The Mirage Hotel Now History

Above, The Mirage's sign on Las Vegas Blvd. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The Mirage Hotel in Las Vegas is now history.

It had been acquired by and will be transformed into the Hard Rock Las Vegas, which will be a two-year project.

Above, The Mirage in January 2016. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

According to PR Newswire:

LAS VEGAS, May 15, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Hard Rock International (HRI) today announced its plans to cease operations of The Mirage Hotel & Casino as of July 17, 2024, to begin the transformation of the property into the highly anticipated Hard Rock Hotel & Casino and Guitar Hotel Las Vegas (HRHCLV).  

Hard Rock will develop a new integrated resort featuring a nearly 700 ft. guitar-shaped hotel towering prominently in the center of the famous Las Vegas Strip. 

Above, yours truly in front of The Mirage in April 2015. Photo by Amber Vaquer.

I stayed at The Mirage once, which was over New Years in 2015-16 and saw "The Beatles Love" show. I had been there once before when my daughter applied to work in the hotel's dolphin show. We stayed in the motorhome at Circus Circus RV Park on that trip, which was the first for the RV after I bought it. 

To read more, go here.

The Mirage Hotel To Close In July

Above, The Mirage on January 2, 2016. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

As if we needed a Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas.

The Mirage Hotel, where I stayed over New Year's during 2015-16, will be no more this coming July.

According to the Vintage Las Vegas Facebook page:

The Mirage will close July 17, 2024. The landmark Strip resort is shutting down to be remade into Hard Rock Las Vegas.

I rather liked The Mirage Hotel. I will be sorry to see it go. 

I suppose this also means the end of "The Beatles Love" show will end as well, unless it moves elsewhere.

Bye-Bye To The Mirage's Volcano

Above, a daytime view of the Mirage volcano in 2015. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Looks like the new owners of The Mirage hotel and casino in Las Vegas will be doing away with the iconic volcano that is situated near Las Vegas Blvd. on the Las Vegas Strip.

According to the Las Vegas Sun:

Hard Rock International will do away with the Mirage volcano once construction begins to renovate and rebrand the property, the company’s CEO said.

“While we’re very respectful of the legacy of the volcano, we recognize that that is part of the Mirage of the past,” Hard Rock CEO Jim Allen during a Nevada Gaming Commission meeting today.

“We will not be continuing to operate the volcano once we commence construction,” he said.

Allen made his comments during a special meeting to consider approval of the $1.075 billion purchase of Mirage operations from MGM Resorts International.

Commissioners voted to OK the deal, which is expected to close as soon as Monday.

To read more, go here. 

Hard Rock To Purchase The Mirage Las Vegas Hotel and Casino

Above, The Mirage Hotel and Casino. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It appears that The Mirage Hotel and Casino will soon be a thing of Las Vegas history. Say goodbye to the volcano.

From Travel Agent Central:

Hard Rock International (HRI) on Monday, December 13, announced its agreement to acquire the operations of The Mirage Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas from MGM Resorts International, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. Through the acquisition, Hard Rock plans to build a guitar-shaped hotel, which will be located on the Las Vegas Strip. When it opens, the hotel will be named Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas and will cover an 80-acre plot.

According to a press announcement, Hard Rock International will pay $1.075 billion in cash for the operating assets of The Mirage Hotel and Casino, subject to customary working capital adjustments. The hospitality and entertainment brand will enter into a long-term lease agreement with VICI Properties Inc. for the real estate property of The Mirage.

I've stayed at The Mirage once and attended "The Beatles LOVE" show. The hotel is noted for the volcano in front that erupts periodically.

To read more, go here.

From USA Today:

Hard Rock said it plans to build a 1,000-room guitar-shaped hotel on the Las Vegas Strip, but chairman Jim Allen would not confirm whether that means the company would demolish the Mirage or add new construction.

 

Above, yours truly in front of The Mirage in 2015.

20% of Hotel Reviews At Trip Advisor Are "Suspicious"

Above, one of my reviews at TripAdvisor is of The Mirage Hotel in Las Vegas. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Have you ever wondered about whether those online "reviews" posted at such places as Yelp and others are real or posted by shills for those places?

I have seen some reviews of restaurants and other places and found that a number of "reviews" are indeed fake or very misleading.

Japan Today has posted an article on a study of hotel reviews posted at TripAdvisor and found quite a number of them to be suspicious.

They wrote:

HONG KONG —Around 20% of online hotel customer reviews may be unreliable or fake, according to Dr Markus Schuckert and Professor Rob Law of the School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and a co-researcher. 

After examining more than 40,000 TripAdvisor reviews of all star-rated hotels in Hong Kong in a recently published study, they warn that the high proportion of suspicious reviews should ring an “alarm bell” for customers. 

Although these reviews are not necessarily fake, they can be misleading and waste customers’ decision-making time. Given that many customers depend on online hotel reviews to make their purchasing decisions, the problem has serious implications for the hotel sector. 

E-commerce platforms have become so popular that online sales of travel products, particularly by hotels and airlines, have become the “biggest part of their business”, write the researchers. 

One reason for this rising popularity is the availability of online reviews and feedback posted by customers, which help potential customers to make informed decisions. From the service provider’s perspective, online reviews provide “fast, instant and easily accessible customer feedback”, and good reviews can increase their revenue.

I have posted reviews at TripAdvisor (The Monster Movie Fan's Guide To Japan is listed at TripAdvisor) on restaurants, attractions and hotels and I try to be as accurate and fair as possible. I have also posted reviews of RV parks and campgrounds at RV Park Reviews.

To read more, go here.

New Year's In Las Vegas Photos

As promised, here are more photos from the New Year's trip to Las Vegas, Nevada, known also as "Sin City".

Above, our New Year's party headquarters, The Mirage. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, Kiara receives a visit from ex-boyfriend Joey. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

                

Above, a shot of Denise and I before heading out. Photo by Joey.

Above, even Chewbacca showed up in Las Vegas. Photo by Denise.

Above, Denise dancing in The Mirage to wrap up 2015. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, Kiara and Denise at Rhumbar. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, Denise blowing a kiss to the cameraman. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, what happens in Vegas... ends up here. Photo by Armand Vaquer.