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Vegas Primer

Must Do in Las Vegas for First Timers

How Many Tourists Visit Las Vegas Every Year? (2024 Report)

Las Vegas has always been a top destination for domestic and international tourists.

But have you ever wondered how many people go to Vegas? Or if the city is still as popular as it used to be?

In this report, you’ll discover the latest visitor stats and how the data compares to before the pandemic.

I’ve also gathered as much 2024 information as possible to give you a better picture of tourism trends. Rest assured, you’ll find all the most up-to-date statistics here.

Let’s get into the numbers!

Visitors To Las Vegas Per Year

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In 2023, 40,829,900 people visited Las Vegas, representing a 5.15% rise over 2022.

2024 is already on track to surpass 2023 visitor numbers, with 544,400 more travelers from January to April compared to the same period last year.

Here are the visitor growth statistics over the past 9 years:

• 2023: 40,829,900 (+5.15%)
• 2022: 38,829,300 (+20.47%)
• 2021: 32,230,600 (69.36%)
• 2020: 19,031,003 (-55.25%)
• 2019: 42,524,000 (0.97%)
• 2018: 42,116,900 (-0.23%)
• 2017: 42,214,100 (-1.68%)
• 2016: 42,936,100 (1.47%)
• 2015: 42,312,216 (2.88%)
• 2014: 41,126,512

The highest year on record was in 2016, with 42,936,100 tourists.

Source: LVCVA

Is Tourism Up Or Down?

Tourism to Vegas has been increasing year-over-year since the end of the pandemic, but it has not yet returned to pre-pandemic levels.

For instance, in 2019, before COVID-19 hit, visitor volume was 42,524,000. Comparing that to 2023’s data, we’re still about 1.69 million tourists short.

My analysis below indicates that the deficit is primarily due to the slower recovery of convention attendance and international tourism.

However, these sectors are strengthening, providing optimism for a complete recovery sooner rather than later.

In 2023, the city hosted 5,986,700 convention attendees, up 19.94% from 2022.

However, this number is still 662,400 travelers short of the pre-pandemic high of 6,649,100 in 2019.

Looking at 2024, convention attendance from January to April is down slightly by 6,900 as compared to the same period in 2023.

But, if we compare April 2024 to April 2023, there was a 36% YoY increase, primarily thanks to new conventions such as the Google Cloud Next show and Craft Brewers Conference.

Some of this increase is also due to scheduling changes in 2024, like the International Security Conference moving from March to April.

Convention Attendance: 9 Year Growth Statistics

• 2023: 5,986,700 (+19.94%)
• 2022: 4,991,500 (+126.23%)
• 2021: 2,206,400 (+27.74%)
• 2020: 1,727,200 (-74.02%)
• 2019: 6,649,100 (+2.27%)
• 2018: 6,501,800 (-2.17%)
• 2017: 6,646,200 (+5.32%)
• 2016: 6,310,600 (+7.12%)
• 2015: 5,891,151 (+13.41%)
• 2014: 5,194,580

2019 holds the record for the most attendees, with 6,649,100 people coming for conventions.

International vs Domestic

According to Tourism Economics data models, the estimated number of international tourists in 2023 was 4,740,000, accounting for 12% of the total.

Based on this, domestic visitation was 36,089,900, representing 88% of the total number of visitors.

It’s worth noting that since the end of COVID-19, domestic tourism has recovered faster than international tourism.

In 2021, Las Vegas experienced a significant 72.88% increase in domestic travel, while international travel only increased by 14.04%.

However, international tourism has surged in the past two years, with a 162.3% increase in 2022 and a 39% rise in 2023.

In 2014, there were a record-breaking 5,980,000 international travelers.

Sources: LVCVA , Tourism Economics

In 2023, more than half (53%) of all international travel to Vegas came from Canada and Mexico.

Canadian visitors jumped from 885,610 to 1,419,050, a 60.2% increase over 2022. In comparison, the number of tourists from Mexico grew from 989,480 to 1,084,840, a 9.6% rise.

