The Mirage Hotel & Casino

I am writing this review not really for the purpose of alerting future users about staying here in the future as this legendary resort has been closed since July 17th, but simply to detail how my last stay went and for Hard Rock management to take into consideration while they have a construction company working on opening the new resort. Unlike what the opening introduction of what Trip Advisor states I do not think that the customer service was inconsistent as over the half dozen or so times I've stayed here, I have had nothing but excellent customer service! I stayed two nights from the 13th of July into the 15th but did not sleep at all due to the inconvenient Spirit Airline flight times and because of so many things I wanted to see and do in Las Vegas. I did rest for several hours at times though in my hotel room. This was a very emotional trip for me as a result, especially with the Mirage closing it's doors for good. The room was clean but a little barebones compared to previous stays. There was no holy bible in the room and did not want to pay for a mini fridge. There wasn't even an alarm clock or a little directory book welcoming my stay. The Aqua Lime toiletry set had changed to the Hard Rock Unity company ones. I wish there had been a place to put a portable fan on as I had to move one of the dressing cabinets to the other side to put it on so it faced the bed as I was laying down. The view of the strip was spectacular though. When I got there before check-in, I immediately went to the atrium and just cried for several mins - I was so happy to see it before it closed for good as it was impressively beautiful! Orlando, a cleaner there asked me if there was anything wrong but he understood me perfectly when I explained. Then I checked in a little before 3 am with Debbie who was ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL to deal with! We had a lot of laughs/smiles especially when I came back at times asking all sorts of questions. She gave me a great tip that I could use a bag of ice to keep things like watermelon cold so that helped eliminate paying for a mini fridge there, which I GREATLY appreciated because the trip already was costing several hundred dollars to begin with. The aquarium though was gone - sealed by black curtains and Debbie said they had found new homes for the sea creatures. She also gave me a couple of small bottles of water and blank white heavy quality plastic bags for both the ice and to put things in. Speaking of water, the tap water from the room’s bathroom faucet was actually excellent quality. The bed in the room though was kinda firm compared to the past stays here and so I had them bring up extra blankets but then later I had to call down and remind them to bring them up. The bed still wasn't that great so the next day I went out to Walmart to buy a I think a 3 or 4 inch pillowtop mattress topper, which I intended to return before I left for home but ran out of time so it had to be left at the Linq (which is in another review) where I had stayed next as I didn't think it would cost that much to ship it back but it did. All the employees that worked here at the Mirage were REALLY compassionately nice/friendly/polite including Cynthia at Pantry, Chanelle/Chrys/Debbie/Janet at the front desk, Dexter in Valet, Orlando on top of the ride on floor scrubber machine, The only person who wasn't was a Finnish? woman who worked in the Cocolini gelato shop (but that probably was it's own employee as it's a chain in Las Vegas and separate from the Mirage). She didn't smile and wasn't that helpful about the gelato flavors. It did not affect of how I thought of the Mirage as a resort however of course. I loved the Pantry restaurant as it reminded me of the Titanic movie with Leonardo DiCaprio. Anna, the hostess was all smiles and pleasant to deal with. There was a man named Roger? or Roy? who seemed a bit overworked and tired but wasn't rude. A waitress named Cynthia somehow remembered me and my grandpa from 9 years ago and made the whole dining experience very enjoyable as she was a very enthusiastic and upbeat woman. What others don't know about was that there was a yearbook made for all the employees that various people have signed (photos attached). I was shown it in the Pantry restaurant. The food there was a bit pricey but it helped that the Mirage comped for it which I will get to why that happened next and it definitely was quality breakfast/brunch food. The one real major problem was the shower. On July 15th, 2024 at around 1 am, it was so unbearably hot and uncomfortable outside (temps were 95-100), plus no AC at the nearby terrible McDonald's across the street (which a separate complaint is being sent to them) that after several minutes of returning to my room at The Mirage hotel & casino, I