If you look on any list featuring the worst casinos in Las Vegas, Circus Circus pops up on a frequent basis on gambling news and forums. This large casino is located on the Strip and owned by MGM Resorts.
- Worst Hotels On The Strip
- Casino In Las Vegas Strip
- Worst Casino In Las Vegas
- Worst Hotels In Vegas
- Worst Casino In Las Vegas
Las Vegas is known worldwide as the cradle of the casino industry, and its famous Strip routinely draws nearly 50 million visitors annually. People come from far and wide to stroll along Las Vegas Boulevard and gamble in the coolest casinos on the planet. Unfortunately, one casino sticks out like a sore thumb on The Strip – Circus Circus.
![List of casinos in las vegas List of casinos in las vegas](https://www.newcasinos.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/architecture-1846684_1280.jpg)
- Earlier on, I put together a list of the seven best Vegas Strip casino resorts. These properties were deemed the best of the bunch, in my book at least, and I strongly encourage every Las Vegas visitor to experience their delights for themselves. That list was followed by seven more venues I classified as the Vegas Strip mid-tier contenders.
- Today we're in Las Vegas. And we decided to check out the worst reviewed hotel/casino. MORE 1 Star Reviews http://bit.l.
This hotel and casino combines everything that makes for a terrible Vegas experience, from the ever-present cigarette smoke, bad customer service, and substandard odds on the gaming floor. The lower than average rates at Circus Circus might seem appealing, but here’s seven reasons to avoid staying here.
1 – The Casino Reeks of Smoke
In all my life, I’ve rarely encountered a casino with a smoky atmosphere quite like Circus Circus.
I knew better of course, having covered the local casino industry for a long while now. But after getting dragged along by a buddy who wanted to take his children to the “Adventuredome”, I could barely stand it. Even though smoking is only permitted in the casino proper, the Circus Circus management must skimp on its air purification system.
That’s the only explanation I can think of for the lingering haze of smoke that hovered overhead as we walked around. And I’m not talking simply about the smell either. You can actually see the smoke wafting around in every room.
Cigarettes, cigars, and thanks to Nevada’s recent legalization of recreational marijuana use, all contribute to the smoky surroundings.
And here’s the thing… I enjoy smoking the occasional stogie myself every once in a while. I’m far from a prude about smoking, especially in a casino where adults should be free to indulge their vices in comfort. Normally, I have no problem hanging out in a gambling hall where folks are smoking, but Circus Circus is far from normal.
Most of the other casinos on The Strip seems to have figured out how to harness technology to keep both smokers and non-smokers happy. The smokers have their select sections to do their thing, while air filtration systems remove their emissions so non-smokers never even notice.
At the Circus Circus, however, the filters – which I question if they even function – don’t do much. That allows the smoke to accumulate day by day, week by week, until the cumulative haze has crept into every nook and cranny.
To make matters worse, Circus Circus is a casino that bills itself as the “place to play” for parents who want their kids to have a fun time too. Knowing that the venue eagerly encourages people like my pal to bring their little ones around, only to expose them to secondhand smoke, makes my blood boil.
Seriously, just pull up any travel review site online and search for the Circus Circus. I’d bet the house that you’ll find disappointed guests mentioning the smoke in most of the reviews.
Because this problem is so easily preventable, and because the staff doesn’t seem to care, Circus Circus’ smoke problem takes the top spot on my list.
2 – The Criminal Element Can’t Be Ignored
In 2018, a pair of tourists visiting Circus Circus from Vietnam were found stabbed to death in their hotel room.
In 2019, a maintenance worker at Circus Circus sexually assaulted a patron while he was on the clock. That same year, a 34 year-old man lured an underage girl away from Circus Circus and committed the same heinous crime.
In 2020, a member of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) was ambushed and shot in the head just outside of Circus Circus.
I could go on and on with stories like this, but I think you get the idea by now…
Reviewers online often point out how they felt uncomfortable or uneasy while staying at Circus Circus. And for good reason too, as cases like the stories listed above aren’t isolated incidents by any means. Directly next door to the north, you’ll see a Travelodge hotel that looks like it doubles as a den of drug use and prostitution day and night.
Again, I’m not one to judge what consenting adults do behind close doors. After all, this town didn’t get the nickname “Sin City” for no reason. But with such low-rent lodging directly next door, Circus Circus seems to serve as a clubhouse of sorts for all variety of undesirables.
3 – Crowds of Kids in a Casino Is a Bad Look
Let’s say you’re lucky enough to dodge the sketchy clientele at Circus Circus.
Congratulations to you, that’s no small feat, but now you have another aspect of the casino to contend with – young kids as far as the eye can see.
