Nevada Casinos Not In Las Vegas
The COVID-19 pandemic has slowed much of the world down and changed the course of long-awaited plans. Yet construction in Las Vegas, Nevada, is soldiering on.
Sin City is marching forward, with not one but three new properties opening within the next year.
Casino resorts may change hands and get a refresh and rebranding, but it’s much rarer to get places that are brand-new and from scratch, as two of these three are.
Hopefully, you will allow me a little liberty on defining “near the. Hotels, Casinos, Resorts. 3400 Las Vegas Blvd S., Las Vegas, NV. “ There is also a dolphin habitat that is awesome you can even pet them for a bit more money but its worth the experience. ” In 40 reviews.
Construction is an essential job in Nevada. So while casinos were closed to help slow the spread of coronavirus, many construction projects (thankfully) continued to move forward. Many tourists who traditionally visit Vegas a few times a year will now have something new and fresh to look forward to.
Those who love both Las Vegas and football may already be aware of the city’s biggest construction project this year that didn’t involve a casino: Allegiant Stadium, home to Vegas’ first NFL team, the Las Vegas Raiders. It was finished over the summer and recently made its television debut, opening without fans for the team’s first home game.
This is just the tip of the iceberg as work continues on new casinos set to open within a year in Las Vegas. Delays may have shifted opening times around, but progress continues on Circa Resort & Casino, Virgin Hotels Las Vegas and Resorts World Las Vegas.
There is a little something for everyone, as all three new properties are in different parts of Las Vegas:
- Downtown Las Vegas: Circa Resort & Casino is downtown at the Fremont Street Experience.
- Off-Strip: Virgin Hotels Las Vegas occupies the land where the Hard Rock once stood just off the Vegas Strip.
- Vegas Strip: Resorts World Las Vegas is on the north end of the Vegas Strip, across the street from Wynn and Encore.
The opening timelines have shifted a little, in part due to the pandemic. Circa will open in phases, while Virgin will now open in January after previously being scheduled for sometime just after Election Day.
Meanwhile, Resorts World has changed its opening date since breaking ground in 2015. Summer 2021 seems to still be on target for the opening date range.
Circa Resort & Casino
Opening: Oct. 28 and Dec. 28, 2020
Circa Resort & Casino is the first ground-up resort development in downtown Las Vegas since 1980. The massive new property will occupy an entire block of the Fremont Street Experience. The land where Circa is being built used to be home to the Las Vegas Club Casino, Mermaids Casino and a variety of businesses like Glitter Gulch.
Downtown Las Vegas casino developer Derek Stevens is the brains behind Circa. He also owns The D Las Vegas and Golden Gate casinos on Fremont Street. In fact, Circa is across the street from the Golden Gate. All three properties will be connected by the Club One rewards program.
Construction on Circa started in early 2019, but the property faced challenges to opening before the end of 2020 as scheduled. Since there were capacity limits due to the spread of coronavirus, the focus on finishing the entire property at once changed.
Circa’s casino, its restaurants and most amenities within the property will open on Oct. 28. The hotel is taking reservations for rooms beginning Dec. 28, just in time for New Year’s Eve celebrations.
It’s also significant to note that when the property opens, it will be the only Las Vegas casino that requires guests to be 21 years or older. Typically, casinos allow patrons of any age to visit with the stipulation that they must be 21 to gamble.
Circa is an especially impressive property for its location, which is home to mostly smaller and older casinos. The hotel will be the tallest structure north of the Vegas Strip.
Circa plans on having 777 rooms eventually (only a limited number of floors will open in Dec.) and a massive 4,000-person-capacity rooftop pool deck called Stadium Swim. Plans for the number of hotel rooms could change, but plans for the pool area should remain intact.
Stadium Swim is more than just a pool area. This amphitheater and pool complex will feature six pools, cabanas, outdoor gaming, dining and a massive 135 x 41-foot video screen. Guests will be able to enjoy a relaxing time by the pool or an outstanding outdoor viewing area for sports and other entertainment.
The casino will have more than 1,300 video poker and slot machines, including 135 bartop machines. Circa will have 55 traditional table games and another 18 electronic table games. Machines and table games will be spread out over two levels.
The Circa Sports sportsbook will occupy three levels and should be the centerpiece of the casino. The sportsbook will have general admission seating, 350 stadium seats, couches with bottle service, a broadcast studio for VSiN and a massive 98 million-pixel viewing screen.
From the sportsbook to the “21 and up” rule, Stevens will showcase yet again how he’s one of a new generation of Vegas visionaries, shaking up the status quo and offering a new format of Vegas hospitality for both tourists and locals alike.
Virgin Hotels Las Vegas
Opening: TBA in 2021
Sir Richard Branson and a group of investors purchased Hard Rock Casino in 2018 with plans to make it the first Virgin Hotels property in Las Vegas. While Branson is only a small stakeholder in the property, it will bear his Virgin brand.
