Neon Museum Plans Move While Hard Rock Pledges Donation From The Mirage

The Neon Museum and boneyard, seen here at night from the top of Circa downtown, is looking for more space in a cooler part of Las Vegas. (Image: Dan Michalski / Casinos.com) 

Las Vegas’ Neon Museum made the news twice in the past week. First, the museum announced it would be moving from its current location on the outskirts of downtown. Second, shortly after closing the iconic casino, Hard Rock International (HRI) announced that it would donate items from The Mirage.

The two announcements are unrelated but the museum location moving to a larger space will ensure it has room for the new additions from The Mirage.

Neon Museum Moving to the Arts District

After three years of discussing a move, the Neon Museum, home to iconic but no longer used signage from Las Vegas casinos past, plans to relocate about two miles south to the Arts District, a trendy area between the Strip and downtown. 

This move will give the Neon Museum nearly triple the space of the current location. The Museum is discussing two new sites for the contents of the Neon Museum, Neon Boneyard, and North Museum.

The first is a 60,000-square-foot outdoor display space with another 47,000 square feet for an indoor area on the 9th and 10th floors of a proposed parking garage on the corner of Art Way and Boulder Avenue. 

The second location has 35,000 square feet of programmable space and is just a short walk away.

Aaron Berger, executive director of The Neon Museum, explained the move:

“This is more than moving to a new location, this is a significant expansion effort because what drove this decision was ‘capacity,’” Berger said. “Our collection has grown exponentially to the point that now only 35 percent is visible to the public.

Berger noted that the Museum turned away over 30,000 visitors last year due to sold-out nights. “Two sites, each with indoor and outdoor exhibition space,” he said, “will greatly improve our visitor's experience and educate eager audiences on this one-of-a-kind city.”

This move won’t happen right away. The Neon Museum hopes to open the new spaces in 2027, around the same time the new Hard Rock “guitar hotel” will open on the old Mirage lot.

In the meantime, the Neon Museum will continue to collect and display historic casino artifacts. There are plans for a new sign restoration and relighting later this year.

The entrance sign to The Mirage will find a new home at a relocated and improved Las Vegas Neon Museum. (Image: Marc Meltzer / Casinos.com)

Hard Rock Gifting Items From The Mirage

Hard Rock International announced it was teaming up with the PENTA Building Group to donate several items to the Neon Museum shortly after closing The Mirage. PENTA is the company that will handle most of the demolition as the property is transformed into the new Hard Rock Las Vegas.

Initially, the Neon Museum will receive the following items:

• A 17-foot-tall sculpture of Siegfried & Roy with a giant white tiger.
• The 30-foot-tall Mirage's hotel entrance arch sign.
• The 27-foot-long Mirage neon sign from The Mirage’s Volcano Lagoon.

Hard Rock says there will be a public art auction of items from The Mirage in September. The company says it will donate additional items after the auction.

Earlier this year, the Neon Museum celebrated the Tropicana, which closed after 65 years on the Vegas Strip. Much of the Tropicana has been demolished and there will be an  of the two remaining hotel towers later this year.

Flourishing Arts District

The Neon Museum is moving into one of the areas of Las Vegas growing in popularity with locals and tourists alike. The Arts District is an 18-block section of Las Vegas between the Fremont Street Experience and the tourist corridor of the Vegas Strip.

The Arts District is a very different experience from the casinos most associated with Las Vegas. This is one of the few areas in Las Vegas with numerous independently owned businesses including restaurants, retail shops, breweries, antique stores, and art galleries. Additionally, First Friday takes place in the Arts District every month.

Visitors will find some hidden gems in Las Vegas in the Arts District. Here are just a few great places to visit in the area.

• Esther’s Kitchen - One of the best restaurants in Las Vegas.
• Vesta Coffee - Local roaster with a few locations in Las Vegas including two in Durango Casino.
• Able Baker Brewery - Home to my favorite local beer - Atomic Duck.

The Evel Knievel Museum is moving from Kansas to the Arts District near the future home of the Neon Museum. It will open in a complex with a coffee shop and a heavy metal pizza shop.

Vegas.com has a good list of things to do and places to eat and drink in the area.