Don’t get me wrong now, I love my children and I’m proud to be the favorite uncle to my siblings’ young ones. I don’t even have an issue with children coming to casinos either, as I totally understand the plight of parents visiting Las Vegas for a little rest and relaxation. I’d love for a casino to integrate kid-friendly entertainment that allows the entire family to have fun.
And that’s why I take my family to the New York-New York…
You can find the same assortment of roller coasters and rides, arcade games, and carnival attractions at the New York-New York. And all without the smoke and questionable surroundings that defines Circus Circus.
In such a dingy and dim place, encountering so many children here is emotionally draining. Every instinct you have tells you that these kids should be anywhere but Circus Circus, and yet here they are, blissfully unaware of what a mistake their parents have made.
To make matters worse, Circus Circus actively courts the parent demographic while neglecting to maintain an appropriate environment for young people to enjoy themselves.
4 – The Casino Doesn’t Have Jacks or Better Video Poker
Now that we’ve got the worst aspects of Circus Circus out of the way, let’s move on to more nitpicky grievances that should bother any gambler worth their salt.
As an avid enthusiast of playing video poker, I spend the bulk of my gambling buck playing Jacks or Better machines. The foundational game from which all other video poker variants stem, Jacks or Better is a bona fide casino classic.
It’s a skill game, players can turn $1.25 into $4,000 in the blink of an eye, and when you play the 9/6 pay table – you should never play anything else on a Jacks or Better machine – the house’s edge shrinks to a scant 0.46 percent.
I’ve been to plenty of Podunk casinos in my day, and they all had at least a few Jacks or Better games on hand. Shoot, even the tiny mini-casinos found in Las Vegas convenience stores offer it – but not Circus Circus.
According to the vpFREE2 video poker database, Circus Circus only has two variants available in Bonus Poker and Double Bonus. Those are fun games, sure, but a major casino in Vegas failing to provide Jacks or Better is unacceptable.
5 – Few Tables Offering 3 to 2 Payouts on Blackjack
Most gamblers are willing to accept a casino that’s rough around the edges, so long as the odds are attractive and the games are juicy.
Nearby at the STRAT (formerly the Stratosphere), for example, blackjack fans will find 21 tables which all pay out the premium 3 to 2 odds when you make a natural 21. These tables aren’t even reserved for high-rollers either, what with 14 six-deck games calling for a minimum bet of just $5.
The STRAT isn’t exactly a beautiful place to play blackjack for real money, and it suffers from several of the same mismanagement maladies as Circus Circus, but offering a cheap game with 3 to 2 odds more than makes up for any deficiencies.
Circus Circus, on the other hand, compounds its many mistakes by running 27 tables where landing a blackjack only pays out at 6 to 5 odds. You will find a pair of 3 to 2 tables onsite, but they’re single-deck games that use $10 and $15 minimum bets.
Failing to make up for its many flaws by at least catering to sharp customers is yet another hurdle Circus Circus trips up on.
6 – Lack of Customer Service
If any of the issues listed here get your goat, don’t bother informing the front desk staff or management about your complaints.
I tried that on my last trip and the clerk at the desk literally laughed, explaining that “I got what I paid for” as if low room rates justified such a terrible product. Casinos are supposed to cater to their valued guests, not cut them down and ignore their issues out of hand.
That’s not the case at Circus Circus though, where the customer is apparently always wrong.
7 – Tragedy at The Adventuredome
Circus Circus’ “Adventuredome” area is known for operating an indoor roller coaster that debuted back in 1993.
And in 2008, a young child was found dead in her seat after the ride concluded. That tragedy wasn’t a one-off event either, as a 2019 incident in which a rider fell out of their seat caused the coaster to temporarily close pending safety inspections.
Incidents like these are known to have happened throughout the history of amusement parks, but it’s never a good look for a place of business that caters to families.
Conclusion
I love almost everything about the casino industry and life in Las Vegas, so I really don’t enjoy penning negative reviews like this one. Nonetheless, I have an obligation to give readers the hard truth, and the truth about Circus Circus couldn’t be clearer.
The place simply isn’t worth the valuable space it takes up on the world-famous Strip. Visitors suffer from managerial apathy at every turn, forced to choke on smoke, and play inferior versions of standard casino offerings. Unless you’re a glutton for punishment, keeping far away from Circus Circus is the best bet you can make on your next trip to Sin City.
When you step foot on the famous Las Vegas Strip for the first time, the entire experience can be overwhelming, to say the least.
Everywhere you look is another amazing destination waiting to be explored. Within a short walk, you’ll pass through the Parisian cityscape complete with a faux Eiffel Tower, the palatial estate of Roman emperors, and the hulking skyscrapers of New York City. Fountains are dancing in time to the song serenading street-side onlookers, couples are floating happily through romantic canals straight out of Venice, and the iconic neon lights surround you in sensory overload.
