By 11 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time Wednesday, the iconic Mirage Hotel and Casino on the Las Vegas Strip will be no more, as the mega-resort closes its doors to make way for a new one.
A closing ceremony is set to take place at 9 a.m. local time, FOX 5 Las Vegas reported. Its erupting volcano that put on nightly shows for free erupted for its last time Tuesday with much fanfare.
“We took a long walk from Circus Circus one time to just see the volcano…. Very loud, nice explosion, fire, the steam coming up was intense,” Sacramento resident Chris Jacobs told the local TV station. “Going to go in there now, make sure I get my last goodbyes.”
The three-minute show took place at 11:30 p.m., according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Operations began winding down just before midnight, when the last call was made for alcoholic beverages. Most table games stopped by 12:30 a.m. Wednesday, and dice were rolled on the last craps table just before 1 a.m., according to the Journal.
LAS VEGAS MIRAGE HAS $1.6M UP FOR GRABS BEFORE CLOSURE NEXT WEEK
“I’m really going to miss this place,” a table games dealer who did not want to use her real name told the media outlet. “A lot of the people here are like family to me. I can’t believe I won’t be coming back here anymore.”
Back in May, Mirage’s owners, Hard Rock International, announced that the nearly 35-year-old property would close for an overhaul and refurbishment, along with an addition of a near 700-foot tall guitar-shaped hotel on the site, similar to the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida.
ICONIC MIRAGE CASINO IN LAS VEGAS CLOSING, REBRANDING WITH GUITAR-SHAPED HARD ROCK HOTEL
The 80-acre resort will be renamed as “Hard Rock Hotel & Casino and Guitar Hotel Las Vegas,” with an opening date slated for 2027.
Hard Rock International said more than 3,000 employees will be laid off as a result of the closure, and it expects to pay out $80 million in severance. However, the Journal states that close to 6,000 jobs will be available when the new property opens.
Since the beginning of the month, The Mirage’s social media accounts have been reflecting on its history since opening its doors in 1989.
“Thank you for sharing so many memories made here at The Mirage over the past three decades,” its most recent Facebook post reads. “We have more to share and love hearing your stories of first vacations, family reunions, and more.”
FOX Business’ Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.
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