Las Vegas Tourism, Statewide Casino Wins Improve in April

Posted on: May 28, 2021, 04:03h. 

Last updated on: June 30, 2021, 10:47h.

Larry Henry Read More
Expertise: Commercial Gaming, Gaming Business, Legislation, Politics, Regulation.

The number of visitors to Las Vegas topped 2 million in April for the second straight month. Statewide, casinos won more than $1 billion from gamblers in April, also for the second month in a row.

Flamingo Hotel and Casino Pool
Las Vegas visitors enjoy sunny weather at a Flamingo Hotel and Casino pool. Tourism officials are expecting a large number of visitors to the Las Vegas Valley this summer. (Image: Discotech)

The 2.57 million tourists who visited Las Vegas in April is the highest total since pre-pandemic February 2020, according to figures the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority released this week. In March, more than 2.2 million visitors made their way to the Las Vegas Valley. The March figure was an increase of almost 46 percent over February’s visitor volume of 1.5 million.

In March 2020, Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) ordered casinos closed at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. He allowed them to reopen 11 weeks later in early June with capacity restrictions and other COVID-19 directives.?

Beginning on June 1 this year, casinos statewide will be allowed to operate at full capacity. Some already have been at 100 percent gaming floor capacity, based on workforce vaccination goals.

Tourism officials are hopeful that the return of international travel and large conventions will help spark the Las Vegas tourism economy even more. Conventions are seen as vital in filling up the hotel towers on the Strip, especially during the slower middle of the week.?

Industry experts note that the large World of Concrete event early next month at the Las Vegas Convention Center’s West Hall will be an important step in reviving the area’s convention business.

International travelers also are seen as important. These travelers stay longer and spend more than most domestic visitors, airport officials said. In 2019, the city saw 3.8 million international visitors. Because of COVID-19 restrictions, there have been no international visitors this year, according to the newspaper.?

Billion Dollar Gaming Wins

With the increase in tourists, casinos across the state have won more money during the past two months.

In April, Nevada casinos? won $1.03 billion. One month earlier, the state’s casinos saw $1.06 billion in winnings.

Of the statewide total in April, $865.5 million came from Clark County, where Las Vegas is located. The Strip accounted for $483.4 million of the statewide total, with downtown Las Vegas winning $76.2 million in April. The largest resorts in the valley are on the Strip, outside Las Vegas city limits.

In March, Clark County casinos won $893.2 million. The Strip recorded $501.5 million in wins from gamblers. Downtown Las Vegas won $71 million.

‘Bullish’ on Las Vegas

Other encouraging signs indicate Las Vegas could see see larger numbers of tourists and higher casino wins into the summer.

Airport travel is on the upswing, and a new hotel-casino, the $4.3 billion Resorts World, is opening June 24 on the northwest end of the Strip.

This will be followed in July by fireworks shows at the Plaza Hotel and Casino downtown and at Station Casinos properties in the Las Vegas Valley.

Josh Swissman, a partner at The Strategy Organization, told the newspaper he is “bullish” about the tourism outlook for the upcoming months. ?

“I think the summer is going to be a big, big volume season for us in Vegas this year,” he said.