2023 was also a significant time for overseas travelers, with an increase of 45.8% over 2022.

Top 10 countries by Visitor Counts & YoY % Change (2023)

• Canada: 1,419,050 (+60.2%)
• Mexico: 1,084,840 (+9.6%)
• United Kingdom: 551,550 (+14.3%)
• Australia: 264,900 (+74.2%)
• Germany: 182,450 (+45.9%)
• South Korea: 157,760 (+58.0%)
• Brazil: 123,370 (+26.8%)
• Japan: 108,020 (+223.4%)
• France: 80,770 (+46.2%)
• China: 71,640 (+573.3%)

Despite the recovery, international travelers are still below pre-pandemic levels, with 920,000 fewer tourists than in 2019.

This graph visually puts it into perspective:

The number of US visitors to Vegas increased to 36,089,900 in 2023, a 1.89% rise from 2022.

Despite the positive growth, domestic tourism still lags by 774,100 tourists compared to 2019 and falls short of the 2016 all-time high by 1.15 million people.

The chart below illustrates the relatively quick recovery of US-based tourism since the pandemic, which has outpaced international travel.

Which US Cities Visit Vegas The Most?

Below are the most recent statistics for the top 10 air feeder markets to Las Vegas by city.

It’s important to note that Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Dallas, Seattle, and Houston include multiple airports.

For instance, San Francisco includes Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose.

Given their proximity to Las Vegas and large populations, it’s no surprise that Los Angeles and San Francisco are the top two origin markets.

Top 10 US Metro Areas to Las Vegas by Air: Arriving Passengers

• Los Angeles Area: 1,753,798
• San Francisco Area: 1,280,646
• New York Area: 821,467
• Chicago Area: 755,045
• Dallas Area: 722,905
• Seattle Area: 682,629
• Denver: 643,870
• Houston Area: 533,406
• Atlanta: 485,535
• San Diego: 479,721

While the most recent air feeder data available is from 2022, the rankings for 2023 are likely unchanged due to these markets’ supporting populations.

However, as domestic tourism volume increased in 2023, the passenger numbers for most metro areas will likely be higher than shown here.

What State Travels To Vegas The Most?

California is the state that travels to Las Vegas the most, with 4.25 million arriving passengers and almost 550,000 cars crossing the I-15 NV/CA border in 2022.

The chart below shows the top 10 states with the highest number of visitors, considering all airports within each state.

Florida is notable for its third-place finish, as none of its airports made the top 10 list in the air feeder markets by city.

Harry Reid International Airport experienced a record-breaking year for air travel in 2023, with 57,646,860 arriving and departing passengers.

This surpassed the previous record of 52,667,741 in 2022, representing a 9.45% increase.

From January through April of 2024, the airport has already seen a 1.57% increase, equivalent to 286,750 additional passengers, compared to the same period in 2023.

Harry Reid International Airport has an average of 157,937 passengers flying daily.

Number of Passengers by Year & YoY % Change

• 2023: 57,646,860 (+9.45%)
• 2022: 52,667,741 (+32.63%)
• 2021: 39,710,493 (+78.86%)
• 2020: 22,201,479 (-56.92%)
• 2019: 51,537,638 (+3.81%)
• 2018: 49,646,118 (+2.51%)
• 2017: 48,430,118 (+2.10%)
• 2016: 47,435,027 (+4.67%)
• 2015: 45,318,788 (+5.67%)
• 2014: 42,885,350

Las Vegas Tourism FAQs

Below are some of the most frequently asked questions about Las Vegas tourism numbers.

Las Vegas receives an average of 111,863 visitors per day. This figure is calculated by dividing the total annual number of visitors in 2023 (40,829,900) by 365 days.

So far, in 2024, the average daily visitor volume has increased to 116,190, representing a 4.1% rise over the same period last year.

