The Las Vegas Strip and its surrounding areas have seen their share of hotel-casinos and other notable properties disappear over the years to make way for newer properties.
Classic hotel The Dunes, which opened in 1955, came down in 1993 to make room for The Bellagio. Legendary hotel-casino The Sands, which opened in 1952 and hosted the Rat Pack in the early 1960's, was demolished in 1996 to clear the way for The Venetian. On New Year's Eve 1996, Hacienda, which opened in 1956, was imploded to make way for Mandalay Bay.
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The Aladdin, which debuted in 1962, closed in November 1997 and was imploded in April 1998 to make way for a new Aladdin, which eventually became Planet Hollywood. Desert Inn was demolished in 2001 and 2004 to be replaced by the Wynn Las Vegas and Encore at Wynn, respectively, according to VegasTodayAndTomorrow.com.
Even an iconic shopping center Hawaiian Marketplace was razed in April and will be replaced by a 302,000 square foot mixed-use project featuring retail, restaurants, supper clubs, service bars and outdoor entertainment space. A hotel could eventually be a part of the property but wasn't included in original plans submitted with Clark County, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.
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Guitar Hotel Coming to The Strip
The purchase of The Mirage on the Las Vegas Strip by Hard Rock International in December 2021 from MGM Resorts International (MGM) will lead to Hard Rock building a new 600-room, 660-foot-tall Guitar Hotel on the property of the hotel-casino, similar to its Guitar Hotel in Florida. The construction project will include the demolition of the iconic Mirage's Volcano attraction, which has entertained millions with its free show since the hotel opened in November 1989.
The Volcano "erupts" multiple times per day and has always drawn large crowds. The attraction has been an iconic part of the Las Vegas Strip, and there were even attempts to have it declared a historical landmark to prevent its closure.
Hard Rock said that it will keep the Mirage towers open as it renovates the property. The company has also made it clear the it intends to build a variation of its Guitar Hotel on the current site occupied by the Mirage Volcano.
Owned by The Seminole Tribe of Florida, Hard Rock is one of a few that are licensed to use some version of the Hard Rock name and had no involvement with previous off-Strip Hard Rock hotel in Las Vegas.
Siegfried & Roy's Secret Garden Loses Some Friends
Before Hard Rock dismantles the Volcano, it has already removed the last three dolphins swimming at Siegfried & Roy's Secret Garden Habitat at The Mirage and transported them to CoralWorld Ocean Park's Sea Sanctuary at Water Bay in St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands, the Las Vegas Review Journal reported.
The habitat closed after The Mirage sale was revealed in December 2022, and three of the habitat's dolphins -- Karli, Sofi and Obsborne were delivered to Sea World in San Diego. David Blasko, The Mirage executive director of animal care, escorted the final three dolphins --- Huf-N-Puff, Coco and Lady Ace --on the flight to St. Thomas.
