Mirage opened at 10am this morning, August 27. It had the same welcome committee that other MGM Resorts casinos had when first welcoming guests back after the COVID-19 closure.
Welcome to the Mirage! pic.twitter.com/VOGkwuQ1cS
— Kristina Mehaffey (@Mehaffey_KM) August 27, 2020
Kristina and I entered from the parking deck. A security guard blocked the bridge until 10am. We arrived a couple of minutes before. There were about 15 people waiting.
Upon entering, we were greeted by cheering employees. This seemed to be a mix of executives and frontline employees. Guests were already inside from the front door when we got there. I would guess there were about 200 patrons. However, this was hard to count with so many employees and members of the press present.
There were many press crews filming on the property. It seemed like there were no rules. We saw one cameraman taking shots of the cashier cage. A member of the Las Vegas Review-Journal asked us to do an interview as we took pictures. We declined, but we saw other interviews as we walked the property.
Table game pit by Heritage Steak is gone
The first thing we noticed at Mirage is that the table game pit by Heritage Steak was replaced by slots. This section had a variety of proprietary games. Some of these tables ended up in the pit by the high limit salon, while many are completely gone from the floor.
Poker room now nonsmoking slots
The poker room did not reopen with Mirage. The tables were removed from the floor and replaced with slot machines in a new nonsmoking area. The move is considered temporary, though it is easy to conclude that a poker room return is likely well in the future if it occurs at all. The closest open poker rooms to Mirage are at Caesars Palace and Venetian.
Only three tables were open
Most of the 200 or so people at Mirage at opening were there to look around. Few went to play slots. We did not play at all.
There were only three tables open. The available games were 6:5 blackjack, 000 roulette and Ultimate Texas Hold’em. The minimum bet was $10 at each. There were no players at these tables.
It seemed clear other tables would be open soon. The minimum for many already showed a $10 bet. This included craps, 6:5 Free Bet Blackjack and some proprietary card games.
Mirage reopening gallery
Here are some pictures Kristina and I took while we were at Mirage this morning.
