![]() Unlike existing rivals, the resort lacked the benefit of a hotel reservation network and a database of gamblers. The Aladdin was in financial trouble from the time it opened. The casino later introduced severe limits on mid-shoe bets in response. According to Josh Axelrad in his 2010 book, Repeat until Rich, he and other professional gamblers, primarily card counters, took advantage of the Aladdin's inexperienced staff during its opening weekend and fleeced the casino for an undetermined but large amount of money. It would also be the last new resort on the Strip until the opening of Wynn Las Vegas in 2005. The Aladdin was the fifth and final resort in a Strip building boom that started two years earlier with the opening of the Bellagio. on August 18, 2000, attracting 3,000 visitors. The resort was fully opened to the public at 11:00 a.m. Because of the delay, approximately 200 scheduled hotel guests had to be sent to other nearby hotels. Approximately 8,000 people had gathered outside the resort ahead of its planned opening, a figure that dwindled to 1,000 as the hours went by. Desert Passage was opened to the public as scheduled, although entry into the casino and hotel was blocked while inspections continued there, prompting many visitors to leave. This was delayed, however, by fire safety testing conducted by Clark County building inspectors their work had been pushed back as a result of ongoing construction. ĭespite the project's financial problems, the Aladdin was scheduled to open as planned on the night of August 17, 2000. Skeptics had been doubtful that the resort would be completed. The Aladdin cost a total of $1.4 billion, not counting an attached shopping center known as Desert Passage. The increased budget occurred in part because of last-minute design changes, which included a larger pool area and building the resort closer to the Las Vegas Strip sidewalk. To LCI's disappointment, the company had to take on additional equity after Sommer was unable to fund his share of cost overruns on the construction. The trust owned 75 percent of Aladdin Gaming, while LCI owned the remainder, having paid $50 million for its stake. ![]() Sommer Family Trust and LCI agreed to share cost overruns on the Aladdin project based on their ownership percentages. The cost of the new Aladdin complex would total $1.3 billion, although the music project was canceled at the end of the year after Aladdin Gaming ended its partnership with Planet Hollywood, because of concerns that the latter could not produce a $41 million commitment to the project. In February 1998, Aladdin Gaming finalized a financial plan for the new Aladdin resort, expected to cost $826 million, while Planet Hollywood International would develop a music-themed resort, known as Sound Republic, which would be built behind the Aladdin. The Aladdin Theatre was retained and incorporated into the new resort. The original Aladdin closed on November 25, 1997, and was imploded on April 27, 1998. Fluor Corporation was hired to design and build the new resort. Plans were announced later that year to demolish the Aladdin, replacing it with a new, larger version. In 1997, Sommer partnered with London Clubs International (LCI) through his company, Aladdin Gaming. In 1994, the Aladdin was purchased by Las Vegas real estate developer Jack Sommer and the Sommer Family Trust. In 1966, Milton Prell purchased the hotel and reopened it as the Aladdin. It was sold later that year and renamed as King's Crown Tallyho. ![]() The property was initially the site of the Tallyho hotel, opened by Edwin S. The resort suffered further financial problems amid the Great Recession, with Caesars taking ownership in 2010. ![]() Planet Hollywood International and Starwood Hotels took over ownership in 2004, and launched a renovation to convert the property into a Planet Hollywood resort, a project which concluded in 2007. It suffered immediate financial problems, eventually filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2001. The new Aladdin opened on August 18, 2000. Real estate developer Jack Sommer demolished the Aladdin in 1998 to make way for a new version, with London Clubs International as his partner. The site of Planet Hollywood was previously occupied by the Aladdin, an Arabian-themed hotel and casino which operated until 1997. It also features the Miracle Mile Shops and a 7,000-seat entertainment venue known as Bakkt Theater. The resort includes a 64,470 sq ft (5,989 m 2) casino and 2,494 hotel rooms. It is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment. Planet Hollywood Las Vegas (formerly the Aladdin) is a casino hotel on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada.
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