By modern standards, old-school Las Vegas Strip properties were small and intimate.
That's a relative assessment, given that the newer resorts are huge properties with thousands of rooms, massive casinos, multiple restaurants, and a variety of entertainment choices.
For example, the newest Las Vegas Strip resort casino, Resorts World Las Vegas, has 3,500 rooms. The $4.4 billion project is gigantic, housing three hotel brands, Hilton, Conrad, and Crockfords. It's also the first new Las Vegas Strip project since MGM Resorts International's (MGM) -) Cosmopolitan opened in 2010.
DON'T MISS: Here's the Las Vegas Strip secret you need to know
"Bigger is better," however, is not a recent trend. Caesars Entertainment (CZR) -), MGM, and Wynn Resorts (WYNN) -) have all embraced the idea that each resort casino should operate as if visitors will never leave.
That's why Caesars recently remodeled one of its older properties, the former Bally's, rebranding it Horseshoe and making numerous additions. The new Horseshoe offers a Guy-Fieri-led sportsbook, an all-ages arcade, and multiple restaurants including a steakhouse named after Las Vegas legend Jack Binion.
The Strip has a few boutique properties, but most of those -- like Caesars Nobu Hotel at Caesars Palace -- sit inside larger properties.
That enables Caesars to offer high-rollers a different experience while also giving them the convenience of a massive resort.
Old-school, smaller properties with just a few hundred rooms have mostly disappeared. One of the last remaining properties like that, Casino Royale, appears to be in its final days.
Image source: Ethan Miller/Getty Images for Caesars Entertainment
Casino Royale's days are numbered
Nestled between a number of much larger Caesars properties, Casino Royale often gets noticed only because people have to walk by it on the way to the Venetian, which hosts a lot of midsized conventions. The property's casino takes full advantage of that position by offering free play to new players willing to stop by for a while.
The Best-Western-operated hotel is easy to miss. It offers 152 rooms, which makes it a tiny player in the market. Arguably the best thing the property has going for it is its location.
Despite its small footprint, Casino Royale has survived since 1964. That makes it one of the older properties on the Las Vegas Strip -- only the Flamingo and the soon-to-be-demolished Tropicana are older -- but the small casino's days are numbered.
The owners of the property have filed paperwork with the Federal Aviation Administration to replace the small hotel and casino with something much larger.
Las Vegas Strip gaining a new megaproperty
Economics have made it impossible, or at least impractical, to run a property like Casino Royale on the Strip. Perhaps a small boutique hotel catering to very-high-end customers might make economic sense, but for the most part any new Las Vegas Strip construction has focused on massive properties.
That's what's happening at the Casino Royale site, according to KTNV.
"A representative of Casino Royale submitted a request to the FAA to evaluate the impact of a potential new structure for the site," the Las Vegas ABC affiliate TV station reported.
"The 11-page report from the FAA shows a proposal to build or operate a building that’s 699 feet tall. That would qualify the building as a skyscraper and would be taller than many resorts on the Las Vegas Strip."
The FAA has signed off on the project, saying it would not compromise the city's airspace.
That's only the first step in the process; Clark County, which encompasses Las Vegas, would still need to approve the plan. But it's a clear sign that Casino Royale's days are numbered. The hotel has not posted a closing date and it can still be booked for stays.
Some regular visitors are sad that the classic property will make way for something new.
“It’s sort of the last of the old Vegas-style casinos,” Dean Scott, who has stayed at Casino Royale multiple times, told KTNV.
Get investment guidance from trusted portfolio managers without the management fees. Sign up for Action Alerts PLUS now.