The sheer variety of amenities and attractions lining Las Vegas Boulevard make The Strip practically impossible to appreciate fully on your first try – or even your second or third. With 28 unique casino properties clustered so tightly together, and crowds numbering in the tens of thousands all trying their best to reach the next dot on the map, navigating The Strip is a tough ask for Sin City rookies and regulars alike.
Fortunately for readers, I’ve just returned from a unique opportunity to stay on The Las Vegas Strip for two weeks’ worth of gambling, dining, shopping, and shows. Blessed with such an extended stay, and a burgeoning bankroll thanks to a fortuitously timed Wheel of Fortune jackpot on my first day, I decided to check out all 28 casinos on The Strip for myself.
That reconnaissance mission brought me to places I swore I’d never step inside. There were places with pleasant surprises that belied their “Plain Jane” exterior, and awe-inspiring monuments to what mankind can achieve with unlimited money.
I came, I played, and I conquered. So to speak.
So, now I’d like to share my thoughts having returned home to real life.
Earlier on, I put together a list of the seven best Vegas Strip casino resorts. These properties were deemed the best of the bunch, in my book at least, and I strongly encourage every Las Vegas visitor to experience their delights for themselves.
That list was followed by seven more venues I classified as the Vegas Strip mid-tier contenders. These casinos were perfectly respectable, and in certain cases even preferable, in terms of their accommodations, casino environments, amenities, and non-gambling entertainment options, despite not making the top seven cut.
Worst Hotels On The Strip
With exactly half of The Strip lineup now covered, it’s time to dive deep into the seven casinos I’ve deemed the disappointing duds.
I really wanted to enjoy them, and I tried my best to give them a fair shake. But for whatever reason, I found myself looking for the exits in a hurry.
So, strap in and get ready for a full tour of the seven casinos on The Strip that simply failed to impress. With that said, however, these rankings are based solely on my subjective experience as a veteran visitor to Las Vegas. When you hit The Strip for your next adventure, by all means, make a point to spend a session at these venues and come to your own conclusions.
15 – MGM Grand
Here’s the thing about the MGM Grand: this place wants to be a mega-resort casino like Bellagio and Caesars Palace so badly, but it’s just not up to snuff.
Ambition isn’t a bad thing in and of itself, but when guests are forced to pay top-tier prices for an inferior experience, that’s where I draw the line. Part of the problem is MGM Grand’s operators and staff seem to be stuck in the 1990s, an era when the iconic “Lion’s Roar” entrance and other cutting-edge features made the property one of The Strip’s most preferred destinations.
![Strip Strip](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/aAckor2iR5I/maxresdefault.jpg)
But that was 25 years ago, and while MGM Resorts has sunk billions into luxurious alternatives like the Aria and the Bellagio, the company’s flagship casino has struggled to keep up. From the rundown poker room running $65 daily tournaments, to rooms that lack even basic amenities like a mini-fridge to keep your baby’s bottle cold, the MGM Grand is just lackluster across the board.
You wouldn’t know it from the prices though, what with every bar, restaurant, and gift shop relentlessly charging exorbitant rates.
For the same cost, you can easily enjoy a much nicer stay at actual high-end MGM Resorts properties.
And on a final note, be sure to check the boxing and mixed marital arts (MMA) schedules before you book a night at the MGM Grand. When these sporting events come to town, this place becomes a madhouse, even by The Strip’s standards for debauchery and drunken revelry. I already lived in a frat house for two years way back when, so struggling through crowds of dazed and confused fight fans all evening wasn’t exactly my cup of tea.
16 – Treasure Island
Another relic of the 1990s “boom era” of The Strip, Treasure Island doesn’t seem to have changed much in more than two decades.
Well, it has changed in a few ways, but always for the worse…
Remember that full-fledged pirate ship show put on out front in “Buccaneer Bay” back in the day? Well, if you don’t, this was something straight out of Disney or Universal Studios, a swashbuckling adventure show complete with trained actors raiding a ship, fending off cannon fire, and making folks walk the plank.
Cool attractions like that used to be what made The Strip so special, because visitors who didn’t come for the gambling could still feel thrills that can’t be found anywhere else.
So, I was sorely surprised to find Buccaneer Bay a shred of its former self, with nothing going on except the slow spread of algae along the concrete floor. The huge wooden ships are still there, tucked away in a corner and growing barnacles by the day.
The whole scene is just really depressing, especially for folks who knew Treasure Island in its glory days.
Throw in an extremely generic rebranding effort—they call it “TI” nowadays and the old pirate theme has been practically erased from existence—and I just can’t think of a good reason to bring your bankroll to Treasure Island these days.