This calculation is based on the total number of visitors during the first four months of 2024 divided by 120 days.

It’s important to note that visitor traffic fluctuates depending on the season, with fewer people in town during the winter.

In 2023, the average number of visitors per month in Las Vegas was 3,402,492, calculated by dividing the total number of visitors (40,829,900) by 12.

In comparing the first four months of 2024 to the same timeframe last year, the average monthly visitor volume has increased to 3,485,700 from 3,349,600.

I looked at the monthly visitor volume over the last ten years and found that historically, the busiest months in Las Vegas are October and July (tied for first), followed by March and then May.

These same months were also the busiest in 2023, albeit with a slight reshuffling. Last year, March took the lead, followed by October, July, and May.

Visitor Numbers By Month (2023):

• January: 3,275,300
• February: 3,081,800
• March: 3,655,800 (1st)
• April: 3,385,500
• May: 3,498,000 (4th)
• June: 3,428,500
• July: 3,527,800 (3rd)
• August: 3,319,700
• September: 3,336,900
• October: 3,630,300 (2nd)
• November: 3,292,800
• December: 3,397,500

July of 2016 holds the record for the most monthly visitors ever, with 3,827,600 people in town.

February is consistently the slowest month in Las Vegas, with January coming in a close second, followed by December.

In 2023, February had 18.6% fewer people than March, which again had the highest number of travelers for the year.

To put this percentage into perspective, February was 574,000 tourists short of the busiest month.

The number of visitors hit an all-time low in April 2020, with only 106,900 people visiting the city.

Final Thoughts

Although Las Vegas is still below its pre-pandemic tourism numbers, the area is close to fully recovering.

International volume has increased significantly over the past two years, and more conventions are coming to town.

The city is also constantly in a state of ‘reinvention,’ adding new attractions, entertainment venues, and sporting events that bring back tourists and attract new ones.

The incredible 2023 record-breaking year of air travel at Harry Reid International Airport is a testament to Las Vegas’ resiliency. I anticipate even more records being broken soon!

About Jenna

Hi, I’m Jenna! I’m a Las Vegas local, founder of Vegas Primer, and a VIP Host. I love helping people find the right experiences for their trips. When I’m not writing, I enjoy creating latte recipes, listening to podcasts, and relaxing in my backyard baby pool.

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Strong growth for tourism.

The gains made last year and the trends early in 2023 have brought a full-scale recovery within sight.

Southern Nevada’s tourism industry experienced a year of strong growth in 2022, with many key metrics reaching post-pandemic highs. While the industry still trailed many 2019 benchmarks, the gains made last year and the trends early in 2023 have brought a full-scale recovery within sight.

According to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, visitor volume reached 40.4 million in March 2023 on a trailing 12-month basis, a 13.6 percent increase compared with March 2022. The latest number was within 5.6 percent of the pre-pandemic high in February 2020. Convention attendance also made strong gains over the year, but its recovery has not been as robust compared to broader leisure visitation. In March 2023, convention attendance reached 5.7 million during the past 12 months, a 68.9 percent increase from March 2022. This marked the highest attendance level since March 2020, when the pandemic halted conventions and other large in-person gatherings. Despite the gains in convention activity over the past year, it remained 14.7 percent lower than in February 2020.

A key driver of the tourism rebound during the past year has been sourced to a number of special events, high-profile concerts and a strong mix of professional sporting events. The Harry Reid International Airport has been a source of travel for a significant number of visitors; passenger counts have more than recovered from their pandemic-era lows. March 2023 set a monthly record with 4.9 million passengers, bringing the trailing 12-month total to an all-time high of 55.4 million. That total exceeded the pre-pandemic high in February 2020 by over 3 million, or 6.5 percent. Meanwhile, average daily auto traffic on Interstate 15 at the California border also exceeded pre-pandemic values at 45,524 (trailing 12-month average) by 1.6 percent. However, this was down 5.9 percent from March 2022.

