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Circus Circus – The Next Implosion?


Key Points:

  • There are no current plans to demolish Circus Circus, and there have even been minor improvements made to the property recently.
  • I speculate that Circus Circus could be on the chopping block in the near term due to the (slowly) rising status of the north Strip with Resorts World and Fontainebleau opening.
  • While we no longer have visibility into the resort’s financials, we do know that Circus Circus was the profitability laggard of the MGM Resorts family before being sold to Phil Ruffin.

It kills you to even think about the possibility.

Circus Circus was the destination that introduced you to Las Vegas as a kid and the spot you still visit today to get that “Old Vegas” vibe.

The resort is one of the longest-standing resorts on the strip, opening in 1968, and it pains me to say that she’s bound to meet the same fate as her notable neighbors Riviera and Stardust.

See Also: 44 Ways to save money in Vegas. 

Circus Circus Exterior at Night
©dacasdo/123RF.COM

Circus Circus opened solely as a casino in 1968 and was constructed for $15 million dollars.

A hotel was later added to attract guests with deeper pockets financed by a loan from the Teamsters pension fund.

Over the decades, Circus Circus has proven to be a Las Vegas staple, adding hotel towers, an amusement park, merging with neighbor Slots-A-Fun, featuring one of the best steakhouses in Las Vegas, and even recently adding a water park.

All good things must end though and our circus-themed property is no exception. Hell, if they can turn Riviera into a parking lot, nothing is sacred.

At the end of the day, it’s difficult to exist in a poor location on the strip without any surrounding attractions.

Calling out the death of Circus Circus isn’t exactly revolutionary. It’s been identified as a potential victim for some time.

She’s old, tired, showing her wear and a narrative-shifting investment has been elusive.

A Motley Fool Article really hit the nail on the head saying that it “Simply isn’t worth fixing up at this point. It would cost billions to entirely revamp them, so they’ll keep them up just long enough to squeeze some money out of them until imploding them for a new resort”.

The numbers don’t lie either. According to MGM Resorts’ 2016 annual report, Circus Circus brought in the lowest EBITDA (a proxy for profit) of any of its Las Vegas properties.

In 2016, Circus Circus achieved just under $62 million dollars in EBITDA. To an average guy, that feels pretty good but compare that figure to the $479 million Bellagio generated or the $330 million that MGM Grand brought in and you realize that the aging property may be nearing the end of its useful life. Circus Circus has been MGM’s profitability laggard for some time with no signs of a turnaround.

Implosion may not be imminent as there are still dollars to milk while MGM Resorts gauges the business climate on the north end of the strip. Rumors of Fontainebleau finding a new, engaged owner paired with the opening of Resorts World may have MGM dreaming of a new resort to capitalize on a revitalized north end of the Las Vegas Strip.

June 2023 Update: Circus Circus has continued to make small investments around the property. Most noticeable is the fresh coat of paint on their Strip-facing circus tent. It seems as though Phil Ruffin is content allowing Circus Circus to churn on for the foreseeable future.

February 2022 Update: Circus Circus has changed hands, and is now owned by Phil Ruffin who also owns TI. The resort continues to plug along, however, we no longer have a window into the property’s financial performance since MGM Resorts divested it.

Check out our piece saying goodbye to the Las Vegas Club – Another Vegas property meeting the wrecking ball.

Access the MGM Resorts Annual Report referenced in this blog post.

Related Circus Circus Articles:

Circus Circus West Tower Hotel Review

Buffet at Circus Circus Review – Take a Look!

Feature Image Credit: ©dacasdo/123RF.COM

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guesto

Sunday 13th of August 2023

Just tear it down already! old tired, homeless and vomit ridden spaces Id rather stay in a tent. Lets move forward to the next N vegas hotel please?

Greg J.

Sunday 10th of April 2022

The Circus Circus could easily be fixed up: take out the second floor of the casino tower, which would allow a higher ceiling like the modern resorts; take out the front parking lot and put in plants, waterfalls, and fountains; make the free circus show audience seating bigger; go back to the original circus themed rooms with colorful wallpaper; go back to the original theming formula; dress up the rooftops for rooms that only have a view of the roof (theme park sets, fake plants, etc.); put in a train ride that goes around the property and into the Adventure Dome; make the adventure Dome more like Disneyland in it's look; keep the free parking but dump the resort fees.

Danette Schmidt

Friday 9th of August 2019

Keep Circus Circus. Invest some money in it. Not too much of old Vegas left which a lot of people miss. You have the only amusement Park in Las Vegas which is used year round since it is inside and kids still love the arcades. I am a long time Vegas resident and my Grandkids and their friends go several times a year to amusement park and as teenagers they even still like the arcade. figure out a way to cater to both tourists and locals. Oh I forgot you really don't care for locals since you still charge them for parking. I don't remember the last time I have been to the strip other then taking kids to Circus Circus. Even when people come from out of town and they want to go to strip I tell them that they are on their on, especially last summer after I had an out of town friend stayed at Aria. Every time I went there to spend time with her I paid $12 to $15. Now if I have friends coming to town I suggest local casinos where they don't have to pay for parking and for high resort fees and still get free drinks when gambling. Quit being so greedy MGM!

GB123

Saturday 18th of August 2018

My first visit was in the late 70's and I visited last year , and honestly felt like I went back in time ! There is nothing updated here and I shudder to think how the rooms must be . It is sad MGM let it get to wear it is, as they cold have invested more into it .

James Gibson

Tuesday 23rd of January 2018

That is right across from the new Las Vegas Convention Center Expansion(Also known as Las Vegas World Trade Center) onto the old Riviera site. The money is already in place for it. Circus is going bye bye no doubt. They will be building something that caters to a conventioneer. That is our economy now not clowns and kids games.

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