LAS VEGAS — The Mirage, a storied and iconic hotel-casino on the Las Vegas Strip, is poised to close its doors for the final time on Wednesday. Since its grand opening in 1989, The Mirage has been a landmark of the Strip, famed for its dramatic volcano feature and its hosting of Siegfried & Roy’s renowned lion and dolphin shows. As the casino prepares for its final chapter, it has been bustling with activity as patrons flock to claim their share of the $1.6 million in progressive slot machine jackpots that must be disbursed before the property undergoes a major transformation.

In its final days, The Mirage has seen its guest rooms emptied and its Beatles-themed Cirque du Soleil show, “Love,” conclude its remarkable 18-year run. The hotel's closure marks the end of an era for a property that, under the vision of former casino mogul Steve Wynn, redefined the luxury and thematic experience of casino resorts. Wynn's innovative approach had a profound impact on the industry, paving the way for future developments on the Strip.

“The Mirage is no longer state-of-the-art,” commented Michael Green, a history professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Green, whose father was a blackjack dealer at various now-defunct casinos like the Stardust and Showboat, emphasized the role The Mirage played in transforming the Las Vegas landscape. “Las Vegas always reinvents itself,” he said, reflecting on the continual evolution of the city's iconic properties.

The Mirage is set to undergo a significant redevelopment under new operators, Hard Rock International and Seminole Gaming. The transformation will see the addition of 600 rooms to the existing 3,044, along with the introduction of a striking new design. Renderings of the new Hard Rock Las Vegas depict a futuristic, guitar-shaped hotel with guitar string-like beams extending skyward from a purple-hued 660-foot (201-meter) tower, signaling a dramatic departure from The Mirage’s traditional tropical theme.

Joe Lupo, the current president of The Mirage who will remain in his role at the new Hard Rock resort, expressed optimism about the upcoming transformation. “The Mirage was a transcendent property, changing the landscape of Las Vegas,” Lupo remarked. “We are confident that Hard Rock Las Vegas will do the same in 2027.”

The Mirage’s closure will not be marked by a public demolition event, unlike the planned demolition of the Tropicana casino-hotel, which will be replaced by a new baseball stadium for the relocated MLB Oakland A’s. Instead, The Mirage's end will be commemorated with quieter ceremonies on Wednesday, attended by some of the 127 employees who have been with the property since its inception. Among those present will be Lupo, Jim Allen (chairman of Hard Rock International and CEO of Seminole Gaming), and Alan Feldman, a former MGM Resorts executive who is now a fellow at the International Gaming Institute at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Feldman, who was Wynn’s first publicist at The Mirage, reflected on the property's significant impact on Las Vegas.

“The doors opened to a crush of humanity and it stayed like that for days,” Feldman recalled. “It’s hard to capture what The Mirage changed. One of the things was that Las Vegas became more than Elvis, showgirls, round beds, and gambling.”

At its inception, The Mirage represented a monumental $630 million investment and was the world’s largest hotel at the time. Its lobby featured a unique ambiance, with a faint piña colada scent and bronze mermaid statues greeting guests. The check-in area was distinguished by a large shark and reef fish tank, while the property included upscale shops, celebrity chef restaurants, and expansive showrooms with performances by stars such as Johnny Mathis, Kenny Rogers, and Dolly Parton.

Reflecting on The Mirage’s legacy, Steve Wynn emphasized its transformative effect on Las Vegas. “Instead of neon, a garden of dozens of rich Canary Island palm trees and a cool refreshing waterfall,” Wynn wrote in a statement titled "An Homage to Lady Mirage." He highlighted that The Mirage was the first new hotel in Las Vegas in years, emerging amid competition from Atlantic City and the expansion of tribal gambling in California. The Mirage's opening heralded a significant increase in resort capacity, contributing to Las Vegas’s rapid growth and establishment as one of America’s fastest-growing cities.

By the year 2000, the Strip had welcomed numerous new resorts, including Excalibur, Luxor, Treasure Island, MGM Grand, New York-New York, Monte Carlo, Bellagio, Mandalay Bay, Venetian, and Paris Las Vegas. Wynn’s subsequent venture, the Wynn Resort, opened in 2005 following the demolition of the Desert Inn.

Wynn, now 82 and residing in Florida, has distanced himself from the industry after a legal battle related to allegations of sexual harassment, which he has denied.

Bo Bernhard, director of the International Gaming Institute at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, noted that The Mirage set a global benchmark for resort development. “The Mirage gave Las Vegas an exportable product, setting a standard for resort development in places like Singapore and Sydney,” Bernhard observed.

The Seminole Tribe’s acquisition of the Hard Rock brand in 2007 marked a notable milestone, establishing it as the first Native American operator in the competitive Las Vegas market. The tribe operates numerous casinos and has expanded its brand internationally, including acquiring naming rights to Hard Rock Stadium in Florida.

In a related development, an off-Strip former Hard Rock Hotel, acquired by a group including billionaire Richard Branson in 2018, was renovated and reopened in 2021 as Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, underscoring the ongoing evolution and rebranding efforts within the Las Vegas hospitality sector.