The Golden Gate Hotel & Casino marked its 120th anniversary this week, reaching the milestone as the downtown Las Vegas property continues to adjust its casino operations to changing customer demand.
The hotel, which opened on Jan. 13, 1906, originally operated as the Hotel Nevada and is recognized as the oldest continuously operating hotel in Las Vegas. Room and board cost $1 per day when it opened, nine years before Fremont Street was paved.
The anniversary comes months after a major operational change. In August 2025, Golden Gate removed all live dealer table games and replaced them with electronic table games across the casino floor.
“This is, literally, the birthplace of hotel tourism and casino as we know it today in Las Vegas,” said Jeff Victor, vice president of operations for Circa Hospitality Group.
The site’s history predates the hotel’s opening. In 1905, the property at what would later be known as 1 Fremont Street sold at auction for $1,750 to John F. Miller, one of Las Vegas’ earliest settlers. Miller initially operated a tent hotel on the site, which was among the first downtown properties to have piped water, according to “Young Las Vegas: 1905–1931” by Joan Burkhart Whitely.
The Hotel Nevada opened with 10 guest rooms, all of which remain in the hotel’s room inventory. Physical evidence of the original structure remains visible in seven narrow second-story windows facing Fremont Street and 11 windows along the Main Street side, which mark the building’s original footprint at the corner of Fremont and Main streets.
The property was acquired in 2006 by brothers Derek and Greg Stevens, who also operate The D and Circa in downtown Las Vegas. Renovation work following the purchase uncovered elements of early expansions, including a former kitchen space on the Main Street side that remains partially visible today.
“The fact that (Golden Gate) still exists is part miracle, I guess,” Victor said. Golden Gate also holds a place in downtown Las Vegas’ early neon history. As the Hotel Nevada, it displayed the area’s second neon sign, behind only the now-demolished Overland Hotel.
To mark the anniversary, Golden Gate hosted a celebration on Friday at 6 p.m. in downtown Las Vegas. The event included giveaways, complimentary birthday shots, and commemorative merchandise.
Original article: https://www.yogonet.com/international/news/2026/01/19/117212-golden-gate-turns-120-as-oldest-las-vegas-hotel-shifts-casino-operations
