The guitar-shaped silhouette climbing above the Las Vegas Strip is impossible to ignore. New photos taken this week show crews pushing hard on both the Guitar Hotel tower and the former Mirage complex. This $4 billion transformation is reshaping one of Vegas’ most iconic addresses, and what is rising from the site is unlike anything the Strip has seen in two decades.
Where Things Stand on the Strip Right Now
Construction photos captured on June 22, 2026 confirm active, visible progress across both the Guitar Hotel tower and the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Las Vegas site. Facade installation is climbing steadily up the tower while interior build-out charges forward inside the former Mirage structures at the same time.
The Guitar Hotel hit a defining milestone on May 1, 2026, when construction crews placed the final structural steel beam atop the tower in a formal topping-off ceremony held at the site. Hard Rock International executive leadership, the Seminole Tribal Council and construction partners from Penta Building Group and McCarthy Building Companies were among those who attended.
Workers are on site 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Blue-tinted glass panels in two distinct shades intended to evoke guitar strings have been installed steadily up the structure. Crews are also installing LED lighting systems that will illuminate the tower’s guitar-shaped outline after dark above the Strip.
Inside the Guitar Hotel and What Makes It Unique
Hard Rock Chairman Jim Allen said the guitar-shaped tower, when finished, will be just shy of 700 feet. While it will eclipse its next tallest Strip neighbors, including The Palazzo, Wynn Las Vegas and Resorts World, it will still be shorter than the Strip’s tallest hotel, Fontainebleau, which stands at 729 feet.
Allen called the site “the Strip’s 50-yard line.” He noted the floor numbers are misleading given that the hotel begins on top of an eight-story building.
Here is what the Guitar Hotel specifically brings to the Strip:
- Height: Approximately 660 to 700 feet
- Floors: 42 stories
- Rooms: 675 hotel rooms and suites
- Exterior: Two shades of blue glass panels covering the full structure
- Location: Built directly on the former site of The Mirage’s famous free volcano show
- Signature Feature: Full LED system forming the guitar silhouette visible at night
Hard Rock built its first guitar-shaped tower at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino Resort in Hollywood, Florida, where it stands at 450 feet. The Las Vegas version will be nearly 250 feet taller.
What Guests Can Expect When the Doors Open
The Guitar Hotel is the headline act, but the full Hard Rock Las Vegas resort tells a much bigger story. The Guitar Hotel will consist of 42 stories and house 675 hotel rooms and suites, while the tri-tower structure that was once The Mirage hotel-casino has been completely scraped and is undergoing a total interior renovation.
Workers are installing a single shade of blue glass on the former Mirage towers designed to match the guitar tower, creating a uniform aesthetic across the reimagined resort. The tri-tower has been completely gutted, and nearly every aspect of its interior layout and design will change when the property reopens, including larger standard rooms and a significantly expanded casino floor.
Here is a full breakdown of what the resort will feature at opening:
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Total Hotel Rooms | Approximately 3,600 |
| Guitar Hotel Rooms | 675 rooms and suites |
| Casino Floor Size | Nearly 175,000 sq ft |
| Slot Machines | 2,000 |
| Table Games | 212 |
| Meeting and Event Space | Over 200,000 sq ft |
| Spas | Two |
| Total Workforce | Up to 6,000 employees |
| Target Opening | Late 2027, Q4 |
“It’s a massive statement. The technology that we’re going to offer does not exist anywhere in Las Vegas. We believe it’s truly the game-changer.” – Jim Allen, Chairman, Hard Rock International
Allen added that Hard Rock “has gone a little crazy with the pools,” describing the amenity as “truly an ultra-high-end, five-star luxury experience.”
Phase 1 includes the 42-story Guitar Hotel, a rebuilt casino floor, new restaurants, a Hard Rock Live theater, a renovated pool complex and a redesigned entry experience. Upon opening, the Hard Rock-Treasure Island Tram will also reopen.
The Mirage Legacy and the Debate It Left Behind
The Mirage opened in 1989 and was considered the property that launched the modern era of the Las Vegas mega-resort. Its volcano attraction drew crowds nightly for 35 years. Hard Rock International shut down all operations on July 17, 2024, and immediately began its transformation project.
The dolphin habitat, Siegfried and Roy’s Secret Garden, the glass atrium and the porte cochere were all demolished in the days after the casino closed. Nostalgia swept social media almost immediately.
The 20 months of construction transforming the former Mirage into Hard Rock Las Vegas have attracted a fair share of comments on social media, especially focused on the nearly 700-foot-tall guitar-shaped hotel tower. One Reddit commenter wrote two months ago that the closure “feels like tearing down one of the most successful casinos in history.”
Hard Rock and its supporters counter with a familiar Las Vegas argument. The implosion of the Dunes made room for Bellagio, the Sands came down for The Venetian, and each time, the argument was that something vital was being lost, yet each time, the Strip bounced back with something that drew even larger crowds.
Why This May Be the Last Major Build on the Strip
Industry observers are watching this project closely for more than just its scale. Rising construction costs along the Strip are expected to limit major new developments for years, potentially making this project one of the last of its kind in the near term.
Bill Lerner, a managing director at CBRE and founder of Union Gaming, told commercial real estate executives bluntly: “I just don’t think it pencils economically.” He cited the pool of capital required to support ground-up development on the Las Vegas Strip corridor as simply unaffordable.
The new complex is expected to open in the latter half of 2027, with total project costs estimated between $4 billion and $5 billion.
Construction began in summer 2024 and has already employed more than 5,000 workers. Safety has remained a core focus, with the project reporting only one lost-time accident since work began. Joe Lupo, president of Hard Rock Las Vegas, said at the topping-off ceremony that the team would be “confidently opening the next great, highly successful resort here in Las Vegas.”
What is rising at the center of the Las Vegas Strip is far more than just steel and glass. It is a $4 billion promise to write the next chapter of this city, built on a site millions called their second home for 35 years. Share your thoughts in the comments on whether you think Hard Rock Las Vegas can fill the giant shoes of The Mirage.
