With the recent announcement of the $1 billion mega resort on the Las Vegas strip, it has raised a number of questions about exactly how much it cost companies to build a resort on the strip. Although the $1 billion mega resort is the largest resort planned in recent memory, there’ve been many resorts that have been built for less. The costs of building a strip resort can range greatly depending upon the location, and amenities that are going to be included within the deal. Some of the more common resorts in the price tags that were associated with their creation include;
Flamingo
The Flamingo is a staple of the Las Vegas strip, and just happens to be one of the most cheaply built casinos. Of course, this is partially because the casino was built in 1947, but even adjusted for inflation the flamingo was relatively cheaply built resorts. The resort was originally built by Bugsy Siegel, and the investors within the Mafia that had funded the creation of the resort were so upset with the $4 million price tag, that they had him killed in Beverly Hills. All of the original buildings that were built for the flamingo have since been torn down and rebuilt, with one renovation taking place in 1976 and 1 Taking Pl. In 1993. The flamingo is a 15 acre resort that today has 3626 hotel rooms and 77,000 ft.² of casino space.
Tropicana
The Tropicana originally opened in 1957, and cost a total of $15 million to build. Since that time, the hotel has gone through numerous different ownership groups, and also many different renovations, greatly changing the look of the hotel. In 2009, the hotel transferred ownership in was purchased for a total of $450 million. A renovation took place that cost $180 million, following the new purchase. The hotel has a total of 1500 hotel rooms available, and over 50,000 feet of casino floor space.
Caesars Palace
Quickly after opening, Caesar’s Palace has become a mainstay on the Las Vegas strip. It originally opened in August of 1966, four years after it was originally constructed. It cost a total of $35 million to make, and was obtained from the Teamsters pension fund. Originally, the hotel was only 14 stories tall, and had a total of 680 rooms. Later, there would be many additions and renovations to the property, which has increased its value over time, changing ownership several times since it originally opened.
Mirage
Steve Wynn is most known for being the financier behind the $620 million mirage. It originally opened in November 1989, and since that time has become a staple in Las Vegas. In 2000, MGM bought the property as part of the $6.2 billion deal. That deal also included the Bellagio, as well as treasure Island.
The history of development on the Las Vegas strip is a long and storied one, with great changes in the amount that developers can expect to spend as time goes on. As real estate in Las Vegas became more scarce, the prices went up considerably.