location and apparently it will feature an experience that will be constantly evolving and beijing updated. One rumored concept so far is the idea that the most popular maze concepts and themed props used at the Orlando and Hollywood parks could be shipped to the Las Vegas site for further use.
Oh… and before I forget, Las Vegas may not be the only future site for one of these new year-round HHN attractions. If the plans to build a second Area 15 in Orlando continue to move forward, we’ve heard a rumor that it too may be considered as a potential home for more year-round Halloween Horror Nights fun.
(5/17/22) I’ve no idea just how serious this is, but Screamscape is being told that Universal Studios may be in talks with a group in Las Vegas to create a Sin City version of Halloween Horror Nights. I don’t believe this is in connection with an existing attraction like the Circus Circus Adventuredome, but is expected to be more of a stand-alone Haunt experience the likes of which has never been seen before in Las Vegas. As the general demographic for visitors to the area skews to the 21+ range for most things, we could also be looking at an attempt to create a version of Halloween Horror Nights intended for an entirely mature audience.
Again… just talks and concept development so far, nothing concrete, but the mind does boggle at the possibilities.
2027 - HARD ROCK LAS VEGAS HOTEL & CASINO - (7/20/2024) In a rare early morning performance, the mighty Mirage volcano show erupted for one last time on July 17th. With the resort now closed, demolition is expected to begin at the volcano site soon to make way for the future Hard Rock resort’s new guitar shaped hotel tower that will sit right in front of the new casino resort site.
(5/25/2024) While previously the plans announced to transform The Mirage into a new Hard Rock Hotel & Casino did not seem to involving shutting down the iconic casino, those plans have now changed. According to management, The Mirage will now completely close down on July 17th, with the last night guests can say being July 14th, to kick off a three-year-long construction project that will see it reopen under the Hard Rock banner, complete with a new 700-foot tall guitar-shaped hotel tower out front where the Volcano is sometime in 2027. According to The Mirage, if you previously had reservations for dates beyond July 14th, those reservations have been canceled.
Unfortunately this also means that the entire staff of the Mirage just found out that they are being laid off within a very short period of time. For those wondering, the current Cirque du Soleil show, “The Beatles: Love” is also coming to an end on on July 7, 2024.
(2/15/2023) The dolphins at The Mirage now have a new home. According to the local news three dolphins who have made a home at the former Siegfried & Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat (Karli, Sofi and Osborne) have now been moved to SeaWorld San Diego. According to the article, the dolphins were originally actually from SeaWorld and have been at The Mirage under a long-term loan agreement, so now they are returning home again.
(12/10/2022) Hard Rock International shared their latest plans to renovate The Mirage casino during a presentation of the Nevada Gaming Control Board this past week. The updated plans to transform the Mirage into the new “Hard Rock Las Vegas” branded resort still include a massive guitar-shaped hotel tower.
The shape of the tower has changed slightly from the previous Gibson shape into one more balanced left to right. It has been described as more of a “Gretsch” shaped guitar and while it probably offers the ability to include a few more rooms, it will also make the Vegas location stand out as being visually different from Hard Rock’s first guitar shaped hotel tower (a Gibson) that has already opened in Florida. It was also noted that the new guitar tower will be used as part of an all new nighttime light show viewable from all along the strip as sort of a replacement for the Mirage’s old Volcano eruption show.
Hard Rock also proposed building another guitar shaped hotel tower resort in Japan back in 2019 as part of a bid to build an integrated casino resort. There has been a lot of change in the Japanese political landscape since then due to the rise of the pandemic, but last I heard Hard Rock was still keen to bring their vision to Japan when the time is right.
Hard Rock says that while internally things will begin to change later this month as they take over operations from MGM Resorts, the resort was planning on keeping the existing Mirage name in place until the renovations are complete in 2025. Meanwhile the plan is that anything you may remember from the old Mirage will be gutted and removed, and then completely rebuilt and renovated into something entirely new for the Hard Rock brand. This includes the entire casino space, all restaurants and every one of the existing guest rooms.
As previously announced the Siegfried & Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat area will also be closed for good and demolished to make way for a new massive resort pool area. New homes are being found for all of the existing dolphins, lions and tigers in the exhibit. The process of relocating all the animals is expected to take between 6 to 12 months and should be complete by this time next year.
