Michael Gaughan is a successful casino owner. Credit: Wikimedia Commons
12. Western Themed Kactus Kate’s paled in comparison to the grand plans of other Las Vegas giants.
A man named Michael Gaughan already owns a successful business called The Gold Coast Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. He wanted to expand his business to the other side of the city, and build a resort called Kactus Kate. As the name suggests, this would have been western-themed. It was also relatively small compared to some of the other ideas on this list, with just 450 hotel rooms. Everything was approved and ready to go from the city council of Las Vegas, but Michael Gaughan realized that all of the other new hotels and casinos being constructed in that same area were much bigger and better. He knew that if he built Kactus Kate, it simply could not compare, and he was likely to lose money. So he backed out of the plans.
The Desert Kingdom would have been a combination of Bali and other tropical places. Credit: Goddard Entertainment
13. The Desert Kingdom flopped thanks to poor follow through.
The concept of The Desert Kingdom was to mix African and Asian elements to make the perfect tropical resort. The concept design was a recreation of a resort in Bali, Indonesia. At night, guests would see water and light show as they sat outdoors surrounded by tiki torches. ITT Sheraton purchased the land in 1993 in order to make the Desert Kingdom a reality, but it was never actually developed into a resort. The land was eventually sold, and the Wynn Las Vegas now stands in the spot where The Desert Kingdom was planned to go.
Elysium would have been a futuristic hotel and private jet emporium. Credit: Bergman Walls & Associates
14. Elysium created a futuristic escape for private jet passengers.
The concept art for the Elysium hotel looks like something constructed 100 years in the future, or in an episode of The Jetsons. The original idea was conceived by a firm named Bergman Walls & Associates. They wanted to build Elysium directly across from the McCarron International Airport. This would be a hotel for pilots and upper-class customers looking to fly in private jets. They could easily access a hotel near the airport, instead of going into the city of Las Vegas. Even though it had a great concept, and it may have made sense in some ways to build it, the project was never actually started.
The Chinatown Strip concept art. Credit: Steelman Partners
15. The Chinatown Strip
The Imperial Palace was built in Las Vegas in the 1970s, and it was overhauled in 2012. Since it already had an Asian vibe, the owners at Caesars Entertainment Group thought they would make over the hotel in order to create an entire “Chinatown Strip”. This would have been modeled after architecture from the Ming Dynasty. The attractions would be much like any other Chinatown in cities around the United States, which always have amazing food and shopping. In the end, they decided to spend $550 million to develop a new hotel called The Linq, instead.
Concept art of the fire-breathing dragon that would be placed outside of The Excalibur Hotel. Credit: Gary Goddard Entertainment
16. The Excalibur Dragon was actually an addition to an already existing hotel but didn’t quite make the cut.
The Excalibur Hotel already exists in Las Vegas. It looks like a white medieval castle inspired by the Sword and the Stone. This hotel is great for anyone who loves fantasy, but there could be so much more. At one point in time, Gary Goddard planned to install a fire-breathing dragon in front of the hotel. The idea turned out to be far too expensive, and the attraction was never built. However, a similar concept now exists in Harry Potter World, where the Gringotts Dragon breathes fire a few times a day.
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