Casino In Las Vegas Strip
17 – SLS (Soon to be Sahara)
Between 1952 and 2013, the SLS of today was a true Las Vegas landmark – the Sahara.
I used to call the Sahara my home away from home whenever I was in Sin City. I have a special affinity for the old digs. That may color my low opinion of SLS, one of the most uninspiring casino resort names I’ve yet encountered. Supposedly, SLS stands for “Style, Luxury and Service.” And while that trio of goals is certainly admirable, every casino on The Strip is supposed to offer all three in abundance.
SLS decidedly does not, so much so that many Las Vegas tourists don’t even know it’s a full-scale casino. Instead, most passersby mistake SLS for one of the few non-casino hotels in The Strip area, so they walk right by without even taking a second look.
The lack of interest in SLS became so egregious that new owners the Meruelo Group are going back in time to gin up a new customer base – old-timers like myself.
Earlier this year, Las Vegas locals and regular visitors alike were thrilled to learn that the SLS would be renovated and rebranded as Sahara Las Vegas, so here’s hoping the second edition can blend the old gal’s unique charms with a modernized setting down the road.
18 – Luxor
Wash, rinse, and repeat…
And if I’m being honest, I really wish the housekeeping staff at the Luxor lived by that motto more than what I saw.
Yet another retread from the 90s that hasn’t tried to keep up with the times, the Luxor is still coasting on its reputation from 25 years ago when it was the hot new property on The Strip. Nowadays, though, the Egyptian theme just feels played out and overdone, while the casino and amenities are barebones affairs throughout.
19 – Cosmopolitan
The Cosmopolitan falling this far on my list was surprising even to me. Full disclosure, a particularly nasty front desk agent might’ve clouded my judgment just a bit.
Relatively new with a 2010 opening date, the Cosmo is all about high-class ambience and elite entertainment. Well, it’s supposed to be anyhow…
When I learned that the Cosmo earned the “Best Hotel in the World” designation by Gogobot in 2013, followed by the Condé Nast Traveller “Top Hotels in the World” rating in 2015, I was excited to experience this one for the first time.
Unfortunately, the staff here seems to have bought into that status a little too much because they treated little old me like an outcast from the get-go.
My basic questions were scoffed at, my simple requests were ignored, and my increasingly common complaints were dismissed out of hand.
Of course, I realize that this could’ve very well been a one-off deal wherein I encountered the wrong employees on the wrong day. Nonetheless, it’s my list and I’m sticking the Cosmo here at #19. Nobody visiting The Strip should feel like they’re asking for too much with the exorbitant price points and polished reputation advertised here.
20 – New York New York
One more on the “it’s the ‘90s calling” list, New York New York is a casino so bland and boring they named it twice. Caesars stomping ground.
To be fair, nothing at the New York New York is really so awful that I would warn readers to stay away. But on the other hand, nothing here is so worthwhile that I’d recommend a visit either.
Everything from the casino to the accommodations is standard fare – nothing more and nothing less.
But because the NY-NY tends towards the overpriced side of the spectrum, paying a pretty penny for “nothing special” feels like more of a rip-off than other low-end venues on The Strip.
The only true selling point is how the New York New York provides a fun place for kids to enjoy their time in Las Vegas. A roller coaster and a full-scale arcade complete with carnival games will give the kiddos plenty of opportunities to pass the time.
21 – Excalibur
What can I say about the Excalibur without sounding too harsh?
This medieval castle-themed casino sticks out like a sore thumb, almost like a satirist was asked to render the most ridiculous concoction for gamblers to reside. The whole scene inside is tired and outdated.
Worst Casino In Las Vegas
The knights and damsels schtick was played out 20 years ago, and the general vibe is dingy and disappointing.
Unless you have children who are currently in their “Knights of the Round Table” phase, coming to the Excalibur is a losing proposition for all involved.
Conclusion
Hey, you can’t win them all, right? Every gambler who makes their way to Las Vegas and tests their luck learns this hard truth early on. It’s especially applicable to the seven casinos listed above. These venues suffer from different drawbacks across the board, but the one common thread is a lack of effort.
Worst Hotels In Vegas
When you know budget-minded travelers will continue to come, and your operation is strapped for cash in its own right, creating a world-class experience for guests just doesn’t come easily. For that reason, I can’t really blame these duds for disappointing, but I can also choose to bring my bankroll for The Strip somewhere else.
With more than a dozen competitors out there trying just a little bit harder (or going all out in some cases) to make it worth my while, I just can’t find a reason to make repeat trips to these properties a priority.
Worst Casino In Las Vegas
Check out part four of this series here.