Before that, it took two implosions in the summer of 2016 to bring down the Riviera on the opposite end of the Strip, clearing space for an expansion of the Las Vegas Convention Center. The off-Strip property closed during the COVID-19 pandemic and never reopened. The Eastside Cannery hotel tower, on Boulder Highway, is imploded early in the morning Thursday, March 5, 2026. April 7-10The Plaza Hotel & Casino is proud to host the Sin City Showdown Demolition Derby in Las Vegas April 7th – 10th, from Stirrin’ Dirt Racing, the largest demolition derby promoter in the west, at the CORE Arena. On Thursday, the stretch of Boulder Highway near the demolition site has reopened. “Maybe a little less casino, a little more housing for the community.”
Casinos & Gaming
Beloved Canadian sons and classic rock legends Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman have announced an extensive U.S. headline tour, performing as The Guess Who for the first time in 23 Continue Reading Clark County Nevada has over 2 Million residents and they welcome over 32 Million visitors each year. Las Vegas News also covers non-gaming events in the Las Vegas Valley and Southern Nevada. Las Vegas Las Vegas casino resorts have been long known for their entertaining shows, endless casino action and bright lights.
Eastside Cannery Casino and Hotel Imploded in Las Vegas
Overall volume was up, while the gaming win was down,” Newell said. Recent comments from resort leaders showed some confidence that tourism would be stronger this year, but hotels will depend on midweek business from conventioneers. Las Vegas visitors declined by 2.2% in January, tourism officials reported on Friday.
In addition, more than 2,700 hotel room bookings have been made. Derek Stevens, who also owns the D Las Vegas and Golden Gate Hotel & Casino, said they’ve seen more than 15,000 visitors in the first month of the promotion. Create your free account to bookmark articles, follow companies, and build a personalized newsfeed. It provides hospitality leaders with the latest and most relevant global news, trends and more. The 220-room hotel is located in the heart of Portland’s hip West End District, just steps from high-end eateries and… By Shannon S. OkadaThe Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) reported that the number of visitors to Las Vegas in June and July of 2020 totaled 2,503,100, which represented a 65.7% decrease from 7,293,300 visitors in June and July of 2019.
Smith echoed Hornbuckle’s confidence, saying there is “a core demand for Las Vegas,” and visitors are still spending money. “The reality is occupancy is down 3 percent, and visitation is down,” Hornbuckle said, before adding, “We are as solid as a rock. Bill Hornbuckle, president and CEO of MGM Resorts International, and Keith Smith, president and CEO of Boyd Gaming Corp., told business leaders at a recent Vegas Chamber conference that the city’s tourism and hospitality industry remains fundamentally strong.
Casinos had avoided steep declines during the tourism decline in 2025, but January’s numbers showed that they are not immune to a drop in Las Vegas visitors. The win was the 12th-largest in state history, but it couldn’t stack up with numbers from a year ago that were the second-best of all time. You can always take advantage of the amazing sightseeing and people watching in Las Vegas but be sure to make time to explore these equally fun options for FREE!
Las Vegas Casinos Launch “At Par” Program for Canadian Visitors
The email you need for the day’s top news stories from Canada and around the world. The percentage drop year over year on those airlines ranged from 22 per cent on Porter to 33 per cent on WestJet. Stevens also announced Wednesday that the hotel group is hosting two shows by Canadian artists. The rate applies to accommodations and drink prices, with hotel stays paying the “same number shown in U.S. dollars charged in U.S. dollars.” This meant the exchange rate for Canadians would be equal, with US$1 equal to their Canadian $1, at his hotels, as well as select bars at their three Fremont Street properties. It was the end of January that Stevens launched the promotion, in which Canadians booking at his hotels would see “at par” pricing.
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- The 220-room hotel is located in the heart of Portland’s hip West End District, just steps from high-end eateries and…
- In addition, one player hit six jackpots in one day for a payout of $206,700 at an off-Strip casino.
- She noted that it was Nevada’s 59th consecutive month with a win over $1 billion, and that levels remain above pre-pandemic levels.
- The implosion of the Eastside Cannery marks the end of an era for the Las Vegas gaming and hospitality industry, as the city continues to evolve with new development.
- Bill Hornbuckle, president and CEO of MGM Resorts International, and Keith Smith, president and CEO of Boyd Gaming Corp., told business leaders at a recent Vegas Chamber conference that the city’s tourism and hospitality industry remains fundamentally strong.
Join our newsletter now to stay up to date on all Las Vegas events, plus the occasional special offer and discount code! Locally owned and independent since 1950; Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service, best news website in the nation & DuPont Award for broadcast journalism “You really don’t do that on a normal basis in a busy city.” Remarking on the gathering outside the Longhorn, Erica Tyning said that everyone was just “having a good time.” “I’ve seen the implosions on YouTube quite a bit.
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For 25 years, David Copperfield has been entertaining visitors to the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and now we know when his show will come to an end. A tourist faces charges after Las Vegas police said he stole a flamingo from the Flamingo hotel and took the bird back to his room, injuring it. Ticket options may be available from verified marketplaces. We provide curated, impartial listings of upcoming performances, venues, and event schedules to help audiences discover live entertainment across the Las Vegas area. Las-Vegas.Events is an independent, city-based guide to concerts, theater, and live events in Las Vegas.
