The Mirage Hotel & Casino will host a closing ceremony Wednesday two hours before the iconic Strip resort closes.
Unlike the Tropicana Las Vegas that closed in April without Bally’s hosting a send-off event, Hard Rock International, the owner of The Mirage, will hold a ceremony Wednesday to “honor the history and legacy of this first megaresort on the Las Vegas Strip.”
The event, starting at 9 a.m. ahead of the 11 a.m. closing, will include speeches from executives and special guests. All guests must check out on Monday.
Wednesday’s speakers include Jim Allen, chairman of Hard Rock International and CEO of Seminole Gaming under the Seminole Tribe of Florida; Joe Lupo, president of The Mirage and future Hard Rock and Guitar Hotel Las Vegas; and Alan Feldman, UNLV International Gaming Institute.
Josh Swissman, founding partner and managing director at GMA Consulting, called it the “end of an era. The Mirage kicked off the big megacasino era with the volcano and atrium, Siegfried & Roy, the aquarium behind the front desk,” Swissman said. “All of those are going away. It’s a big deal, but it also marks perhaps a new era on the Strip, with the involvement of a tribally owned and operated gaming organization.”
Hard Rock acquired the property from MGM Resorts International in December 2022 for $1 billion. It’s developing a new integrated resort featuring a nearly 700-foot guitar-shaped hotel.
The closure comes as The Mirage is reported to be in a frenzy with a six-day, $1.6 million cash giveaway that’s attracted thousands of people wanting to play slots.
Gaming-industry consultant Oliver Lovat, CEO of the Denstone Group, has been among those visiting the property over the past week and plans to return early next week before its closure. “For those who study the history of Las Vegas casinos, we’re losing our icon. However, we welcome the Hard Rock coming back in a revived form that will be good for the city and tourism.”
The Mirage was the first megaresort built in Las Vegas and proved operators could have 3,000 rooms and be successful with more than a dozen resorts added in the decade-plus afterward, Lovat said.
“It’s the end of an era for Las Vegas,” Lovat said. “The Mirage is possibly the most important resort to ever be built by marking the transition of old Las Vegas to the new Las Vegas. Without it, there’s no Bellagio, no MGM Grand and even a megaresort in Singapore. The Mirage changed everything. It cost $630 million and is the greatest bargain in the history of Las Vegas.”
Lovat said The Mirage has been a victim of “segmentation” in the marketplace and hadn’t attracted a particular customer, unlike other properties that focus on conventions, the upper tier or mid-tier customers, families, and other niches.
“It’s closing before its time,” Lovat said. “Other properties that closed were clearly past their best. The Mirage still has a loyal customer, makes good money, and is closing earlier than it could have. The reason is Hard Rock is building back better. I always thought The Mirage would be here a lot longer.”
The loss of the 3,000 rooms is expected to be a boost to Caesars Entertainment, MGM Resorts International, and other properties along the Strip.
According to plans submitted to Clark County in 2023, Hard Rock intends to add an additional 1.2 million square feet with an additional theater, retail, and ballroom spaces.
The new casino will be expanded from 94,000 square feet to 174,000 square feet. Roughly 83,000 square feet of convention space will be added, the theater will go from 3,278 seats to 6,265, and new restaurants with outdoor seating, a nightclub, and a dayclub are in the works.
HRHCLV is expected to double the current number of jobs at The Mirage and the renovation will generate more than 2,500 construction jobs. Hard Rock will pay approximately $80 million in severance packages for eligible union and non-union employees remaining with the property through cessation of operations. Some 3,000 people are being laid off as part of the closure.
