The Las Vegas Strip will be losing a landmark on July 17. Joe Lupo, president of the Mirage resort, confirmed Wednesday that the hotel-casino will be permanently closing its doors on that day, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports. He said the resort will reopen in May 2027 as the Hard Rock Las Vegas, featuring a 660-foot hotel tower shaped like back-to-back guitars. Some 3,300 employees are being laid off. Lupo said it is a "tough day for a lot of people," but a resource center has been set up in what used to be the Mirage's buffet to help employees find new opportunities. Employees will receive a total of around $80 million in severance.
Hard Rock International, owned by the Seminole Tribe of Florida, bought the Mirage from MGM Resorts International for more than $1 billion in December 2022, reports the Review-Journal. When the Mirage opened its doors in 1989, it was the first megaresort on the Las Vegas Strip, which was transformed by the subsequent building boom, the AP reports. Its attractions including the now-defunct volcano fountain and Seigfried & Roy's big cat act. When Hard Rock International bought the Mirage, it said the resort would remain open as the Mirage for a few years while it finalized plans. On Wednesday, it said all bookings for after July 14 will be canceled and refunded. (More Las Vegas Strip stories.)