On my last visit to Las Vegas, I couldn’t help thinking about all the changes I have seen in this town. We all know that Vegas, is like a living organism and it is always changing. New hotels, restaurants, shops and casinos are popping up on a near daily pace.

So, after a weekend trip filled with a bunch of “I remember whens” I decided to chronicle some of the biggest changes I have seen in a post.

So here is my list of the 10 biggest changes that I can remember.

1. The Paris opens. When I first started going to Las Vegas, it was all about Bally’s for me. I loved staying there (and I still do) the rooms were huge, the buffet is great and it is located in a perfect spot. But…. compared to the big boys on the Strip it was a little less “impressive”. Then they opened the Paris and all that has changed. Although Bally’s itself is reasonably unchanged, the casino is now directly connected to the Paris and it’s fantastic French themed stores, restaurants and casino.
2. The Wynn opens. A few years ago when they broke ground on the Wynn they were literally the only casino way down on that end of the Strip. Now, they are joined by the Palazzo.
3. No monorail. Well, that is not exactly true. There was a monorail it was just smaller and FREE. The original monorail used to run only form the MGM to Ballys and that’s right it was completely free.
4. Aladdin is imploded and rebuilt. I guess I can add to this, the Aladdin goes almost bankrupt than is sold to Planet Hollywood.
5. You could eat for cheap. I mean really cheap. You could find a buffet under $5 at almost every hotel. Sure, some of the hours were a little restrictive but; at least you could find good deals. Now the average burger is $14.
6. Every hotel was for itself. What I mean is every hotel had their own unaffiliated players club. And boy, do I miss them. Yes, it was a pain to have 15 cards in your pockets but, it was way easier to get comps and the comps were a really good. Now, it seems like there are only 2-3 big corporations that own all the casinos, the players club card work in every second casino.
7. Only 2 Cirques. Now, there are 5 Cirque du Soleils and soon to be 6, with the Criss Angel rendition set to premier later this year.
8. Siegfried and Roy ruled. The crowned kings of the Las Vegas Strip have sadly faded into the background since there tragic accident. Their secret garden is still worth the admission though.
9. Slot machines took and paid in coins. They still do on most of Fremont Street but, sadly nothing but paper in or out of the Strip’s one armed bandits.
10. You couldn’t find a poker game to save your soul. I know that it is hard to believe, but it has only been about 5 years since poker took over the world. Back in the day, games still existed but they were hardly main stream.

Now that I really think about it I could probably make this list a lot longer. If you have any that I missed, add them to the comments and I will revisit this topic in a week or so.

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