As long as there aren’t any last-minute surprises, the highly-anticipated Virgin Hotels Las Vegas is finally going to open soon. The new property, which occupies the former Hard Rock Las Vegas location, has had to delay its grand opening twice because of COVID-19, but, if the old saying holds up, the third time’s the charm.
Initially, the idea was to have the new casino up and running last November, but that fell apart because of the coronavirus pandemic. The launch was then pushed back to this past January 15, which also failed as a result of COVID-19. A new statement issued by JC Hospitality President and CEO Richard Bosworth asserts that the Virgin Vegas property will finally open its doors on March 25, provided there aren’t any more bumps in the road. JC Hospitality is the owner of the property branded by Richard Branson’s Virgin name, and Bosworth added, “It has been a journey, but to finally reach this milestone and confidently announce our opening date would not be possible without our incredible partners and construction team.”
Bosworth is anxious to get the casino going, as he is heavily invested in its future success. He teamed up with Jupiter Capital Partners and Branson to purchase the Hard Rock Las Vegas in 2018, leading to the latter’s iconic massive guitar being replaced by the Virgin “V.” $500 million was spent on the purchase, not including the renovations. By the time all the work is done, there will be three hotel towers offering a total of 1,504 rooms and 323 executive suites, a 60,000-square-foot casino, a 4,500-seat theater and a 650-seat showroom. As had been previously announced, Virgin is going to bring back some of the former Hard Rock workers, already knowledgeable and experienced in the layout of the property.
Bosworth added in the statement, “We are not only celebrating the fact that we finally get to welcome back guests to the most exciting resort to open in Las Vegas in years, but we also get to bring our team members back to work.” Now, ready to put 2020 in the rear-view mirror and get Vegas back to work, Virgin Vegas, as well as all of the city’s casinos are anxious to put everything back in order. Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak is helping in that regard, announcing a new increase in the capacity allowed on gaming floors. As of this coming Monday, casinos will be able to operate at 35% of their normal capacity, and the figure will increase to 50% on March 15. He added, “We’re going to get through this together. I want to return to the Nevada we know and we love.”