The end result for the Hard Rock Las Vegas will be a nearly 600 room increase, more casino games, more restaurants, an expansion to the convention center space, and plans to build a new “Hard Rock Live” performance space. The contract for the existing Beatles themed Cirque du Soleil show “LOVE”, has been extended to run at least into 2024. If ticket sales remain solid, I wouldn’t be surprised if Hard Rock opted to keep this one leftover from the old Mirage days as it does fit well into their brand.
During a Q&A session at the Gaming Board meeting, they were asked about the possibility of closing the Mirage to complete these massive renovation plans. Nothing has been set yet and they say that if a closure is needed, it won't be for at least another 18 months (mid to late 2024?) if it is determined to be a necessity.
(11/25/22) The local news has confirmed that the Mirage’s “Secret Garden & Dolphin Habitat” will be closing down for good. According to a statement issued by MGM Resorts, the new owners at Hard Rock have been considering their options and in open discussions with MGM about the future of the facility.
“As Hard Rock has thought about its vision for The Mirage post-close, the team has determined that the best course of action is to wind down and, eventually, permanently close the Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat prior to the commencement of construction of the Guitar Hotel and other planned transformational redevelopments of The Mirage.”
“Given this decision, we’ve agreed to work proactively together in the months ahead to develop a plan to permanently relocate the animals to new homes where they will continue to be loved and cared for by welltrained, highly respected animal care professionals and veterinary experts. Rest assured that the health, safety, and well-being of the animals is our top priority. For three decades, nothing has been more important, and that will not change moving forward. Both MGM and Hard Rock are committed to finding new homes for the animals that meet our required high standards of care and give each animal an opportunity to thrive.”
They also noted that the Dolphin Habitat has been closed since September so that a team of outside experts and the animal care team could conduct a review of the animals and the facility itself. This was done following the death of three of the facilities dolphins that took place earlier this year, with the first in April and then two more suddenly passed in September. “We are nearing the completion of that review but have not yet determined when the facility will reopen or in what capacity.”
(7/23/22) We know The Mirage was sold to Hard Rock International to become the all new Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. The famous Mirage volcano in front of the casino is destinated to be demolished to way way for a new guitar-shaped hotel tower. While the deal has yet to be 100% finalized at this time, TheStreet is reporting that it is very likely that at some point between now and the planned 2025 launching of the new Hard Rock Casino in Las Vegas that The Mirage may shut down completely rather than try to stay open during the renovations.
As part of the deal Hard Rock has the rights to keep using The Mirage name for up to three years royalty free if they wish, but anonymous sources from “one of the main theater productions” told the reporter than they were only offered one-year contract extensions at this time, which backs up the feeling that the Mirage will likely close for a time.
(1/23/22) Las Vegas has long been home to big cats, especially the tigers that were famously used in the days of the Siegfried and Roy magic show that performed from 1990 to 2003 at The Mirage. With the death of both Siegfried (Jan. 13, 2021) and Roy (May 8, 2020), the majority of the tigers and lions from the show have remained at The Mirage as part of the “Siegfried & Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat” attraction. But with the announced sale of The Mirage to Hard Rock and the intent to rebrand the casino resort as a new Hard Rock Casino, what will happen to the animals?
According to the local report the management of Hard Rock International has not yet made the call about what will happen to the Secret Garden attraction and the animals within. The terms of the sale of the resort from MGM to Hard Rock are unknown, and it is entirely possible that Hard Rock may require MGM to remove the animals before the sale is complete if Hard Rock is uncomfortable with taking ownership of them, or has other unannounced plans for the attractions space. Note that this isn’t an uncommon requirement when attractions change hands, especially if the new owner has no experience dealing with them, or in some cases, may have an existing corporate policy to not keep animals in captivity at their attractions.
On a related note about Tigers in Las Vegas, a proposal was made awhile back Jay Owenhouse to include tigers and other animals in a magic show held in a temporary structure along the Strip near the Mandalay Bay. In light of criticism from animal rights activists and safety concerns about keeping Tigers inside what would appear to be a modern-day circus tent style structure in such a public space the magician has now altered his proposal to exclude animals from the show.
