Palms opens a separate smoke-free slot room
Palms Casino Resort has opened a 7,300-square-foot, enclosed non-smoking gaming room with 224 slot machines, a full-service bar and a separate setting from its main casino floor.
The room opened to the public Aug. 24, 2026, near the William Hill Sportsbook. Palms marked its official debut with a ribbon-cutting and charity slot tournament on Sept. 1. The expansion adds gaming space to the resort while giving guests a clear choice: play in the main casino, where smoking remains permitted, or move into a room designed for smoke-free play.
That distinction matters. Palms did not make its entire casino smoke-free, and the new room does not have table games. It is a dedicated slot room inside a resort that still allows smoking on its main gaming floor.
Still, this is more than a row of nonsmoking machines parked beside a smoking section. The new area has its own bar and gaming lineup, and Palms describes it as a distinct environment. Local reporting also found that the room has a separate ventilation system, although its entrance is open rather than sealed by a door.
In Vegas terms, Palms did not blow up the old playbook. It gave players another one.
What is inside the new space?
The room features games from nearly a dozen manufacturers, according to Palms. The resort initially announced 224 machines and now promotes the space as having more than 200 slots. A permanent taco truck operates on the adjoining patio, while the bar carries specialty cocktails and a rotating selection of local beer.
Palms General Manager Kevin Glass said guest feedback helped drive the decision. That is one of the expansion’s most important details. The resort is presenting smoke-free gaming as a response to customers, not as a temporary promotion or a government requirement.
The property is owned by the San Manuel Gaming and Hospitality Authority, an entity of the Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation. Its sister property in California, Yaamava’ Resort & Casino at San Manuel, prohibits smoking indoors and provides designated outdoor smoking areas.
Why the expansion matters in Las Vegas
The Palms opening gives the casino industry a new real-world test. Can a substantial smoke-free room attract enough play to justify its floor space, staffing and operating costs while the rest of the casino continues under the traditional model?
That question has hovered over Las Vegas for years. Casino operators have often treated smoking policy as a business decision tied to customer habits and gaming revenue. Palms is testing a middle path: preserve smoking on the main floor, but build a separate room large enough to feel like a destination of its own.
The resort has not released revenue, visitation or occupancy figures for the room. It also has not announced another expansion. Any claim that the new area is already a financial success would be premature.
What Palms can measure now is whether guests use it, how long they stay and whether the room brings in customers who might otherwise skip the property. Those results will matter more to competitors than the ribbon-cutting. In casino country, the coin-in tells the story.
It expands choice without changing the whole property
Las Vegas already has several versions of smoke-free gaming. Park MGM operates as a smoke-free resort, including its casino. Downtown, the Plaza Hotel & Casino offers a dedicated smoke-free gaming area while smoking remains allowed elsewhere on the property.
Palms now adds a larger enclosed slot room to that mix. The result is not a citywide move to smoke-free casinos. It is a broader menu of operating models:
- A fully smoke-free resort: Park MGM prohibits smoking throughout its indoor property.
- A separate smoke-free gaming room: Palms and Plaza provide dedicated areas while maintaining smoking elsewhere.
- A designated nonsmoking section: Some casinos set aside machines on the main floor without fully separating them from nearby smoking areas.
Those models are not equal from an air-quality standpoint. A property-wide policy removes indoor smoking from the building. A separate room limits exposure within that space but does not turn the entire resort into a smoke-free environment.
Nevada law leaves the decision with casino operators
The expansion is voluntary. Nevada’s Clean Indoor Air Act generally prohibits smoking in many indoor public places, but state law allows smoking in qualifying casino gaming areas. Casinos may create nonsmoking areas or adopt stricter property rules on their own.
No statewide casino smoking ban triggered the Palms project, and the resort has not described the room as preparation for one. Claims that a 2026 prohibition is imminent would run ahead of the facts.
The legal status quo makes the Palms opening more useful as a market signal. The resort chose to devote thousands of square feet and more than 200 machines to smoke-free play because management said guests had requested it. That is a concrete investment, even without a mandate.
What other casinos will be watching
Competitors are unlikely to judge the project by air quality alone. They will watch the business numbers. Key questions include whether the room draws new loyalty-club members, whether its machines perform as well as slots on the main floor and whether guests seek out the space or enter only when nearby.
The setup could be especially relevant to resorts that are not ready to prohibit smoking property-wide. A separate room requires dedicated space and infrastructure, but it lets an operator serve nonsmokers without changing policy across the casino.
There are limits to what Palms can prove. Its room contains slots only, so it does not test demand for smoke-free blackjack, craps or roulette. Its location away from the Strip also makes direct comparisons with major boulevard resorts imperfect. Every casino has a different customer base, floor plan and revenue mix.
That is why predictions that other casinos will quickly follow remain speculation. Some may study the model. Others may decide that open nonsmoking sections, stronger ventilation or existing policies fit their properties better.
The next test is performance
For guests, the immediate change is simple. Palms now offers a substantial room where smoking is not permitted, with its own bar and more than 200 slot machines. Players who want table games or the full main-floor experience will still find smoking allowed elsewhere in the casino.
For the industry, the stakes are wider. Palms has turned customer requests into permanent casino space. If the room produces strong play and repeat visits, it could make separate smoke-free rooms easier for other operators to justify. If demand is modest, the traditional mixed casino floor will keep its grip.
The opening does not settle Las Vegas’ long-running smoking debate. It gives that debate something more valuable than a slogan: a live test on a real casino floor. Now the machines get the final word.
