It’s said that Vegas is a place that hates to dwell on its history and nowhere is that more evident than on the Strip. Hotels that would be considered historic in other cities are imploded faster than it takes you to say “Sinatra” to make room for the latest megaresorts. And in true Las Vegas fashion, even the implosions of a hallowed landmark is cause for a celebration. I’ve compiled nine videos from YouTube of implosions on the Strip.
9. Castaways
Castaways was known mostly as a locals casino and claimed to have the “largest bowling alley in the world” with 106 lanes. Unfortunately that tagline wasn’t enough to keep the hotel out of bankruptcy and it was imploded in the early morning of January 11, 2006.
8. The Hacienda
December 31, 1996 brought upon the demise of the Hacienda to make room for Mandalay Bay. The Hacienda was built in 1956 at the south end of the Strip which made it a bit too far from the action that the hotels in the center and north end of the Strip were receiving. That changed in the mid 90s with the arrival of Luxor and Excalibur and the land beneath the Hacienda became too valuable for a hotel with a mere 500 rooms.
7. The Aladdin
The Aladdin was imploded in 1998 after a sordid history to make room for, umm, The Aladdin. It’s the only time in Vegas’ history where a hotel was demolished and rebuilt under the same name. Keeping the name may not have been such a good idea since the new Aladdin had similar problems that the old Aladdin had and was bought by Planet Hollywood and rebranded in 2006.