MGM National Harbor opens its doors to the public

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. - The MGM National Harbor opened its doors to the public Thursday night for the first time at 10:30 p.m., earlier than the expected 11:00 p.m. opening.

After the much anticipated wait, crowds piled in after waiting outside in the cold to get their chance at an up close and personal view of the resort and casino.

Before they opened Thursday evening, special guests got to attend and exclusive VIP party. And then as soon as the doors opened to the public people began filing up and the crowds grew wild! VIP guests were at the resort since 7:00 p.m. and were treated to surprise performances such as The Blue Man Group and dancers. Inside the theater there was a small Cirque du Soleil performance, which seats 4,000 people.

Celebrity chefs attended the opening, athletes and plenty of law makers who were thrilled to see the $1.4 billion project come to life.

Traffic was no stranger on opening night, as the streets were packed with cars waiting in traffic anxiously to arrive to the casino.

In a statement, MGM National Harbor said:

MGM National Harbor celebrated a successful grand opening Thursday evening. We were pleased by the positive reactions of our guests on our debut night and we are happy the resort is being so warmly received by the local community. Doors opened at 10:30 p.m. and at 11:15 p.m. the resort and casino had reached capacity. New patrons were admitted as guests departed.

It was a monumental evening for our company, our guests and our team members. Our thanks and congratulations to Prince George's County and the State of Maryland for their contributions to our accomplishment.