Palms Casino Resort Adds Enclosed Smoke-Free Gaming Section with 224 Slot Machines
TL;DR — Palms Casino Resort will open a 7,300-square-foot enclosed smoke-free gaming area with 224 slots on August 24 and a charity grand opening on September 1. Only Park MGM offers a fully smoke-free Strip casino after its 2020 reopening. The move responds to guest feedback amid record-low national smoking rates while adding one of few such spaces in Las Vegas.
SCCG Take — The enclosed format lets the operator address non-smoker preferences without full-property changes. Other Las Vegas casinos will watch whether the dedicated space lifts handle from health-conscious patrons.
Palms Casino Resort announced an enclosed smoke-free gaming section on its main casino floor. The off-Strip operator will dedicate 7,300 square feet to 224 of the newest slot machines inside the property’s 95,000-square-foot casino footprint. The space includes a dedicated bar, operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and opens to the public on Aug. 24.
“Guest feedback drives so much of what we do, and expanding our non-smoking gaming options is something we’ve heard consistently. This new space combines the latest games, a dedicated bar, and a new gaming experience to create an entirely new way to play at Palms,” said Kevin Glass, Palms Casino Resort general manager. The official grand opening follows on Sept. 1 with a celebrity charity slot tournament.
Limited Smoke-Free Options Across Las Vegas
U.S. smoking rates sit at their lowest levels ever. Fully smoke-free casinos nonetheless remain scarce in Las Vegas. Park MGM is the only completely smoke-free property on the Strip. The operator converted the former Monte Carlo after a $550 million renovation and rebranding that preceded its initial opening on May 9, 2018. The 66,000-square-foot gaming floor holds fewer than 800 slot machines and 60 table games. Park MGM reopened as smoke-free on Sept. 30, 2020 following the state’s COVID-19 shutdown.
Downtown, the Plaza Hotel & Casino maintains a fully enclosed smoke-free gaming area with fewer than 100 machines. The Palms addition, located near the William Hill Sportsbook and Tonic Bar, gives players another alternative as reported by Casino.org.
Charity Integration at Grand Opening
The Sept. 1 Spin It Forward Celebrity Charity Slot Challenge, co-hosted with IGT, directs $2,500 from the San Manuel Gaming and Hospitality Authority to each of ten designated Southern Nevada organizations. Recipients may elect an additional $1,000 from IGT or have a celebrity play $1,000 in free slot play on their behalf. Participating groups include Heaven Can Wait Animal Society, Make-A-Wish Southern Nevada, and Teach For America Nevada.
The model isolates non-smoking play without altering the broader floor. Operators elsewhere in the market now hold a concrete test of whether dedicated enclosures shift patron behavior or spending patterns at scale.
Reporting: Casino.org News
Generated by SCCG’s automated editorial system from published source reporting. SCCG Management holds editorial responsibility.
Enclosed format lets Palms test non-smoker appetite without committing the entire floor — other Vegas properties will watch the handle closely.
We track every floor-level shift because casino design drives hold and patron mix. Palms is hedging: adding smoke-free inventory without the risk Park MGM took going all-in. As smoking rates crater, operators need real data on whether dedicated zones lift revenue or just redistribute it — this is a live experiment.
- 7,300 sq ft, 224 slots, dedicated bar — opens Aug 24
- Park MGM remains only fully smoke-free Strip casino since 2020
- Guest feedback and record-low smoking rates driving the shift
SCCG angle: SCCG advises casino clients on floor optimization and guest-experience pivots. We connect operators testing smoke-free formats with the slot suppliers, design firms, and data analytics partners who have worked similar conversions — so you can model revenue impact before committing square footage.
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