As I lose weight (30lbs so far!), I have noticed I have a new wardrobe of old casino “merch.” Some I haven’t worn since 2000, and some never!
Being 65+, the memory has a very selective tendency. Like “Why did I walk into this room?” or “Where are my keys?” And yet, the simplest thing, like finding a T-shirt stashed away for decades, brings back a flood of nostalgic memories.
Here are two properties that changed or are gone forever – but obviously not in my closet!
Las Vegas Hilton
The old Las Vegas Hilton, for many years the largest hotel in the world. It opened as the home of Elvis and Liberace. In the early 1970s it was Nevada’s tallest and largest hotel. I was in high school and before my interest in Las Vegas.
By the mid 80s, I had been visiting Las Vegas for a few years. I stayed at my Downtown home, Main St. Station, and used my car rental to finally “trek” over to the Las Vegas Hilton.
The casino was small, with only about 500 slot machines, 38 table games, and a poker room. But the real star of this property was the casino’s sportsbook. As you left the casino, walking into the “SuperBook,” I was in awe. Billed as the largest in the world at the time and is still the largest on the Strip.
Sauntering down the few stairs past the entrance, I was greeted by a sea of video poker machines. Full-Pay JOB, NSUD Deuces, and Bonus Poker were everywhere. Many games offered full-pay, and players didn’t have to play high denominations to get great pay tables.
The Las Vegas Monorail opened in 2004. The next-to-last station was at the Hilton. Hilton had led the group of hotels that had made the proposal for the monorail as early as 1996, hoping to bring more gambling traffic since it was out of the way behind the Sahara. Truth be told, I only rode the monorail twice to get to the Las Vegas Hilton when I stayed on the lower half of the Strip.
From 1998-2008, it also featured “The Star Trek Experience,” which I visited every time. Both the restaurant and the slot area were decked out with the Star Trek theme. I always lost at those slots, but at least it was fun to do it on a fake spaceship.
The Las Vegas Hilton was finally sold in 2014 to Westgate Resorts. This led to a different experience which kept people away. Freakishly aggressive timeshare agents were everywhere and needed to be avoided at all costs.
But visiting The Las Vegas Hilton was still fun and profitable for this guy. One night I played an Life of Luxury slot for over three hours, doubling my bankroll! Ah, good times.
The Reserve
The Reserve was a 224-room African-themed hotel and casino located in Henderson, Nevada, south-east of the Strip. The hotel and casino opened on February 18, 1998, and temporarily closed in 2001 to become Fiesta Henderson.
These were the days when car rentals were the way to get around to visit the many new casinos opening outside the Strip, especially in Henderson and Summerlin. It was still part of the days of themed properties. Inside and out, the Reserve was African/safari themed, including two huge elephant tusks in the sign outside.
The theme was everywhere, including the staff with sexy jungle-themed cocktail server uniforms. The food quality was great, highlighted by a delicious buffet.
Full-pay video poker was available all over the medium-sized casino floor. Unfortunately, with cheap drinks and great gambling, the place never made money. It was sold to Station Casinos in 2001, renovated, and reopened as Fiesta Henderson. It closed permanently in March 2020 due to the pandemic and was later demolished. But it was a highlight of my Vegas visits at the time.
Too Old To Remember – Bonus Additions
When I first started visiting Las Vegas, I was still a Vegas Newbie as well as a gambling newbie. So there are a few Hotel Casinos I stayed at that I have no memory of. Remember, no iPhone in those days.
So, if I could go back to the early 80’s, I would love to visit these older properties again to bring back some memories.
The Riviera: My wife had a convention, and we stayed at the “Riv.” I only played slots at the time and only remember a Moolah Cow 3-reel slot and the hot dog cart. Go figure.
The Hacienda: Our first hotel stay in Las Vegas was at this famed hotel casino. I remember the casino was spacious, but I’d love to have another night to stay there.
Takeaway
How did we get along with just our noggins’ back then?
It’s time to find a used WABAC (pronounced “wayback”) machine. It was a fictional Time Machine from the 1960s cartoon, The Rocky & Bullwinkle Show. Every week, a genius dog (Mr. Peabody) and his student, Sherman, would use the WABAC machine to transport themselves to major historical events.
Don’t remember? Use your smartphone and look it up. I have more hotel/casinos to visit!