couldn't get cooled off properly. Even with the room AC going on at like 65 degrees or so my body was overheated almost to the point of an emergency. I am being very serious about this. I tried cooling off in the shower but the temperature did not get cold at all - stayed lukewarm. There was NO hot or cold labels on the handle or around it either - just blank which was odd. After that my anxiety and panic began to settle in so I tried the sink which was a bit cooler so I used a towel to dump water over my body but that did not work either. By that time, I was so scared and anxious I was crying for several to 10 minutes, even with the relaxing Kool & Klean Pandora app station on which consists of ambient, electronic new age smooth jazz/chill trance music. This was not a pleasant experience as you are reading about for sure! Finally, I kept talking to myself and convinced myself that the best remedy would be to try and talk to the hotel to see if I could use another room's shower to cool off since fixing the issue might take some time. And I am glad I did! When I went down to the hotel lobby in the Mirage, I was there almost 2 hours (maybe 1 hour and 40 mins) talking with first Chrys, then the manager Janet. Those two were godsends! Quite honestly, this was the best customer service experience I ever had! Chrys was not a therapist but it felt almost like therapy. He explained that we couldn't sit down in a chair to talk about these problems as he was working and so, he tended to a few customers a few times in between points we were talking, that happened to have inquiries during that 3rd shift. The first thing he offered was to have a maintenance technician come look at the shower which I agreed to after he told me unfortunately, I could not just use another room's shower as I would need to change rooms completely, which I declined to do as I didn't want to pack up my stuff as I was leaving that morning to checkout because it was the Mirage's last day to stay as it was closing for good on July 17th. I do not remember the reason why but I think it would have just messed with the housekeeper's schedule so, but well he certainly wasn't being a jerk about it and I understood at the time. He had me do some deep breathing exercises and even showed me his little bracelet that said "BREATHE." I told him I was filing a formal complaint against that McDonald's. To make this not so long here is a brief summary of what we discussed: - Breathing techniques. - Certain cities and parts of the country like Iowa, NE, Concordia KS. He mentioned NYC. We talked about how busy Vegas is and how it’s growing. Des Moines, San Francisco. - How I booked the Mirage at the last minute. - How you can’t control everything and not worry so much about what you can’t control. Focus on what you can control. - My potential career as a business analyst that I want to work towards and how I mentioned the Mirage as my hotel inspiration if I ever wanted to own my own destination resort. - My seasonal job at Summerfest security as an odd job. - Showed me his breathe bracelet and allowed me to take a photo. - Spirit Airlines and their weird inconvenient flight times. - The horrible alternative music at the Mirage and how the Vegas hotels and casinos only have energetic upbeat music instead of relaxing. Talked about Kool and Klean and Ryan Farish. - The Pantry restaurant at the Mirage and how beautiful it looked like the Titanic. - The rideshare food delivery with both the Mirage and the Venetian. Why there are no chairs in the hotel by the rideshare areas to sit and wait. He didn't exactly know why but he guessed that was something that not many guests needed. - Wanting a Festival Foods grocery store to be next to the Mirage. - We agreed that he could not bring a chair to sit in the lobby but I could sit on the floor by the front desk. At times he did have to help guests and paused between them to help. - Why I make complaints to improve services like the International Delight iced coffee grocery store product that went bad before it's due date. It's not only to get a resolution but to improve future purchases and service as well. After talking to him for several minutes I began to feel calmer and by the end of the long conversation I was very relaxed and my body temperature returned to normal as the hotel lobby's AC helped a great deal perfectly. After I saw another guest had been given some hotel compensation for a different problem, that gave me the great idea to ask for a partial compensation of mine. I then talked with the manager Janet who gave me $50 compensation at the Mirage for anything in the mini-bar, the Snacks store or any Mirage owned restaurant/shop. But in fact the Mirage never charged for anything in Pantry even beyond the $50 that also was partially spent on items from the mini-bar. Chrys