The Venetian Las Vegas is a luxury hotel and casino resort located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States. It is owned by Vici Properties and operated by Apollo Global Management. It was developed by businessman Sheldon Adelson through his company, Las Vegas Sands. The Venetian was built on the former site of the Sands Hotel and Casino, which was closed and demolished in 1996.
Construction on the Venetian began in April 1997, and the resort opened on May 4, 1999. Some amenities had yet to be finished, with construction continuing until the end of the year. Subcontractors later filed mechanic's liens against the resort for unpaid work, leading to lengthy litigation. The Venetian also feuded with the Culinary Workers Union regarding Adelson's decision to open the property as a non-union resort.
The Venetian was designed by Stubbins Associates and Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo. The resort is themed after Venice and has replicas of numerous landmarks from the city, including a canal with gondola rides. The Venetian includes a 120,000 sq ft (11,000 m2) casino and opened with 3,036 suites in a 35-story tower. A 12-story tower, the Venezia, was completed in 2003, bringing the room count to 4,049. The Palazzo, a sister property with its own hotel and casino, opened north of the Venetian in 2007. If considered as a single property, the Venetian-Palazzo complex ranks as the second-largest hotel in the world, with approximately 7,100 rooms.
The Venetian was built to accommodate convention-goers in particular, as Adelson felt that this demographic was underserved in Las Vegas. The resort includes its own meeting space, as well as the adjoining Venetian Expo. The property also includes the Grand Canal Shoppes, and was home to the Guggenheim Hermitage Museum from 2001 to 2008. The Venetian has several performance venues, which have hosted entertainment such as the Blue Man Group (2005–2012), Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular (2006–2012), and Human Nature (2013–2020). A sphere-shaped venue and arena, known as simply Sphere, opened in September 2023.
By the end of 2020, Las Vegas Sands sought to focus on its Macau properties, which include The Venetian Macao. In February 2022, Apollo Global Management acquired the operations of the Venetian, Palazzo, and Venetian Expo for $2.25 billion, while Vici Properties purchased the land beneath the facilities for $4 billion.
