Harrah's Las Vegas
Encyclopedia
Harrah's Las Vegas is a hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip
in Paradise, Nevada
. The property is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment Corp.. Harrah's has over 1,200 slot machines.
The hotel offers 2,677 rooms with an attached casino providing 86664 sq ft (8,051.3 m²) of space. The hotel consists of several towers, the tallest of which has 35 stories. The court yard entry houses a Ghirardelli Chocolate Company
store.
There is a Las Vegas Monorail
stop at the rear of the property, and a shuttle to the Caesars Entertainment Corp-owned Rio
.
casino, opened the Holiday Casino, a small casino in front of the Holiday Inn
Las Vegas Center Strip.
In 1979, Holiday Inn bought a 40% share of the casino's parent company, Riverboat Inc. By 1982, the hotel had grown to over 1,000 rooms, making it the largest in the chain. Holiday Inn bought out the remaining 60% in 1983.
In 1992, the property was renamed Harrah's.
In 1997, Harrah's completed a renovation intended to make it the company's flagship property, replacing the old riverboat
theme with a Mardi Gras
/Carnaval
motif. They extended the 35 story tower by adding 986 rooms. Included in the renovations were six 22000 lb (9,979 kg) 23-karat gold-leaf sculptures. Built from steel and glass reinforced polyester resin, the sculptures stand 32 ft (9.8 m) high and wear size 43 shoes.
At the grand re-opening Harry Connick, Jr.
entertained at the Carnival Court. Tino Wallenda, son of legendary tight-rope walker Karl Wallenda, walked 139 ft (42.4 m) across a 1 inches (25.4 mm) steel cable, 99 ft (30.2 m) above the ground. Celebrities also appeared included Sidney Poitier
, Sandra Bullock
, Minnie Driver
, Stephen Baldwin
, Lea Thompson
, Dick Butkus
and Steve Wynn and his wife, Elaine.
Las Vegas Strip
The Las Vegas Strip is an approximately stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada; adjacent to, but outside the city limits of Las Vegas proper. The Strip lies within the unincorporated townships of Paradise and Winchester...
in Paradise, Nevada
Paradise, Nevada
Paradise is an unincorporated town in the Las Vegas metropolitan area in Clark County, Nevada, United States. The population was 223,167 at the 2010 census...
. The property is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment Corp.. Harrah's has over 1,200 slot machines.
The hotel offers 2,677 rooms with an attached casino providing 86664 sq ft (8,051.3 m²) of space. The hotel consists of several towers, the tallest of which has 35 stories. The court yard entry houses a Ghirardelli Chocolate Company
Ghirardelli Chocolate Company
The Ghirardelli Chocolate Company is a United States division of Swiss candymaker Lindt & Sprüngli. The company was founded by and is named after Italian chocolatier Domingo Ghirardelli, who, after working in South America, moved to California...
store.
There is a Las Vegas Monorail
Las Vegas Monorail
The Las Vegas Monorail is a monorail mass transit system located on the Las Vegas Strip, in Clark County, Nevada, United States. It connects the unincorporated communities of Paradise and Winchester, and does not actually enter the City of Las Vegas. It is owned and operated by the Las Vegas...
stop at the rear of the property, and a shuttle to the Caesars Entertainment Corp-owned Rio
Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino
The Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino is located off the Las Vegas Strip in the unincorporated area of Paradise, Nevada, USA. It is better known as The Rio and is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment Inc. The Rio was the first all suite resort in the Las Vegas area...
.
History
In 1973, Shelby and Claudine Williams, former owners of the Silver SlipperSilver Slipper
The Silver Slipper was a Las Vegas, Nevada casino that operated from September 1950 to November 29, 1988. The building was designed by architect Martin Stern, Jr....
casino, opened the Holiday Casino, a small casino in front of the Holiday Inn
Holiday Inn
Holiday Inn is a brand of hotels, formally a economy motel chain, forming part of the British InterContinental Hotels Group . It is one of the world's largest hotel chains with 238,440 bedrooms and 1,301 hotels globally. There are currently 5 hotels in the pipeline...
Las Vegas Center Strip.
In 1979, Holiday Inn bought a 40% share of the casino's parent company, Riverboat Inc. By 1982, the hotel had grown to over 1,000 rooms, making it the largest in the chain. Holiday Inn bought out the remaining 60% in 1983.
In 1992, the property was renamed Harrah's.
In 1997, Harrah's completed a renovation intended to make it the company's flagship property, replacing the old riverboat
Riverboat
A riverboat is a ship built boat designed for inland navigation on lakes, rivers, and artificial waterways. They are generally equipped and outfitted as work boats in one of the carrying trades, for freight or people transport, including luxury units constructed for entertainment enterprises, such...
theme with a Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras
The terms "Mardi Gras" , "Mardi Gras season", and "Carnival season", in English, refer to events of the Carnival celebrations, beginning on or after Epiphany and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday...
/Carnaval
Carnival
Carnaval is a festive season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February. Carnaval typically involves a public celebration or parade combining some elements of a circus, mask and public street party...
motif. They extended the 35 story tower by adding 986 rooms. Included in the renovations were six 22000 lb (9,979 kg) 23-karat gold-leaf sculptures. Built from steel and glass reinforced polyester resin, the sculptures stand 32 ft (9.8 m) high and wear size 43 shoes.
At the grand re-opening Harry Connick, Jr.
Harry Connick, Jr.
Joseph Harry Fowler Connick, Jr. is an American singer, big-band leader/conductor, pianist, actor, and composer. He has sold over 25 million albums worldwide. Connick is ranked among the top 60 best-selling male artists in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America, with...
entertained at the Carnival Court. Tino Wallenda, son of legendary tight-rope walker Karl Wallenda, walked 139 ft (42.4 m) across a 1 inches (25.4 mm) steel cable, 99 ft (30.2 m) above the ground. Celebrities also appeared included Sidney Poitier
Sidney Poitier
Sir Sidney Poitier, KBE is a Bahamian American actor, film director, author, and diplomat.In 1963, Poitier became the first black person to win an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Lilies of the Field...
, Sandra Bullock
Sandra Bullock
Sandra Annette Bullock is an Academy Award winning American actress and producer who rose to fame in the 1990s after roles in successful films such as Demolition Man, Speed, The Net, A Time to Kill, and While You Were Sleeping. She continued with films such as Miss Congeniality, The Lake House,...
, Minnie Driver
Minnie Driver
Minnie Driver is an English actress and singer-songwriter. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the 1997 film Good Will Hunting, as well as for an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe for her work in the television series The Riches.- Early life...
, Stephen Baldwin
Stephen Baldwin
Stephen Andrew Baldwin is an American actor, director, producer and author. One of the Baldwin brothers, he is known for his roles as William F. Cody in the western show The Young Riders and as Stuart in the movie Threesome...
, Lea Thompson
Lea Thompson
Lea Katherine Thompson is an American actress and director. She is best known for her 1990s NBC situation comedy Caroline in the City and her portrayal of Lorraine Baines McFly, Marty McFly's mother, in the Back to the Future trilogy...
, Dick Butkus
Dick Butkus
Richard Marvin "Dick" Butkus is a former American football player for the Chicago Bears. He was drafted in 1965 and he is also widely regarded as one of the best and most durable linebackers of all time. Butkus starred as a football player for the University of Illinois and the Chicago Bears. He...
and Steve Wynn and his wife, Elaine.