The Closed Vacation Village Casino Resort’s Review

If you are a casino enthusiast, you will know that Las Vegas is home to some of the biggest and most unique land based casinos in the world. Anyone planning a trip to Nevada would certainly make time for a visit to the iconic hub of casino entertainment. Not too long ago, the Vacation Village Hotel and Casino resort was considered to be one of the premier casino destinations in Vegas. Today the resort no longer exists. Fighting financial issues and legal problems, the famous casino and hotel closed down in January 2002 marking the end of an era. Today a portion of the Town Square shopping centre occupies the land.

The Casino and Hotel

The Vacation Village Casino and Hotel was well known among many casino enthusiasts both locally and internationally. The casino itself housed a full range of slot and casino games including video slots, classic slots and progressive slots. The table and card games included blackjack, baccarat, craps, poker, roulette and more. And these options are now available in online gambling also in NZ from the best sites. The closing down of the casino was not based on the lack of players, but rather in the overall financial status of the owning company. The hotel itself offered 315 luxury accommodation rooms and suites and included a full range of amenities to cater for local and overseas visitors.

Construction of the Village

The history of the Vacation Village started in 1964 when two brothers, Carol and Chuck Heers purchased 25 acres of land on Las Vegas Boulevard. Their intention was to build a hotel and casino. In 1972, construction began on the Century Hotel. In 1988, the Heers planned to expand the unopened property with three seven story hotel towers and five three story hotel towers. This plan was eventually scrapped when a nearby airport decided to extend their runway. The property was half built at the time.

The Opening of the Hotel

Vacation Village officially opened in 1990 on 3 acres of the total 25 acre property. To maintain the property, the Heers took out a loan from Robert Hilt, a casino owner in Colorado. In 1993, the Heers lost the ownership of the property due to bankruptcy. In 1999, Carol Heers son, Tim acquired the property after years of leasing. Also in 1999, the company took a loan Foothill Capital Corporation to pay off the earlier loan from Hilt. The property was expanded between 1999 and 2000 and subsequently included a bingo hall, two bars, a liquor store, race book facilities as well as a wedding chapel.

The Sale and Closure of the Property

In October of 2000, the Foothill Capital Corporation sued Vacation Village for failure to repay loan. In November of 2000, the company filled for bankruptcy. In 2001, Foothill Capital Corporation went ahead with plans to force a sale of the property in an auction to recover the loan taken by the company. In November of 2001, the property was eventually sold in an auction for $17.8 million to Capital One LLC. In 2004, the property was again sold to Centra Properties and Turnberry Associates. The property group eventually demolished the site and built a retail centre on the land.