Slots, table games, and a race and sports book occupy one floor of the main pavilion, at this historic casino.

It opened on Fremont Street on November 7, 1941, and is one of the oldest casino-hotel properties in Las Vegas, along with the nearby Golden Gate Hotel and Casino.

[5][6] The location at 6th Street and Fremont was originally considered too far from downtown, but it quickly became so profitable that Bugsy Siegel, Meyer Lansky, Gus Greenbaum and Moe Sedway bought the property in 1945 from J. Kell Houssels for $600,000.

[7][8] In 1942, FBI documents described Isadore Blumenfeld, alias Kid Cann, as the, "recognized leader of graft and racketeering in Minneapolis".

These files further allege that Kid Cann was involved with Bugsy Siegel in the running of the El Cortez Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

[12] The property is one of the few casinos to have never changed its exterior façade in Las Vegas, retaining the same signage and ranch-themed architecture for over seventy years.

El Cortez is also well known in the casino industry as the most prominent "break-in house" for new table-game dealers to get experience before moving onto bigger properties.

[26] In the summer of 2024, El Cortez underwent a $20 million renovation of its casino, adding a high-limit slot room, two new bars, a new restaurant and a Starbucks coffee shop.