could not give me a late checkout as all the guests had to be out by 10 am (or was it 11 am?) due to the closure. Luckily, when I needed a few more minutes packing up my room after that time, the male employee in the hallway was ok with that and did not rush me. Sadly, the shower issue was never fixed as I tried the water again later but I could tell that maintenance had come to the room and tried as I saw the shower curtain pulled back a little bit. The pool was fantastic though they got rid of the Bare adult pool lounge since I had been there 9 years ago. A bartender named Outlaw said he was sad to go as he had worked at the Mirage for over 25 years. He did say he had another job lined up at another resort hotel though in the area (I forgot which one) so I'm glad he wouldn't have become unemployed. Lots of mostly 80s-90s music were blasting which was a nice break from that ugly alternative rock music inside the lobby. I was viewing the construction videos for about a month or so after my stay and you can still hear that alternative music playing outside. I think it's because they are enticing future guests to stay at the new Hard Rock but honestly in the main hotel could have just played the regular hot AC pop music half the day as the music did not fit with the Mirage scene. The final day after checkout, as I was waiting for the Uber to arrive the music wasn't that bad so I think it will fit well with the new Hard Rock coming soon. Another highlight of my stay was the clientele. I had short but enjoyable small talk conversations with several other guests and they were all sad to see the Mirage go and some had mixed feelings about the new Hard Rock coming in (one person wanted the new one here and the others didn't feel the same way). One woman I met staying at the Mirage was from France and we ran into each other several times and chatted! No potential stripper woman waiting in a slot machine chair in the casino though to ask me to hang out though like last time, which I politely declined. The final night before closure, a good portion of the casino machines were turned off completely and I think, but not sure that all the table games were closed. I was disappointed that there really wasn't much left in the Mirage souvenir shop and there were no postcards I could buy either. The white bathrobes were not available anymore either as I had misplaced my old one. I did want a massage but I ran out of time when I was done with the pool when the thought occurred. One other minor frustrating thing was that the Unity Players Club card printout machine never worked to give me the physical version of my card account that I had signed up years ago for. I was going to gamble a little bit in the Mirage casino this trip but since I didn't get the card until somebody physically made me a copy, I didn't see the point as I wanted to earn Unity reward points. Even though during the whole stay it was apparent that the Mirage was closing, I don't think it dampened anybody's mood. Yes, I agree that the décor could have been updated a little bit if they were going to stay on as the Mirage but it was to be expected for such an old hotel from 1989. I did notice though that the security had changed from wearing regular dark off purple suits to yellow and black polo shirts with SECURITY worded on the back which I thought was a bit tacky. No security personnel were stationed anymore near the elevators, even at night where you had to show your room key to enter. I am wondering if that is because they changed the elevators to swipe your room key to go up so am not sure. Unfortunately, I had just missed the Mirage volcano erupting as I thought the last show was at midnight not 11 pm but when I realized that in my room, I just watched an old YouTube video of it. I will miss staying here though. After all, the Mirage was my original inspiration to one day get into the hotel career field myself and I felt it would have been unfinished business and wouldn't get closure had I not stayed one more time before it closed for good. Long live the Mirage and good luck to all the employees who had to leave! Thank you for the excellent customer service as well!

I will miss this place. Great food and the beetles love show was my favorite on the strip. The volcano show outside was always fun to watch and the staff was always friendly with a great vibe. Great memories that will live forever. Thank you for everything

So I’m afraid that this review won’t help anyone in the further because I stayed at this hotel on the very last few nights that it was open. It is being changed into a Hard Rock Guitar hotel, which I’m told will take three years to build. Overall, my stay was okay. The casino had some money to give away before the doors closed and you couldn’t get anywhere near any of the a lot machines!

