Published on: January 18, 2026, 01:09h.
Updated on: January 18, 2026, 01:09h.
- Despite being unfinished, the Hard Rock’s Guitar Hotel tower is already a dominant feature on the Strip, eclipsing LED displays.
- In response, Caesars Entertainment unveiled a 17,000-square-foot digital billboard for Horseshoe in 2023 and is currently developing a smaller pylon for Caesars Palace.
The captivating irony of the ongoing sign competition on the Las Vegas Strip—a multimillion-dollar contest escalating with LED technology—is that it wasn’t initiated by mere signage but rather by an architectural masterpiece.
Soaring above the previous Mirage site, the Hard Rock’s 660-foot Guitar Hotel is set to overshadow every eye-catching marketing display in the vicinity. Construction commenced following the Mirage’s closure in July 2024; currently, 28 of the planned 42 stories are completed, with the entire resort slated for a 2027 debut.
Even in its unfinished state, this structure significantly influences long-distance perspectives of the boulevard, dominating skyline images, drone footage, and all north-south sightlines.
For nearly ten years, the LED landscape of the Strip had maintained a digital balance. Major resort signs were generally equivalent in size, ranging from a few thousand to about 11,000 square feet—large enough to be competitive without any one display overtaking the others.
That equilibrium was disrupted with the launch of the Resorts World west-tower mesh screen in July 2020. Measuring a staggering 100,000 square feet (294 feet high and 340 feet wide), it became the largest resort sign in Strip history—almost ten times larger than any previous sign. However, Resorts World’s location at the far north end necessitated this scale in order to make an impression alongside the core attractions of the Strip.
Playing Hard (Eye)ball
The first casino operator to seemingly feel the pressure from the Guitar Hotel was Caesars Entertainment. In 2022, the same year Hard Rock International announced that it would transform the Mirage volcano into the Guitar Hotel, Caesars approved a 17,000-square-foot, three-sided LED pylon (standing 180 feet tall) for the Bally’s-to-Horseshoe rebranding, which became operational by March 2023.
Funded by third-party Branded Cities (which manages advertising space and shares profits, as reported by Vital Vegas), this installation positioned itself as the second-largest digital resort billboard on the Strip after Resorts World.
Following this, Caesars began work on a smaller pylon at Caesars Palace, measuring 85 feet tall overall, featuring an LED display that spans over 6,000 square feet, with construction starting in late 2025 and a planned mid-2026 completion—also in partnership with Branded Cities.
But will all these efforts truly make a difference?
The Guitar Hotel isn’t merely reshaping the LED landscape—it’s dominating it. The real question remains whether any other resorts will successfully convey their messages when the skyline features such a strikingly loud, towering presence.