Hotel occupancy rates reached 90.5 percent on the Las Vegas Strip in March 2023 and 88.3 percent across Southern Nevada. Both were post-pandemic highs, though they remained about 3 percentage points below pre-pandemic levels. The average daily room rate in Southern Nevada climbed to its highest level of all time in March 2023 at $213.25, a 30.7 percent increase over March 2022 and a 59.2 percent increase over March 2019. The prior monthly record was the $209.89 set in October 2022, which was the first time the average daily room rate exceeded $200.

Gaming revenue in Clark County in March 2023 totaled of $13.1 billion on a 12-month basis, which was 6.0 percent higher than a year earlier and 25.8 percent higher than the February 2020 value of $10.4 billion. The growth was fueled by 11 straight months of gaming revenue exceeding $1 billion. The Las Vegas Strip reached $8.5 billion in gaming revenue over the 12 months through March 2023, a 9.0 percent annual increase compared to a 6.0 percent annual increase for Southern Nevada as a whole. In downtown Las Vegas, gross gaming revenues were the highest of all time in March 2023, reaching $903.4 million on a trailing 12-month basis.

The momentum in Southern Nevada’s tourism industry through 2022 and into 2023 appears poised to continue in the months ahead. There are over 600 events scheduled for 2023, including concerts by Beyoncé and U2 and Las Vegas’ first ever Formula 1 race. Meanwhile, the $3.1 billion Fontainebleau, the Durango Casino and Resort and the MSG Sphere, a first-of-its-kind 18,000-seat entertainment hall, highlight the new resorts and amenities scheduled to open later this year to support further expansion of the region’s critical tourism industry.

To keep up to date with city of Las Vegas data from Applied Analysis, visit the community dashboard .

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Ask Skift: How Has Las Vegas Tourism Changed?

Rashaad Jorden , Skift

November 17th, 2023 at 1:14 PM EST

Las Vegas has made rapid recovery from the pandemic, but casinos are far from the only attraction that's boosted the city's rebound. Here's a look at what else Las Vegas is showcasing to attract visitors.

Rashaad Jorden

Tourism to Las Vegas has made a strong recovery from the pandemic, with visitor spending hitting a record $79.3 billion in 2022 .

How has the city’s tourism industry changed? We posed the question to  Ask Skift , our artificial intelligence chatbot. It provided answers using information that has appeared in our past news coverage and research, and we also conducted additional reporting on the subject.

Ask Skift said:

Yes, the Las Vegas tourism industry has reinvented itself to adapt to changing trends and demands in the market.

For instance, the Las Vegas Sands has shifted its business mix to cater more to the mass segment rather than focusing solely on the VIP segment. This strategy has proven successful with their operating capacity now standing at about 12,000 rooms with increasing hotel occupancy rates.

Moreover, MGM Resorts International has expanded its offerings beyond traditional casino operations, finding that events like Formula One’s inaugural stop in Las Vegas are drawing in visitors.

It’s also important to note that Las Vegas resorts underwent significant rebranding and overhauls , especially post-recession, signaling the city’s recovery and commitment to reinvention.

Finally, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) plays a crucial role in reinvention efforts through targeted ad campaigns and partnerships , strategizing to attract more visitors and keep business thriving in the city.

So, the reinvention of the Las Vegas tourism industry appears to be a continuous process, responding to trends and focusing on customer needs to ensure its vitality and relevance in the global tourism market.

What else you need to know:

Steve Hill, CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority , said sports will be a critical part of the city’s tourism strategy . The city is hosting Formula 1’s Las Vegas Grand Prix , which drew more than 100,000 fans for practice, qualifying and featured races . Hill said the event, which is taking place on the city’s quietest weekends for tourism, would inject $1.3 billion into the local economy .

And Las Vegas will welcome the Super Bowl in February 2024, which is projected to bring roughly 330,000 visitors .

