Can an Affordable Hotel-Casino Be Built on the North Strip?

What conditions would need to be in place for some company to build an affordable hotel/casino for the low/middle-rollers located on the north Strip? More tourist foot traffic would make the street less sketchy in that area? What would it take to bring back the Stardust, for example?

We don't like saying so, but the only condition we can think of that would allow such a scenario is taking a time machine back to the 1940s.

The reason is simple: real estate. It costs so much to buy land on the Strip ($12 million to $35 million an acre these days) that casino developers feel it necessary to maximize their investment with expensive pleasure palaces.

Even when the Sahara was briefly reinvented as SLS Las Vegas, the aim of that project was to lure free-spending southern Californians, as opposed to low rollers or even middle-class patrons. Current Sahara owner Alex Meruelo has re-re-positioned the place as an affordable hangout, but that hasn't re-ignited foot traffic on the lonely North Strip. Nor has the continued presence of Circus Circus, a bargain joint if ever there was one.

As for new affordable product, the cost of land simply rules it out. Granted, Resorts World has undeveloped acreage that it could conceivably develop for the middle class, even returning the Stardust to where it once was. But it has shown no inclination to do so, especially with the flagship property struggling to make an even one percent return on its $4 billion investment.

All that said, the high-end casinos aren't exactly thriving on the north Strip (Fontainebleau is reputed to be struggling still as well), so why not attempt a mid-priced casino? Especially if you’re Resorts World and got your land at a fire-sale $4 million an acre. It seems counterintuitive to chase losses sustained by hyper-expensive resorts by building new hyper-expensive resorts, especially on hyper-expensive acreage, but that’s how the casino industry thinks.

And no one is out there to prove them wrong. Phil Ruffin threw in the towel on Circus Circus, putting it on the market, and has found no takers. Boyd Gaming has had its fill of the Strip and Station Casinos, after making some near-Strip noises ($11 billion Viva, anyone?) has long since hitched its wagon to the suburbs.

Barring an economic downturn so severe that Strip land becomes affordable, or a developer willing to buck conventional wisdom, or a miracle, our humble opinion is that the Las Vegas Strip is destined to remain a high-roller paradise forever.

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Kevin Lewis Nov-29-2025

There must be other reasons

I'm not buying it, that the affordability of land is an insurmountable deterrent. A casino is a giant money printing press. You can justify the cost of the land if the printing press runs long and fast enough. And how do you do that? Free parking. Good games at low limits. Rooms under $100. Meals under $20. And above all, a vibe that says low rollers are more than welcome.

That would pay for the $96 billion or whatever land in North time. The key is, you'd get visitation that isn't happening at all now. Make it possible to have a Vegas weekend for $500 and you'd be effin' MOBBED.

Especially with so many people these days spending half their paychecks on food.

VegasVic Nov-29-2025

Strat

Turning Vegas World into the Strat was suppose to ignite the north strip but hasn't.  They should have kept it Vegas World.  Stupak offered crazy deals and the place was always crowded. Tacky sure, but the low rollers flooded the place.

Bob Nov-29-2025

Surprisingly

I agree with Kevin 100% on this one! Someone needs to break the cycle of Greed/Gouge. and if successful, it would bring on some competition and some of the other joints would eventually throttle back on pricing. I think Circus Circus would be a good starting point! It would need a total makeover (I wouldn't stay there on a bet right now) But I bet at 90 years old, Phil Rufin could be talked off his $5 billion price tag? Free parking, No resort fees, Reasonable Room rates and dining options(KL might be a little optimistic at $100/20) Loose the Circus theme/Acts, Keep the Awesome Steak House! Bring back and promote the RV Park, and charge a reasonable fee for it, so it doesn't turn into a homeless camp! those retirees traveling the country in their $500,000 Land yachts need to park somewhere as do families in their Campers. Have some rules! your not selling them Rooms and all their meals, but they have money to spend! Just bring Value!

Artie Nov-29-2025

Ellis Island 👍

Ellis Island 1 block East of the strip is doing it right. Reasonable table limits, promotions, fun, fun, fun!

steve crouse Nov-29-2025

Wait

Why not just wait for some of those high roller joints to go bankrupt?
The stockholders then are the ones to take the hit and the low rollers get to go back when someone buys them at firesale prices.
It's coming!

Bob Nelson Nov-29-2025

Even with the prices

…it doesn’t seem like the strip is bringing in big money.  Many of the big new resorts like FB and RW are just hanging on if that.  The strip is running low/out of the big rollers to keep the lights on and turn a bit of profit.  Seems like it is overbuilt if that is their target and due for a correction/contraction.

Jetpilotrick Nov-29-2025

High Rollers

There are only so many high rollers to go around.  When you’ve got Resorts World, Fountainbleau, Wynn/Encore, Venetian/Palazzo, Bellagio etc, there’s just too many choices for so few to go around. Just like all the concert venues now.  Too many for so few acts.  Yet, every new  hotel on the drawing board wants the “high roller” and build another concert venue.  It’s got to stop somewhere.  And, we have the Hard Rock coming with another concert venue.  Oh, and the joint slated for the A’s stadium.

DeltaEagle Nov-29-2025

Disagree

Do not want to challenge those who know more,but the comment from Kevin will not work. Meals under $20? McDonald’s is more expensive than that. Rooms for $100? With housekeeping?  Not today. Only happen with cost supplement from gaming.  Challenge to do that with low rollers. Agree land cost is not as critical as main Answer. Only possible with huge out of box ideas. Table games replaced with electronic. Costs are just too high. Agree the right concept would be mobbed. Ideas; old style junket operators putting groups together, free shuttle to hotel from LAS.,rooms under$100, no resort fee but for fee housekeeping, . Last comment. South and middle strip you can walk with good legs to other properties. North strip properties too spread out.. why north strip? South Point seems successful. Go South.

John Dulley Nov-29-2025

What’s north strip?

My question is what exactly the north strip?  TI to me is getting on the northern side and it’s definitely mid tier, not necessarily mid strip. The Sahara is DEFINITELY north strip and it’s a mid tier hotel that’s very nice (tho their BJ  is awful). Strat? CC has their niche clientele..

Randall Ward Nov-29-2025

Hard Rock too

quite literally looming over all of this is Hard Rock.

David Miller Nov-29-2025

The Biggest Factors

 As long as visitors were willing/capable of paying the ever esculating prices, the casinos were all doing the same thing - wallowing in their greed. Now that Vegas has priced itself out from the middle/low rollers, they are now suffering from their self imposed ruin. People visited Vegas, were gouged everywhere and have decided not to return. Vegas does not need any more casinos - the existing casinos just need to be run like they were before the corporations - and their "shareholders" - took over.

Raymond Nov-29-2025

John Dulley

IMO, the "north Strip" is anything north of Sands/Spring Mountain.  In the old days, Desert Inn, Frontier, and points north to the Sahara, including Riviera, Westward Ho, Stardust, Thunderbird/Silverbird/El Rancho, and Circus Circus.  Now, Wynn/Encore on up to the Strat.

Question of the Day - 29 November 2025

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