The location of the show has also changed to a new location close to the Sahara on the northern end of the Strip after the land at the previous site (intended for 2020) fell into foreclosure. The new application for the animal-free show near the Sahara is expected to go before the Zoning Comission on Feb. 2, with plans to have it up and running sometime in Spring 2022.
(12/20/21) A piece of sad news from Las Vegas this week, as the CEO of Hard Rock International has confirmed that as part of the transformation of The Mirage into a new Hard Rock branded casino, the world famous ‘volcano’ structure outside the front of the Mirage that used to put on nightly shows will be torn down as part of the remodel of the casino.
Their plans for the Mirage property will involve building a massive new guitar-shaped hotel tower in front of the existing towers (why the volcano is leaving), adding a new live music venue and more. Currently however they have not announced if they plan to keep the Beatles themed show from Cirque du Soleil, though with a brand like Hard Rock, it would be hard to see them passing on opportunity to keep the show, unless it just was not selling out the venue on a regular basis prior to COVID.
A long-distance rendering of the property, as seen looking down the Strip, was also released by Hard Rock that shows off the new guitar-shaped hotel tower that will sit prominently in front of the entire resort.
(12/16/21) The Hard Rock brand is coming back to the Las Vegas Strip, but not where you would have expected. According to CNN Hard Rock International has signed a deal with MGM Resorts to hand the operations of The Mirage over to Hard Rock. The deal worth $1.075 billion will close sometime in the second half of 2022 and comes with the rights to continue to use The Murage name and brand for three more years, allowing Hard Rock the time to determine just how they intend to re-brand The Mirage after that.
???? - The Vegas Loop - (8/8/2023) The Vegas Loop underground tunnel network, created by The Boring Company, has now been granted approval to expand to become a whopping 68 mile long tunnel network. The first proof of concept was the three-station loop at the Las Vegas Convention Center. This is now being expanded with a connector tunnel to the Resorts World casino/resort.
While the long distance plan for the “Vegas Loop” project is to build a network of tunnels below all of the main tourist corridor attractions. Heading both towards the main Vegas tourist corridor and now towards the Downtown region, the overall Vegas Loop is expected to eventually include around 69 different stations. The southern expansion stops will be more obviously but towards the north end they plan on stopping at locations like Main Street, the Fremont Street Experience, Area 15, UNLV Medical District, The Strat, Circa, City Hall and more.
Meanwhile The Boring Company’s expansion of the network has already begun with new tunnel entrances at the Westgate Resort and a connector to the Encore resort happening over the past few weeks.
2028 - Brightline West / High Speed Rail - (1/24/2024) Good news for those who can’t wait for the Brightline West line to get built between California and Las Vegas, as the US Department of Transportation just approved $2.5 billion in bonds to be used for funding for the high speed rail line. The initial plan will seen service built mostly along the I-15 corridor between Las Vegas to the “Inland Empire” area just east of Los Angeles, featuring 218 miles of track with all electric trains able to achieve speeds of 186mph, covering the distance in in half the time it would take to drive it yourself by car.
Combined with a previous round of funding, Brightline West now has $3.5 billion in funding for the railway, which is expected to break ground sometime in early 2024, with the goal of being open by the Summer of 2028.
(8/5/2023) According to the local news the plans for the Brightline West high speed train just cleared another major hurdle, clearing the path to hopefully start breaking ground before the end of the year. In the latest development the Federal Railroad Administration rules that the 49-mile stretch of the proposed line between the southern end-station in Rancho Cucamonga, CA and Victor Valley would have no significant impact on the environment and may proceed without a new environmental impact study. Previously a study for the Las Vegas to Apple Valley portion of the route was approved in 2011 and reviewed and reconfirmed in 2020. With the needed permits and right-of-way rights now secured, Brightline West should be able to proceed ahead and begin construction.
(4/23/2023) Brightline West shared some concept art of the stations planned for the planned high speed rail line from SoCal to Las Vegas. The Las Vegas station end station would be build on a large empty plot nestled between I-15 and the south end of Las Vegas Blvd (aka: The Strip) between Blue Diamond Rd and Warm Springs Rd. Only a small portion of this large empty site will be used by the rail line with other developments looking to take advantage of the rest of the space in the future for other uses like future resorts and possible new sports arenas.