The building might look similar from the outside but will have a new look and feel inside when it opens within the first few weeks of 2021.
Virgin will operate the Hilton Curio Collection hotel, while Mohegan Sun will operate the casino. A new company in Las Vegas, Betfred, will operate the sportsbook. The property will use three loyalty programs altogether. The hotel will use Virgin’s “The Know” and Hilton Rewards. The casino will use Mohegan Sun’s Momentum rewards program.
The Mohegan Sun casino will be the first in Las Vegas for the Native American tribe. The casino floor at Virgin will have 60,000 square feet of gaming space. Specifics about the casino layout aren’t available yet, but it could be different than the Hard Rock.
Renderings of the lobby show that the iconic Center Bar will no longer exist. At least part of the casino floor will exist in this area of the property. It appears as though games will offer enough spacing for guests to move around more easily than previous incarnations of the property. The early renderings don’t offer much more information.
Much of the property will have a new look, but a few venues will remain intact. For example, the first Las Vegas outlet for Nobu will remain. The renovated sushi restaurant will include new furnishings and a larger bar area.
Virgin will also bring new brands and dining concepts to Las Vegas. Night + Market is a popular Thai eatery from Los Angeles making its Las Vegas debut at Virgin. Money, Baby! is a unique adult playground for sports fans.
The new sports and entertainment venue will include dining, drinking, viewing, games and of course sports betting. Money, Baby! will include indoor and outdoor spaces for fun in the sun or inside in the air conditioning.
Resorts World Las Vegas
Opening: summer 2021
Resorts World Las Vegas is the first venture in Sin City for international resort and casino operator Genting Group. The property across the street from Wynn Las Vegas has been in development off and on since first breaking ground as Echelon Place in 2007.
Genting broke ground on the $4.3 billion Resorts World Las Vegas in 2015. Construction on the project is in high gear this year, and it is on schedule to open in the summer of 2021. The COVID-19 pandemic did little to slow down the project, which is holding to its opening time frame next year.
Resorts World will be similar to other massive casino-resorts on the Vegas Strip. The property will have multiple tall hotel towers and a casino full of world-class amenities including a 5,000-person-capacity theater that should be home to big-name show residencies.
The massive 111,000-square-foot casino floor will be a little different than other properties in the area. For example, the sportsbook will be unlike any others. There will be a 14,000-square-foot entertainment zone instead of a traditional sportsbook. This will be home to a race and sportsbook with space that will feature live entertainment.
Resorts World Las Vegas will have three hotel towers, each sporting a different Hilton brand. The majority of the 3,500 hotel rooms will be in the tall Hilton and Conrad hotel towers. High rollers will find just over 200 rooms and suites in the specialty Crockfords Las Vegas hotel tower from LXR Hotels & Resorts.
Renderings courtesy of:
Circa Resort & Casino
Las Vegas Nevada Casinos Opening
Virgin Hotels Las Vegas
Resorts World Las Vegas
The Las Vegas Strip is nothing short of a marvel where ingenuity, creativity, and innovation are combined with a lot of money and a huge electric bill. The end result is a place that would be called the most magical place on Earth if Disney wouldn’t sue over copyright laws.
In all seriousness, there are few places in the world that can rival the blend of excitement, cuisine, entertainment, shopping, and crazy cocktails that one finds on the Las Vegas Strip. It’s like a one-stop shop for everything you ever wanted (whether you knew it or not).
Still, the Strip isn’t the only place where one can find similar excitement, cuisine, shopping, etc. Las Vegas, and indeed the entire state of Nevada, is filled with casinos doing their best to offer the same thrills as you would find on the Strip, usually at a fraction of the cost.
Therefore, next time you’re in Las Vegas, feel free to spend plenty of time on the Strip, but don’t be afraid to explore. Who knows what excitement you might find?
1 – Golden Nugget
Hopefully, you will allow me a little liberty on defining “near the Strip” since Fremont Street in Las Vegas isn’t exactly a long distance away. Still, the whole point is to remind Vegas vacationers that there are places to go outside the relatively narrow confines of the Strip and that there are plenty of good reasons to do so.
One of the best places one can go off the Strip is the Golden Nugget. If you harken back to the Las Vegas of olde, more than likely, you’ll be thinking about the Golden Nugget. This fine casino used to be the place to go when you want to gamble in the desert and is steeped in the history of the city.
Part of being steeped in Las Vegas history is the fact that the Golden Nugget has really kept up its charm. While Fremont street has been cleaned up and is a much nicer place to spend time than it was a decade ago, it has the Golden Nugget to really class it up with golden façade, modern décor, and all the touches you expect from a hotel on the Strip.
What you don’t expect are Golden Nugget prices, which don’t appear to have changed too much in the course of Vegas history. For instance, you want a room for less than 60 bucks? Stay at the Golden Nugget, because you can find it there.
Of course, it lacks some of the chic finish of newer casinos, but at the end of the day, it’s a great place. The Golden Nugget offers unique character at a decent price. For many, that is perfectly golden.
