Top 10 casino openings and expansions for January 2026
10. The Kitchen Table
The Kitchen Table, a modern American breakfast and lunch destination, is open at Rio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, offering guests a fresh take on classic comfort food.
Some of the favorites on the menu are listed below:
- Crab Cake Benny – English muffin layered with tender crab cakes, sautéed spinach, and perfectly poached eggs, finished with rich hollandaise, paprika, and chives, served with golden hash browns.
- Specialty Pancakes – Guests can enjoy a unique variety of pancakes including red velvet, ube, banana matcha, and classic vanilla for a sweet, indulgent start.
- Carnivore Skillet – A hearty medley of bacon, kielbasa sausage, ham, bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, and melted cheese, crowned with two eggs any style and served with hash browns and a warm biscuit.
Your hangover never stood a chance...
— Rio Hotel & Casino Las Vegas (@RioVegas) December 29, 2025
The Kitchen Table has arrived just in time for New Year's Eve. ?? ?? ?? pic.twitter.com/SEidRbNuXy
9. Fanatics Sportsbook at Ameristar Kansas City
The Fanatics Sportsbook at Ameristar Casino Hotel Kansas City officially opened on 4 December with a ribbon cutting ceremony and ceremonial first bet by retired baseball player Alex Gordon.
The Fanatics Sportsbook features three betting windows, 12 self-service betting kiosks, 10 TV monitors and one giant LED Video Wall.
Fanatics Sportsbook offers legal betting markets for all major sports including professional and college football, basketball, hockey, baseball, tennis, soccer, golf, MMA, boxing and more.
8. Cliff Castle Casino’s smoke-free gaming lounge
Cliff Castle Casino Hotel in Arizona is inviting guests to experience a new standard in smoke-friendly gaming with the grand opening of the Smoke-Friendly Gaming Parlor & Lounge.
The new lounge spans 5,345 square feet and features 146 new slot machines, the latest electronic table games, and a dedicated luxury bar with in-bar gaming, including the newest IGT bar-top games.
7. Thunder Valley Casino Resort’s transformation
Two weeks ago, Thunder Valley Casino Resort in California announced that it completed an extensive renovation of 408 hotel guest rooms and suites.
Upgrades have been completed across all Deluxe King rooms, Deluxe Two Queen rooms, and One-Bedroom Provence Suites featuring king beds.
A key feature of the redesign is the removal of traditional desks, allowing for expanded living space and improved room flow. In their place, a work-height table has been introduced, providing a flexible surface that can be used for working, dining, or leisure, making it well suited for both business and vacation guests.
6. Golden Nugget Lake Tahoe renovations
Golden Nugget - Lake Tahoe welcomed new enhancements to the property, including refreshed dining and entertainment spaces, the reopening of Oyster Bar, new sports bar, and the completed renovation of Sunset Tower.
Bill’s Sportsbook features 1,200 square-feet of HD screens for premium viewing, booth and lounge seating accommodating up to 240 guests, and a bar with built-in slot machines.
Additionally, the popular Oyster Bar has reopened after a month-long renovation. The restaurant is Lake Tahoe’s first and only raw seafood bar and is a fan favorite amongst locals and visitors.
5. Green Valley Ranch poker room
Last month, Green Valley Ranch Resort, Spa and Casino in Henderson officially opened its new poker room.
Located in its original space on the casino floor, the refreshed room features 15 new tables, upgraded audio and visual components, and 24/7 operation.
The new poker room features new leather rail-tables, comfortable chairs complete with charging ports, and stone and steel side tables.
Poker made its return to GVR! ???????? Yesterday’s celebration was one for the books as every table was full and guests were ready to play.
— Green Valley Ranch (@GVRcasino) December 19, 2025
The tables are ready when you are. The Poker Room is now open 24/7. pic.twitter.com/mzMgkAEFsz
4. Caesars Sportsbook in Summerlin
On 15 December, Caesars Entertainment announced a partnership with The Resort at Summerlin to open a Caesars Sportsbook inside the Nevada property.
Targeting an opening in early 2026, the new sportsbook will have a new video wall and a 360-degree LED video display at the sportsbook bar. Additionally, 20 Caesars Sportsbook self-service betting kiosks will be available inside the sportsbook and throughout the casino, giving guests access to thousands of betting markets, mirroring the options available on the Caesars Sportsbook mobile app.
For the first time at a physical sportsbook location in Summerlin, sports fans will be able to complete in-person registration for the Caesars Sportsbook mobile app.
3. New casino plans for Salem, New Hampshire
Just last week, Churchill Downs Incorporated announced new development details related to its charitable gaming facility in Salem, New Hampshire.
The company currently operates Casino Salem, located in 19,000 square-feet within The Mall at Rockingham Park. Casino Salem will be redeveloped as Rockingham Grand Casino.
Rockingham Grand Casino will occupy 160,000 square-feet over three floors and will feature 825 historical racing machines, 32 table games, 12 electronic table game seats, a 900-seat live entertainment venue, and several food and beverage concepts, including a center bar and full-service sports bar and restaurant.
The company received approval from the Salem Planning Board for its development plan in December.
2. New villas at Caesars Palace
As Caesars Palace celebrates 60 years of grandeur, the iconic resort is ushering in a new era of luxury on the Las Vegas Strip. Caesars Palace is debuting two new Presidential Villas in the Colosseum Tower and 29 Sky Villas in the Octavius Tower.
Presidential Villas
The 8,060-square-foot villa features brushed gold accents and soft lighting, while the 8,370-square-foot villa showcases bold lines and darker tones. The two villas can also connect, spanning more than 19,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor space together. Each rooftop villa features a 1,700-square-foot terrace with sweeping views of the Las Vegas skyline.
Sky Villas
Perched on the 68th and 69th floors of the Octavius Tower, the 29 new Sky Villas introduce a contemporary design with sweeping views of Las Vegas. Additional highlights include a TV feature wall in the living room and ribbed glass panels in the bathroom that enhance the marble.
Celebrating 60 years of grandeur with a bold expression of modern luxury: our new Presidential Villas. Named for the high-profile guests who have graced these spaces, they offer over 8,000 square feet of impeccable design, bespoke details, and sweeping skyline views on the… pic.twitter.com/7LYhZLON6M
— Caesars Palace (@CaesarsPalace) January 16, 2026
1. Durango Casino Resort’s expansion
Earlier this month, Durango Casino Resort began construction on the third phase of its expansion on the north side of the property, marking the next major milestone in the destination’s long-term master plan.
The expansion will include 275,000 additional square-feet to the podium adding a mix of new gaming, dining, entertainment and recreational amenities designed to further enhance the guest experience in southwest Las Vegas.
Following the recent debut of Durango’s Phase II south expansion, which featured over 25,000 square feet of new casino space including a new high-limit slot room and bar and a new covered parking structure, the next phase of development will introduce an expanded casino floor with approximately 400 additional slot machines, a 36-lane bowling facility, luxury movie theaters, multiple new restaurant concepts and food hall outlets, and several new entertainment venues.