Another piece of artwork sent out appears to show the California station, attached to a large multi-story parking structure, it would also serve as a link between Brightline West and the Metrolink Los Angeles area rail system.
If all moves forward as planned, work could start sometime over the next year with the system opening as early as 2027.
(3/11/2023) The long stalled plan to build a high speed rail connection between Southern California and Las Vegas became another step closer this week. It has been a while since I’ve reported anything on this project, so catching up with what has happened since then, it now seems that Brightline is the rail company involved. That name should sound familiar to anyone who’s read our Florida / Orlando area news, as Brightline has been successfully building a rail system that will soon travel from South Florida all the way to the Orlando Airport, and then expand to run a line through the Orlando tourist district, with plans to try and expand beyond that all the way to Tampa connecting the states three major tourist destinations by rail.
Now on the other side of the country, “Brightline West” has now signed an agreement deal with the labor unions to build the 260-mile Brightline West line that will initially run from Las Vegas most of the way to Los Angeles, stopping short in San Bernardino where riders will connect via the existing Los Angeles Metrolink. Unlike Brightline’s Florida service that uses standard Diesel locomotives, the west-coast version will use electric high-speed trains capable of flying through the desert route at 180mph. From the sound of things, the plan will also likely build the rails to run through the middle of the existing I-15 freeway from California to Las Vegas. The run will start with a large main station right on the southern end of the Las Vegas Strip and include an extra stop in the Victorville area that will eventually connect to another high-speed California rail system in Palmdale planned to run between the LA and San Francisco areas.
Currently the plan is to actually start initial construction on Brightline West later this year, though don’t look for service to begin until 2028 or later. In the meantime, look for hear more about Brightline sometime in Q2 2023 when service to Orlando’s MCO airport begins.
New 2023 Attractions Now Open in the Las Vegas Area -
MGS Sphere - U2 Residency Concerts through Early 2024 w/ “Postcard From Earth” daytime attraction
PARADOX MUSEUM -
MUSEUM OF ILLUSIONS -
New 2022 Attractions Now Open in the Las Vegas Area -
WYNN’S “Awakening” - New Show
ESCAPE IT - Themed Escape Room Experience
MAD APPLE - New from Cirque du Soleil at New York, New York Hotel & Casino
ARCADIA EARTH - Immersive Art Exhibit
FLYOVER LAS VEGAS: Legendary Iceland - New Flight Film Added
FLYOVER LAS VEGAS: Winborne: The Call of the Canadian Rockies - New Flight Film Added
LIFTOFF LOUNGE @ Area 15 - Part Ride, Part Bar, All Fun
New 2021 Attractions Now Open in the Las Vegas Area -
NEW COASTER TRAINS on Big Apple Coaster @ NYNY
FLYOVER LAS VEGAS - Flying Theater Attraction Open On Las Vegas Strip
MEOW WORLD: OMEGA MART - Unique Experiential Attraction Experience
ESCAPE BLAIR WITCH - Themed Escape Room Experience
NEW RESORTS - Resorts World Las Vegas and Virgin Hotels Las Vegas (Opened 2021)
New 2020 Attractions Now Open in the Las Vegas Area -
AREA 15 - New attraction opened in late 2020
Circa Resort & Casino - New Fremont Street Casino Opened Late 2020
New 2019 Attractions Now Open in the Las Vegas Area -
Eataly - at Park MGM, essentially a 40,000 square-foot “amusement park for foodies”.
The Hunger Games: The Exhibition - at MGM Grand, the exhibit will feature costumes, props and recreated scenes including President’s Snow’s Office, District 13, The Hall of Justice, an interactive archery training experience and more.
“R.U.N” at Luxor - (CLOSED A Few Months After Opening) “The First LIVE Action Thriller by Cirque Du Soleil” that starts in the desert at dawn… at a quiet chapel where a “gangland wedding” is interrupted and a guy begins running for his life. From there the action is said to be non-stop for the next 75 minutes as we learn just what he has done as the two gangs and a bride lead the chase through a fictional dark underground Las Vegas world.
New 2018 Attractions Now Open in the Las Vegas Area -
Fly Linq - Ten side-by-side ziplines (so you can fly with your friends) starting 114 feet in the air that make the 1,121 foot run across the promenade to the landing tower located near the base of the High Roller observation wheel.