We stayed at the Mirage the final weekend it was open. I was a bit worried about what the service and experience would be like given everything was about to shut down. But having stayed there many times since the 90's, I looked forward to going back to the amazing Mirage. Apart from the lobby aquarium being gone and a bunch of slots being shut down (and nonplayers hogging the ones that were open), it was a really great final Mirage experience. The room decor was awesome and was much fresher than any number of other Vegas properties that are still open... Most importantly kudos to the staff. Almost every single person we interacted with in the final days - from the front desk to housekeeping, casino, food service, pool, etc - were at the top of their games. Friendly, professional, and upbeat despite the circumstances. Thank you and good luck, we will miss the Mirage.

There are three hotels and casinos at Vegas that impacted The Strip: 1) Flamingo created Vegas 2) Caesars Palace made Vegas 3) The Mirage modernized Vegas. I've stayed at Caesars Palace and Flamingo and both times I was comped at those places. I always wanted to stay at The Mirage when it was part of the MGM Rewards. In December 2022 Hard Rock's purchase of The Mirage was finalized. Then last year in July I gambled at The Mirage when it was no longer part of the MGM Rewards, but Unity Rewards. While at The Mirage I enrolled in the Unity Rewards. I expected The Mirage would operate as usual going through a steady, transitional phase to become Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. This past May news was announced that The Mirage would be closing in mid-July. As a Unity Rewards member I was receiving promotions for The Mirage. One promotion was $76 per night as the regular price was $88. Then a couple of weeks later I got a promotion for $67 per night. Around mid-June I received a promotion of 15% off per night without resort fees. I was really thinking about going. Then as a Southwest Rapid Rewards member I got a notification that I get 25% off airfare if I use my points to purchase the flight. With that offer using my Southwest Rapid Rewards points I found a round-trip flight from Oakland to Las Vegas for $11.20. I stayed at The Mirage from Sunday June 30 through Tuesday July 2. I came that week because it was a short work week as my office would be closed on July 4 and July 5. On Sunday June 30 I arrived at The Mirage just past 9:30 AM. Since a room was ready I paid the $40 for early check-in. During my 3-night stay at The Mirage I wanted to do everything here from swimming, gambling, and dining. Maybe I was trying to create my own experience like "Vegas Vacation" the movie. I soaked up The Mirage experience. I swam twice at The Mirage Pool. Gambled on Sunday playing the Wheel of Fortune slot machine as there was "5x Points Multiplier" for Unity Rewards member that day. On Monday night I witnessed the Volcano Show in front of the hotel lobby. For breakfast I ate at Pantry, Snacks, and Paradise Cafe while for dinner I ate at Osteria Costa, Heritage Steakhouse, and OTORO Robata Grill & Sushi. On my last night I saw The Beatles LOVE. The demise of The Mirage could be the success it had with resorts copying its playbook. The lifeline for hotels on The Strip is the casino. The casino at The Mirage wasn't lively and felt dead. There are times when I went to Vegas in the past and would like through the casino at The Mirage and had that same feeling. That's unfortunate because in the 1990s The Mirage WAS the casino on The Strip. The hotel casino was not only featured in "Vegas Vacation", but also depicted in "Ocean's Eleven" as one three big casinos with Bellagio and MGM Grand. I've heard stories that in the early 1990s there would be a six-month reservation in advance if you wanted to stay here. The Mirage was targeted as a family-oriented hotel. Currently the hotels around The Mirage are catered towards young adults or older adults without children. I think The Mirage with its current format would've continued if it was at the north end or south end of The Strip. Throughout the years The Mirage was not only outdated, but also surpassed. That is the reason for my rating. Given that I enjoyed my three-night stay at The Mirage prior to its closing. As someone from Northern California I missed the opportunity to stay at Caesars Tahoe before it closed. Staying at The Mirage was like history. The significance of The Mirage is justified. If you look at YouTube clips of Vegas in the late 1980s and early 1990s The Strip looked like downtown Reno. I stayed at the Boardwalk Hotel and Casino at The Strip in December 2005. That area is now the CityCenter. Ever since 2005 I stayed at a lot of casino hotels at The Strip. I can know cross off The Mirage from that bucket list.