Roughly 6% of all visitors to Las Vegas in 2022 told the LVCVA that they attended a sporting event. That’s double the percentage of people who said the same five years earlier. Meanwhile, tourists in 2022 spent more than $117 per trip on shows and entertainment, more than double the figure from 2019 .

Sporting and entertainment are part of the booming “fun economy,” which Bo Bernhard, vice president of economic development at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, said is nine times bigger than the global pharmaceutical industry .

In addition, visitors to Las Vegas have gotten younger . A LVCVA study found that average age of visitors to the city in 2022 was 40.7 years, down from 43.2 years in 2021. Tourism to Las Vegas has overall taken a similar turn over the past 30 years – the average age of visitors in 1992 was 47.2.

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Tags: ask skift , las vegas , las vegas convention & visitors authority , nevada , sports tourism

Photo credit: Tourism to Las Vegas has made a strong recovery from the pandemic. Grant Cai / Unsplash

Tourist spending in Las Vegas breaks another record in 2022, LVCVA report shows

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The economic impact of tourist spending in Las Vegas is reaching new heights, according to a report released Tuesday.

Commissioned by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, the report shows that visitors to the city were responsible for over $79 billion in economic impact last year, a 25% increase from the previously-held record in 2019.

Visitor spending last year reached a record $45 billion, a 24% increase from 2021, and a 22% increase from 2019.

"These results are a powerful testament that what we do in concert with our resort partners to market this destination has an undeniable impact on our community,” said Steve Hill, CEO and president of the LVCVA, in a statement.

The report also showed that the tourism industry here remained the largest employer in the area.

The industry, according to the report, employs about 230,000.

The report’s findings are based on data from the LVCVA, Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation; Nevada Gaming Control Board, Clark County School District, Nevada Commission on Tourism, and the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

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HOW TO WATCH

LVCVA Tourism Tracker

Looking for specific research data? Our interactive LVCVA Tourism Tracker query tool lets you conduct custom queries to review historic data and trends.

Trends and Research

We initiate a wide range of research projects and programs tracking the dynamics of tourism in Southern Nevada, the broader U.S. and across the globe. Nationwide, research studies such as our monthly Executive Summary of key tourism statistics and our annual visitor profile help inform and support our overall marketing strategy as well as the efforts of our resort partners.

Research Reports

Lvcva executive summary of southern nevada tourism indicators.

Compiled and distributed by the LVCVA Research Center, the monthly LVCVA Executive Summary reflects tourism data from several agencies including the LVCVA, Harry Reid International Airport, the Nevada Gaming Control Board and the NV Dept. of Transportation (NDOT).

Historical Visitation Statistics: 1970-2023

A historical review of key Las Vegas tourism indicators from 1970 to present.

Las Vegas Visitor Profile Studies

Conducted since 1975, the LVCVA’s annual Las Vegas Visitor Profile reflects findings from a compilation of visitor surveys to illustrate evolving visitor characteristics and behaviors. In addition to the main visitor profile, the crosstab matrix offers a quick reference to compare key visitor characteristics of a variety of Las Vegas visitor market segments.

2022 Laughlin Visitor Profile Study

2023 mesquite visitor profile study, top air feeder markets to las vegas.

Top domestic and international origin markets of direct inbound air visitors arriving at Harry Reid International Airport based on data from the US Dept. of Transportation's Origination and Destination survey.

Las Vegas International Visitation Estimates

A multi-year look at international visitation estimates to Las Vegas by country.

Economic Impact of Southern Nevada's Tourism Industry – 2023

Covid-19 impact on the southern nevada tourism industry - june 2021, economic impact of the tourism industry and convention sector – april 2020 update, the industry's contribution to major public revenues - june 2019, the relative dependence on tourism of major u.s. economies - january 2019, the fiscal impact of so nv tourism: visitors tax contributions to education - november 2018, the lvcva return on investment analysis: activities and advertising - january 2018, the industry's contribution to transportation funding - september 2017, las vegas tourism construction bulletin.

