Monte Carlo

The Monte Carlo was a resort and casino located between New York-New York and Aria on the left side of the Strip in Paradise, Nevada. The resort opened on June 21, 1996 in place of the Desert Rose Motel and was owned by MGM Resorts International. The hotel has a total number of 3,002 rooms, including 259 luxury suites. The resort also had it's own shopping mall, convention center, spa, fitness center, and even a lazy river at it's pool.

The Monte Carlo is modeled and named after the Monte Carlo Casino in Monte Carlo, Monaco, while the hotel and casino in general is themed after various parts of the city of Monte Carlo itself. In 2016 after the grand opening of the Park Theater, the property would announce that it would be undergoing a renovation that would turn the once iconic Monte Carlo into Park MGM. The name change and renovation would take place in 2018. To see more on Park MGM, check out the article related to it.

## History

### **Construction and Opening**

Ground breaking for the construction of the Monte Carlo officially began on March 1995. At the time, the Monte Carlo was originally going to be named "Victoria" after Queen Victoria herself. It was later renamed to the "Grand Victoria", then back to Victoria. Two competing companies, MGM Mirage and Circus Circus Enterprises decided to team up and build the resort.

Later, Steve Wynn, chairman of MGM Resorts at the time, wanted to rename the Victoria to the Monte Carlo. People doubted that it would be named it, but later, it actually was.

The Monte Carlo itself cost both Circus Circus Enterprises and MGM Mirage $344 million to build. On June 21, 1996 at approximately 12:01 A.M, the Monte Carlo officially opened for business with a 12 minute fireworks show.

### **Early Years (1996 - 2006)**

On opening, MGM Mirage gave magician Lance Burton his own 1,200-seat showroom to perform his magic in front of thousands of people. This went on to be a permanent show.

After the tragic September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York, New York, Lance Burton gave out over 5,000 tickets to anyone who donated to the Red Cross Foundation.

### **Later Years and Closure (2007 - 2018)**

Diablos Cantinos, a mexican-themed restaurant officially opened in front of the Monte Carlo on September 21, 2007. It instantly became of Las Vegas's most popular restaurants until November 7, 2017, when the restaurant closed for good. During demolition of the restaurant, part of the building caught on fire. There were no injuries or deaths.

In 2009, the top floors of the Monte Carlo officially became a hotel-inside-a-hotel, as the floors were officially renovated had it's own name; Hotel32. Named after the amount of floors Monte Carlo's hotel tower has, Hotel32 offered much more luxurious suites, a lounge known as Lounge32, and even it's own pool.

On July of 2015, MGM Resorts announced that a new 5,000-seat theater/concert venue would be situated next to the adjoining Park. The new theatre planned to have flexible space with seating that could easily transform into multiple configurations. It was expected to open on April of 2016. It was also announced by the same resort company that the Blue Man Group would be going back to the Luxor, their original spot for showcasing. In the Monte Carlo, they were replaced with the Jabbawockeez in the new upcoming theatre, along with "Beacher's Madhouse".

On June of 2016, MGM Resorts International partnered up with the Sydell Group, a New York-based hotelier, and announced that the Monte Carlo would be getting a massive $450 million renovation expected to be done by the end of 2018. The new resort, named "Park MGM" would contain two hotels: Park MGM, which would contain 2,700 hotel rooms and incorporating some of the Monte Carlo's European theming, and NoMad Las Vegas, which would occupy 292 rooms on the top three floors of the hotel tower and be served as the Syden Group's flagship property.

Some of the signs in the Monte Carlo were donated to the Neon Museum's Ne10 Studio after closure.

#### **The Fire**

On January 25, 2008, parts of the Monte Carlo's exterior insulation finishing system caused a three-alarm fire. The fire burned part of the top of the hotel, and everyone inside the hotel rooms and casino were forced to evacuate. A total of seven people were injured, and luckily, no one died. The total estimate cost of the fire was around $100 million.

## Additional Information

### **Social Media (WARNING: These have been abandoned due to major changes to the hotel)**

* ***Twitter:*** https://twitter.com/MonteCarloVegas
* ***Instagram:*** https://www.instagram.com/MonteCarloVegas/
* ***Youtube:*** https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8eOM7tguNAikGC\_74-oulQ