Bill's Closed

We are in the last few hours before Bill's Gambling Hall is closed for gutting and refit. Anybody going there to say farewell?

 

Actually I think it closed at midnight last night. I was in there last week and that's what Bubba the bartender told me.

 

From the official Bill's Facebook page:

 

wow,another cool place bites the dust.

Why are they spending so much money ruining Vegas?

 

I could be wrong, and misunderstood what Bubba told me. This is from the Bills official website this morning:

"Bill's Gamblin' Hall & Saloon is now closed to undergo renovations for an all new boutique lifestyle hotel and casino."

I guess I don't know for sure.

 

I agree. I went to Bill's for a little while on my last trip just to see it again before it closed. The place was packed, way more than any other casino I was in that day. Every table was busy. I went there on my first Vegas trip in college when it was still the Barbary Coast and remember gambling there at some really low limits but the pit boss gave my friends and I a comp to their cafe which we used in a drunken stupor later that night.

Turning what is essentially a gambling hall like its name implies into a boutique hotel is just part of the trend of Vegas moving away from gambling and trying to mimic any other big city's nightlife and style, just a shitty pedestrian version of it. What a waste.

 

I'm a little leery about what "boutique lifestyle hotel" means. My lifestyle can hardly be described as boutique

 

There was quite a discussion on this in the Construction & development forum. Isn't Drai's taking it over (famous, $$$ nightclub from the basement.....)

To me, so far it's a big case of "the more things change, the more they stay the same...." Guess we'll see

 

I agree this is a waste, and to many regular folk like myself another reason why downtown has become attractive to stay and play.

 

I put a similar comment on their Facebook page this morning.

 

A friend of mine is there right now for the final 15 minutes. Just took this photo:

 

I always had fun at Bill's and am sad to see it go.

 

The final bet at Bill's:

 

Went in at about 10:30am today and walked around. Just came by again at 12:30pm and the doors were shut.

 

Bill's was in need of a facelift... happy to see it's getting it. My understanding on Drai's is that they're looking to make a deal with Bally's to re-open there during the construction period.

 

Bills

So sad.....I loved the Victorian Cafe. And their rooms. And their room value, which I'm sure will no longer be the case.

 

This is one of the 2 places that CET should have kept their mitts off. The other one is/was O'Sheas.

 

Kind of wish they would just integrate it into the Flamingo structure if they're going to mess with it at all. Hopefully the Victorian Café comes back in some way, shape, or form. I really enjoyed their AYCE Chinese dinners.

 

Hate to say it, but this makes me sad. Seems like there are fewer and fewer low roller places on the strip. I really do love the strip and just avoid downtown when possible....downtown is looking better and better everyday when stuff like this happens. Won't be long before every hotel on the strip is a Cosmopolitan/Aria clone.