Leaving Las Vegas: Sin City Bids Farewell To An Iconic Casino
After 67 years in operation, yesterday marked the end of an era.
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Subscribe for free to get more stories like this directly to your inboxIt’s been nearly 70 years since the Tropicana first opened its doors to visitors in an emerging oasis of adult-themed fun in the Nevada desert. Las Vegas has changed a lot since then, but this landmark casino and hotel remained a constant throughout the subsequent decades.
That era has now come to an end.
A star-studded legacy
When the Tropicana first opened, it was three stories tall and had 300 rooms. Construction cost $15 million, which is nothing by today’s standards but was a massive investment at the time.
And there wasn’t much around it, unlike the densely packed Strip that now serves as the focal point of Las Vegas. Over the years, the Tropicana built on its nickname — the Tiffany of the Strip — by welcoming high rollers with an elegant experience and offering performances by some of the biggest stars of the day.
A few of the most notable acts to play its showroom included:
- Frank Sinatra
- Elizabeth Taylor
- Gladys Knight
- Wayne Newton
- Debbie Reynolds
- Sammy Davis Jr.
It was even good enough for James Bond himself in the 1971 classic “Diamonds Are Forever.”
But times have changed, and the Tropicana now only exists in the memories of those who have experienced it.
“It’s ran its course”
So why was yesterday the last for this historic location? It stems from a larger shift away from casinos and toward other forms of entertainment — sports in particular.
The hotel is set to be demolished in October and in its place will be a Major League Baseball stadium expected to cost 100 times more than the Tropicana did when it was built.
Longtime Tropicana bartender Charlie Granado has mixed emotions, explaining: “It’s time. It’s ran its course. It makes me sad, but on the other hand, it’s a happy ending.”
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