Casino news: Spanish Strip to open in 2015

It will be Viva Las Vegas in the north-eastern Spanish region of Aragon if developers get their way after Aragonese authorities announced that they are planning to build the world's biggest casino complex outside of the world famous Nevada complex.

The Spanish development will comprise 32 casinos, five theme parks and other popular entertainment attractions, and what has become known as the 'Spanish strip' will cover over 2,000 hectares of the Los Monegros desert.

The parks will be based on themes of espionage and space adventures as well as ancient civilisations like the Egyptians and Romans, following the themes of some of the most famous hotels in Las Vegas - the Venetian and the Pyramid.

There are also 70 hotels planned, plus over 200 restauarants/cafes, 500 shops, a golf course, a bullring and a horse racing course.

The whole development is likely to come in at cost of around 17 billion euros, and 12 investors have already come forward to stake their claim to help build the development.

While investors come from as far afield as Australia and the Lebanon, it will be up to local authorities to build the roads and infrastructure with the authorities hoping to attract 25 million people annually from 2015 onwards, to rival the extraordinary numbers of visitors Las Vagas benefits from each year.