The Official SAW Escape - New escape room experience themed to the famous horror movie series.
Esports Arena Las Vegas - The first dedicated Esports Arena in Las Vegas opened at the Luxor. The space features a competition stage area, LED video wall, seating as well as daily gaming stations and production studios.
The Void (Closed In Mid 2020) - The VOID VR experience opened inside the Grand Canal Shoppes inside The Venetian. Experiences offered the first year include Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire, Ghostbusters: Dimensions, Nicodemus: Demon of Envanishment and Ralph Breaks VR.
New 2017 Attractions Now Open in the Las Vegas Area -
Fear The Walking Dead Survival – (CLOSED Mid-2019) A “dead”icated new and mostly walk-through adventure attraction themed around AMC’s popular Fear The Walking Dead show opened in the Fremont Street Experience over the Summer as part of a deal between AMC and TRIOTECH.
The Twilight Zone – Monster Mini Golf – A new themed indoor blacklight mini-golf attraction has opened inside the Bally’s casino themed around the famous Twilight Zone TV series. The site also features mini bowling, an arcade, gift shop and even a SciFi themed Wedding Chapel.
New 2016 Attractions Now Open in the Las Vegas Area -
Kiss – Monster Mini Golf – A new blacklight mini golf attraction themed around the famous rock band, KISS, is now open at The Rio casino. A previous version opened in a local mini-mall back in 2012, but they closed up shop and moved into The Rio instead as an all new attraction in 2016. The site also includes space for Birthday Parties as well as a Rock ‘n Roll wedding chapel.
New 2014/2013 Attractions Now Open in the Las Vegas Area -
High Roller Giant Wheel (2014)
Slotzilla Zip Lines (2014)
VooDoo Zip Ride (2014)
Cowabunga Bay (2014)
Wet ‘n’ Wild Las Vegas (2013)
Are The Las Vegas Casino Resorts in Decline? -
Various other report over the last few years seem to think so, including my own rant from 2016.
(8/10/18) Much like I've been saying for some time now, I think the world is proving that they are sick of Las Vegas casino resorts “nickel and dimeing” their guests with excessive fees, and laughing with glee all the while. Daily resort fees, parking fees and now even some new fees being placed on already high Salon and Spa service fees by MGM Resorts. Yes, it has gotten to the point where you would almost think MGM stands for "Money Grabbing Management" these days.
The times are changing and guests are now finally voting with their wallets, opting to skip trips to Las Vegas for other options. One after the next, the big Vegas casino companies have been reporting declining numbers for their properties this year, including MGM Resorts and Caesars Entertainment, where the RevPAR numbers (aka: Revenue Per Room) has already dropped by an average of 4% for the first half of the year, room occupancy rates are down 1% and Convention attendance is down 3%. The declining numbers, while not huge, have resulted in casino stock prices dropping double-digits as investors flee.
Oh... and gambling is also down, particularly because the payout rates for winning have been altered in many cases to now pay out less than they have traditionally paid for decades. It seems many of the big fish have opted to gamble closer to home, both domestic players as well as international, especially those prized Chinese gamblers who can now play Baccarat to their hearts content at the casinos in Macau. The news that the first casinos have finally been approved to come to Japan is certainly not good news for Las Vegas either.
I've said it here on Screamscape for a few years now... the perceived "value" of taking a vacation to Las Vegas has been lost due to corporate greed. We've already seen the Wynn resorts try to fight back against parking fees by offering to validate parking for guests who spend at least $50 on site. It also looks like Caesars and MGM may be ready to take a step in the right direction by lowering their room rates for the later half of the year. Most importantly, I think they need to take a long look at the parking fee issue as well, which was put into effect due to the opening of the T-Mobile arena.
(5/4/18) An interesting article was posted to the LA Times regarding the possible beginning of visitor decline to Las Vegas over the past 10 months, and goes into more detail with a local Vegas publication who claims guest irritation with outlandish daily “resort fees” combined now with the crazy parking fees that may be to blame.
