Bally's Lake Tahoe

Bally's Lake Tahoe (formerly Park Tahoe, Caesars Tahoe, and MontBleu Resort Casino) is a casino hotel in Stateline, Nevada. It is owned by Edgewood Companies and operated by Bally's Corporation. The property includes a 48,456 sq ft (4,501.7 m²) casino and a 438-room hotel on a 21-acre (8.5 ha) site.^[1] It is the home to the Ciera Steak + Chophouse. The entire property underwent a $25-million remodel in 2015, with all guest rooms, the casino, 1,200-seat showroom, and exterior being upgraded.

Bally's Lake Tahoe
The property in 2008, known then as MontBleu
Location	Stateline, Nevada, U.S.
Address	55 U.S. Route 50
Opening date	1978; 46 years ago (1978)
No. of rooms	438
Total gaming space	48,456 sq ft (4,501.7 m2)
Permanent shows	Bally's Showroom Convention Center
Signature attractions	Opal Nightclub Blu Nightclub Onsen Spa Puzzle Room Tahoe Axe & Darts
Notable restaurants	Café Del Soul HQ Center Bar Ciera Steak + Chophouse Parlays Coffee & Quick Bites
Owner	Edgewood Companies
Operating license holder	Bally's Corporation
Architect	Daniel, Mann, Johnson & Mendenhall (1978), Worth Group (renovations)
Previous names	Park Tahoe (1978–1979) Caesars Tahoe Palace (1979) Caesars Tahoe (1979–2006) MontBleu (2006-2021)
Renovated in	1979, 2006, 2015
Coordinates	38.961469°N 119.938742°W / 38.961469; -119.938742
Website	casinos.ballys.com/lake-tahoe

History

Park Tahoe (1978–1979)

The casino first opened in 1978 as the Park Tahoe, built by Park Cattle Co. The building was designed by Daniel, Mann, Johnson & Mendenhall and constructed by Del E. Webb Corporation.^[2] Caesars World took over the next year under a 25-year lease, with options to extend it another 50 years.

Caesars Tahoe (1979–2006)

Caesars Tahoe logo (1979–2006)

Caesars agreed to spend $40 million to complete construction of the hotel portion of the property,^[3] which was renamed as Caesars Tahoe Palace^[4] and later simply Caesars Tahoe. In line with the Caesars name, the property was remodeled with a Roman theme.

Caesars Tahoe was known for its top entertainment offerings, and over the years played host to many famous artists, including Dean Martin, Cher, Mac Davis, Jimmy Buffett, Glen Campbell, and Tony Bennett. In its later years, the Caesars showroom included appearances by comedians including George Carlin, Johnny Carson, Jerry Seinfeld, Gallagher, Rosie O'Donnell, and many other well-known headlining comedians. Celebrities such as Michael Jordan, Randy Quaid, Kenny Rogers and others would play games in the Caesars Tahoe casino^{[citation needed]}. Caesars was also the host hotel and title sponsor of the American Century Championship golf tournament at nearby Edgewood Golf Course every July, until 2004. After Caesars sold the hotel in 2005, the title sponsorship and host switched to Harrah's/Harveys Casinos. Also, in its earlier years, Caesars Tahoe was home to title fights for championship boxing events.

Caesars Entertainment sold the resort in June 2005 for $45 million to Columbia Sussex, owner of the nearby Horizon Casino. It was one of a series of sales made by Caesars to avoid antitrust issues with its planned acquisition by Harrah's Entertainment.

MontBleu (2006–2021)

MontBleu Lake Tahoe logo

Columbia Sussex rebranded the property as MontBleu Resort Casino & Spa in May 2006. After the bankruptcy of Columbia's gaming businesses, MontBleu became part of the reorganized Tropicana Entertainment in March 2010.

MontBleu and the Horizon appeared as the Nomad Hotel, during the Caesars-to-MontBleu transition, in the 2007 film Smokin' Aces.^[5]

In 2018, Tropicana Entertainment, including the MontBleu, was acquired by Eldorado Resorts.^[6][7]

Bally's Lake Tahoe (2021–present)

In 2020, Eldorado acquired Caesars Entertainment (the former Harrah's) and changed its own name to Caesars Entertainment. This merger necessitated the sale of one of the companies' properties in Stateline to gain approval from FTC antitrust regulators.^[8] To satisfy this requirement, the company sold the operations of the MontBleu to Bally's Corporation for $15 million.^[9] The property was rebranded as Bally's Lake Tahoe in November 2021.^[10][11]

References

1. "Listing of Financial Statements Square Footage". Nevada Gaming Control Board. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
2. "Webb Spinner 1975-1978" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-09-16. Retrieved 2018-10-23.
3. "Caesars World board backs buying lease of hotel in Nevada". Wall Street Journal. October 23, 1979. ProQuest 134353780. (subscription required)
4. Young, Terry (December 4, 1979). "Reno – after the money's gone". Oakland Post. ProQuest 371722794. (subscription required)
5. "Director puts Tahoe in spotlight". Tahoe Daily Tribune. January 12, 2007. Archived from the original on 2011-07-09.
6. "Parent company sells MontBleu Casino Resort & Spa in Stateline". Tahoe Daily Tribune. April 24, 2018. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
7. "Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. completes previously announced acquisition of the real estate assets of Tropicana Entertainment" (Press release). Gaming and Leisure Properties. October 1, 2018. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
8. Hidalgo, Jason (June 26, 2020). "Eldorado required to sell Tahoe Montbleu resort for FTC approval of Caesars merger". Reno Gazette-Journal. Retrieved 2020-07-21.
9. Stutz, Howard (April 7, 2021). "Nevada: Bally's closes on purchase of MontBleu in Lake Tahoe from Caesars". CDC Gaming Reports. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
10. Peterson, Paula (July 2, 2021). "MontBleu Resort & Spa to undergo name change to Bally's Lake Tahoe". South Tahoe Now. Retrieved 2021-11-15.
11. @howardstutz (November 15, 2021). "Bally's Corp. has officially named its Northern Nevada casino - Bally's Lake Tahoe" (Tweet) – via Twitter.

External links

• Bally's Lake Tahoe