2 – Buffalo Bill’s Hotel and Casino
If you’re in Las Vegas, you have a car, and you love rollercoasters along with your gambling, get in your vehicle and head south. After a few hours, you will arrive in Primm, Nevada, near the California border. It’s home to the Buffalo Bill’s Hotel and Casino and the Desperado roller coaster.
Desperado was declared the tallest rollercoaster in the world in 1996, and it offers riders the opportunity to make crazy faces while experiencing 80 mph speeds. All of this is to be experienced while traveling around the casino and hotel and going high enough to clearly be able to see into California.
For some, that roller coaster is enough of a reason to make the drive to Primm. For others, they may be looking for the additional thrill of doing some gambling. Fortunately, Buffalo Bill’s offers a range of casino games, card games, and a lot of slot machines. It also offers room rates at some of the lowest prices in Nevada, a full spa, and seven restaurants.
Buffalo Bill’s is definitely an out-of-the-norm venue. For some, the drive to Primm might be a bit much. For those who make the journey, they are in for an experience they won’t soon forget.
3 – Railroad Pass Hotel, Casino and Travel Center
Railroad Pass Hotel, Casino and Travel Center is the spot of Nevada’s oldest licensed running casino. Started in 1931, Railroad Pass sits between Henderson, Nevada, (a suburb of Las Vegas) and Boulder City. It can be seen clearly on the drive from Las Vegas to Hoover Dam and is a great place to stop for a meal if you are driving rather than taking a tour.
Part of the reason it’s such a great place to stop for food is the Iron Rail Café, one of three places to get food at Railroad Pass Hotel. The Iron Rail Café is open 24 hours a day, seven days per week and offers a menu that could easily be called diner food at prices that make the drive from Las Vegas worth it.
These prices include $12 for a prime rib dinner, $16 T-bones, burgers for less than $7 and pancakes for less than $4.50. At some level, one wonders how they are able to maintain these prices. At another level, it’s probably best not to think about that and just enjoy the food.
On top of the cheap eats, rooms can be found for less than $60 a night and there’s enough gaming action to keep anyone occupied. This is another nice, out-of-the-way spot that can be a great place to do some gambling away from the sharks and the crowd.
4 – Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa
Located roughly 10 miles from the Strip (roughly a 20-minute car ride), you will find the Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa. It’s hard to describe the Red Rock, but in many ways, it is a microcosm of the entire Vegas experience in one area. There’s shopping, gaming, luxury, and food. The only thing missing is proximity to the Strip.
Still, for the owners of the Red Rock Casino, that’s not a bad thing. They look at their casino as a place where travelers go when they are still interested in the glamour of Las Vegas without having to deal with the hassles of the Strip.
Therefore, next time you want something different, check out the sportsbook, the 70 table games, and nearly 3,000 slot machines. Next time you want something different, try Red Rock, especially after it has recently undergone a $35 million-dollar upgrade, the goal of which was to keep it the premier off-Strip hotel in the Las Vegas area.
5 – Green Valley Ranch Resort
Green Valley Ranch Resort in Henderson, Nevada is about eleven miles and twenty minutes by car away from the Las Vegas Strip. However, when you step foot into the Mediterranean-themed resort hotel, the Strip could be hundreds of miles away and you won’t care one bit.
The calling card of the Green Valley Ranch Resort is luxury. Its pools look as nice or nicer than anything you would find on the Strip. The eight restaurants offered on site feature a wide variety of different flavors and options, including the ubiquitous Las Vegas buffet. Plus, there is a full spa and salon, entertainment venue, movie theatre, etc.
There’s also gaming, too, because this is a resort and casino. With the Green Valley Ranch, there are numerous ways to gamble: slots, poker, bingo, sports betting, etc. The Green Valley Ranch really is everything one would need from the Vegas experience, just away from the Las Vegas crowds and away from the Strip.
Also, did we mention shopping? The Green Valley Ranch offers The District, a shopping and dining area with a good mix of upscale stores, family friendly shops, and everything in between.
What makes the Green Valley Ranch the most impressive is the off-Strip pricing. Rooms can be found on sale for less than $100 per night, which makes it the perfect mix of upscale accommodations and price.
Conclusion
This list scratches the surface of off-Strip casinos and resorts. Nevada is famous for its gambling, so it’s really no surprise that there would be a lot of places you can go to find a good game or a good hotel that are a little off the beaten path.
Of course, all of this is not to say that there’s anything wrong with the Strip. I love spending time there and marveling at what the casinos have built. On the other hand, I’m not always the biggest fan of paying prices on the Strip. That’s why it’s refreshing to be able to board a shuttle or get in my rental car and explore the options that exist around Las Vegas.
Best Nevada Casinos Not In Las Vegas
Ultimately, I encourage you to do the same. Just don’t blame me when you suddenly decide you’d rather stay off the Strip in a place that’s just as nice.