Me? I have to agree… considering that resort fees alone, something that used to never exist, are now as high as $45 per night (with Venetian and Palazzo being the highest in the city right now, followed by $39 per night fees at the Caesars and Wynn properties). Add in daily parking fees and you are looking at a combined cost that is about even with what the average room rate alone used to be in Vegas… but then you get to add in the new higher room rates… and tax… don’t forget that… and it’s no wonder people are starting to realize Vegas isn’t the bargin vacation destination it used to be.
No wonder gambling profits to the casinos has also been reported to be in decline for years now… because they’ve been taking the money out of your pocket long before you even had a chance to get to the casino floor. Sometimes I think all it would take is one bright casino chain to see the light here, reverse the trends that have transformed the industry for the worse over the past 10-15 years, to see if a return to the old ways would brighten not only the guest experience, but also their own coffers as well. Win over your guest’s hearts and you’ll win their loyalty. Just a thought...
(2/22/18) Is the bottom getting ready to fall out in Las Vegas? Are tourism and convention business both ready to turn elsewhere due to rising costs and the overall impression that Vegas is no longer a value destination? A great bit of commentary was posted to the Las Vegas Review-Journal this week that nails the potential problem on the head with the first hard-data that could show that 2017 was the tipping point.
Screamscape Rants - The Recession Is Not Vegas’ Biggest Problem
(1/12/16) CNN wrote an interesting article about how the overall business at the Las Vegas casinos was down and has been down for the past six years. They report that Vegas casino lost $662 million in 2015 alone, and lost a dumbfounding $6.8 billion back in 2009 when the economy got really bad. They go on to point out that there are plenty of tourists in Las Vegas, and they are all spending lots of money on hotels, restaurants, merchandise and entertainment… it’s the gambling side of things that is way down by comparison and as they point out, “if people aren't gambling as much, that means they're not losing as much.”
CNN blames the recession on this, but this is where I have to disagree and point out what they are blind to as someone who used to visit Vegas on a regular basis in the 90’s when it was a growing boomtown of opportunity. The Vegas of today and the Vegas of the past are two entirely different animals, and it seems that today’s Vegas has forgotten the lessons of the past and how the business model worked.
Today’s Vegas has forgotten that the best lure to increase gambling revenue was to make everything else as cheap as possible. Frequent free drinks, insanely low cost food and buffets everywhere, and to give the hotel rooms away as cheap as possible. For a good period of time, back when Circus Circus has just opened the Luxor they would run ads in in the San Diego paper every week advertising rooms as cheap as $13 a night at Circus Circus, $23 a night at Excalibur and $33 a night at the Luxor. Want something better? You could get a suite at the Mirage for $50-60 a night on the right night. Mix that in with $2-5 buffet meals, drink specials and tons of free or low-cost entertainment and you could go on one hell of a fun vacation without breaking the bank… which still left over a good bit of income in your wallet to spend some time to gamble and try to make your dreams come true. At the very least you could gamble with a rewards program and maybe earn yourself a couple of tickets to one of the big shows for fifty bucks.
Compare this to the price of a Vegas vacation today and you’re dropping top dollar just for the room itself quite often, paying anywhere from $10 to $25 a person (sometimes more!) for a buffet meal, and not to mention paying $100 to $150 on average for a ticket to see one of the big shows in Vegas these days that has almost become a mandatory part of the Vegas experience. Now do you wonder why the good old gambling revenue numbers are down?
Of course they are down… because people are spending everything they have on the rest of the Vegas vacation, much like you would on regular vacation, and have less cash to spend than before on gambling. I could spend four nights in Vegas in the 90’s for what I’d spend for just one night at today’s prices. I know that after I’ve dropped about $250 for the wife and I to see the latest Cirque show, in addition to another $50 to $100 on a nice dinner out before the show, the last thing on my mind is putting another $100 at risk at the Blackjack table.
Somehow the Vegas of today has forgotten that tourists wowed by the spectacle of the casinos, stuffed by cheap food and drink prices, who find themselves walking through the casinos feeling good (and maybe a little buzzed) with a fat wallet in their pocket are the one who are most willing to try their luck at the gambling tables before heading home. And don’t get me started on how many machines no longer drop coins as your payout… the sound of coins endlessly dropping throughout the casinos of old was like siren’s song to many a potential gambler, luring them in to try their luck.
So is the recession really the problem? I like to think that the problem goes much deeper than that.
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