Boyd purchased the land underneath the shuttered hotel-casino last year for $45 million, property records show. Nevada’s casinos were allowed to reopen in June 2020, but Eastside Cannery never did. Steve Sisolak ordered casinos and other businesses in Nevada closed to help contain the coronavirus outbreak. Boyd acquired the Cannery hotel-casino in North Las Vegas and the Eastside Cannery for about $230 million combined in 2016. Work crews tore down portions of the property lately, but the hotel tower, which was gutted and stripped of windows, still stood until early Thursday morning, when explosive charges reduced it to a mountain of rubble.
Crews prepared to implode the Eastside Cannery Hotel-Casino, which was built in 2008 but closed during the COVID-19 pandemic and never reopened. The event drew a mix of reactions, with some mourning the loss of a favorite casino and others embracing the potential for the site’s future. While some attendees expressed nostalgia for the casino, others welcomed the progress that will come with redeveloping the site. The Eastside Cannery had closed during the COVID-19 pandemic and never reopened. Trusted worldwide for gambling news, analysis and industry expertise. You understand that you can opt-out at any time.
Months
- “It was pretty cool,” said 20-year-old Wyatt Diaz-Gomez, who lives near UNLV and watched the implosion from the RV park.
- A San Diego resident who drove to Las Vegas to watch the Eastside Cannery implosion, as it was one of his favorite casinos.
- January’s gaming win follows a strong performance in December, which brought the state’s third-highest overall win along with the Strip’s fifth-highest all-time total.
Reaction to that news was mixed among those gathered. “It’s just I have never seen a building come down live, you always see it on the news but never live.” The Cannery was built in 2008 but closed during the COVID-19 pandemic and never reopened. This will be the first time I watch it in real life, bring ‘em down.” The middle-class job allowed him and his wife to purchase a home in the city.
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Nexstar Media Group, Inc. is a leading, diversified media company that produces and distributes engaging local and national news, sports, and entertainment content across its television and digital platforms. Las-Vegas.Events is operated by Live Entertainment Guide LLC, a U.S.-registered company that operates a network of independent, city-based live entertainment guides across the United States. The Michigander said he was staying in the hotel weeks ago when he learned about the implosion.
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Canada is the largest source of international tourism to Las Vegas, and the decline of these tourists is a significant blow to the city. Stevens has marketed to Canadian tourists for years, but many are avoiding travel to America in protest of President Donald Trump’s tariffs and threats to make Canada the country’s 51st state. Golden Entertainment will still manage day-to-day operations, so hotels, restaurants, and attractions should stay the same for now. “VICI has sought exposure to the Las Vegas locals market since our inception, and we’re thrilled to acquire seven new assets across Nevada,” said John Payne, president and COO of VICI Properties, in the press release. Altogether, the portfolio adds more than 6,000 hotel rooms, 4,300 slot machines, and 78 table games to VICI’s empire. With this deal, the real estate powerhouse adds seven new casino properties spread across the state.
Anthony Lucas, professor of casino management at UNLV and a former gaming industry executive, said weaker international visitation played an outsized role in the annual numbers. According to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, 38.5 million people visited the city in 2025, down 7.5 percent from 2024. Nevada’s nonrestricted casino licensees won $15.8 billion from gamblers last year, a year-over-year increase of 1.2 percent over the previous record of $15.61 billion set in 2024, according to the state Gaming Control Board. While some attendees expressed nostalgia for the casino, the event also highlighted the mixed feelings the community has about the changes happening in the city. The implosion of the Eastside Cannery Hotel-Casino marks the end of an era for Las Vegas, as the city continues to evolve with new development. Once the Eastside Cannery is demolished, housing is planned for the site, though reaction to that news was mixed among those gathered for the implosion.
“I think the interest rate level that we’re currently at is disproportionately hitting one end of the market,” said Stevens. Stevens said he continues to see continued growth in the high-end market, but it is “the other end that is kind of hurting.” There were 3,089,300 visitors to Las Vegas this July compared to over 3.5 million last year. Given that slot machines are still a hit, Stevens said he’s seen an influx of traffic at his other hotel, Circa Resort & Casino, by bringing in ETGs.
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Stevens said he believes ETGs represent just another shift in the industry, with consumers more comfortable playing on their phones following the coronavirus pandemic. “I think things continue to change. I remember that at one point in time, people played sic bo a fast-paced dice game with Asian origins,” said Stevens. The tourism decline has been attributed to a combination of factors, including the impact of tariffs, the seasonal summer slowdown, and a surge in online gaming. There were 3,089,300 visitors this July compared to over 3.5 million last year, while occupancy on the Strip dropped 7% from 86.5% last year. The Las Vegas vegas casino app Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) recently released its numbers for July visitors, noting a 12% drop from last year.
The year-end gaming totals remained steady even as overall visitation and other key tourism metrics went down. The result was a 7 percent decline in slot revenue and a 5 percent decrease in table games revenue for the month. A lower-than-average slot hold of 7.2 percent, which Beynon noted was below the long-term average of 8 percent, offset a 1.4 percent increase in slot volume, while baccarat volume rose 1 percent but faced tough hold comparisons. December proved particularly challenging on the Strip, according to Chad Beynon, senior gaming, lodging & theatres analyst at Macquarie Equity Research. “There is every reason to be optimistic about the future as news of our death has been greatly exaggerated,” she said.