Updated periodically throughout the year, Construction Bulletin summarizes current and proposed tourism and convention-related projects in Southern Nevada.

Clark County Room Inventory

A comprehensive list of all lodging properties in Clark County including the Las Vegas metro area, Primm, Laughlin, Mesquite and Boulder City, Nevada.

Clark County Hotel & Meeting Space Inventory

A comprehensive list of all lodging properties in Clark County including the Las Vegas metro area, Primm, Laughlin, Mesquite, and Boulder City, Nevada.

Clark County Population (Las Vegas Metro Area)

A historical look at the population of the Clark County, NV over the past 30+ years based on data from the Clark County Department of Comprehensive Planning.

Get quick answers to our most frequently asked research questions. From visitation figures and occupancy rates to revenue and visitor demographics, these answers put the fundamental data at your fingertips.

Additional Resources

Clark county comprehensive planning.

Clark County maintains authoritative information on data such as population, resident demographics, housing and land-use guides.

Harry Reid International Airport

Las Vegas’ primary airport collects information on airline passengers, average daily flights, air seats and other statistics regarding scheduled, charter and commuter air traffic at Clark County airports.

Nevada Gaming Control Board

This state agency collects and distributes gaming revenue information, making monthly, quarterly and annual reports available. It also issues booklets regarding gaming regulations, the U.S. gaming industry and the Nevada Gaming Control Act.

Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance (LVGEA)

This public-private partnership is focused on growing the economy in Southern Nevada through community development and business recruitment, retention and outreach.

Nevada Dept. of Employment, Training & Rehabilitation

This state agency distributes information on Nevada employment, such as labor force estimates, wage surveys, employment guides and more.

Nevada Department of Transportation

This state agency distributes information on traffic volume for all state and interstate highways throughout Nevada.

UNLV Center for Business & Economic Research (CBER)

CBER provides information that encompasses aspects of the business community, including private, commercial and residential development, public transportation and communication systems.

UNLV Center For Gaming Research

This resource maintains several valuable online resources, including a guide for media and entertainment professionals, an online thesis/dissertation group for graduate researchers, a reading room with topical articles on gaming issues, a message board and an extensive links page.

UNLV International Gaming Institute

Billed as the “global intellectual capital of gaming,” the IGI provides gaming research and programs to more than 50 jurisdictions across the globe.

Contact Our Research Team

Looking for additional data or resources? Get in touch with the LVCVA Research Center, and we can help provide you with reliable facts and insights to help gain a deeper understanding of Las Vegas tourism.

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The Recovery Left Nevada Behind. Can the State Change Its Luck?

Nevada has the highest unemployment rate in the country at 5.4 percent as officials insist the economy must move away from its focus on gambling.

Pedro Alvarez became one of tens of thousands of hospitality workers in Nevada to lose their jobs when the Las Vegas Strip shut down early in the coronavirus pandemic. Credit... Gabriella Angotti-Jones for The New York Times

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By Kurtis Lee

Reporting from Las Vegas

• Published Aug. 4, 2023 Updated Aug. 7, 2023

Pedro Alvarez never imagined his high school job delivering filet mignon and sautéed lobster tail to rooms at the Tropicana Las Vegas would turn into a longtime career.

But in a city that sells itself as a place to disappear into decadence, if for only a weekend, providing room service to tourists along the Strip proved to be a stable job, at times even a lucrative one, for more than 30 years.

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“Movie stars and thousands of dollars in tips,” Mr. Alvarez, 53, said. “If it was up to me, I was never going to leave.”

Yet when the Strip shut down for more than two months early in the coronavirus pandemic, Mr. Alvarez became one of tens of thousands of hospitality workers in Nevada to lose their jobs. After the hotel reopened, managers told him that they were discontinuing room service, at least for a while. Since then, he has bounced between jobs, working in concessions and banquets.

“It’s been an uphill climb to find full-time work,” he said.

Nevada is an outlier in the pandemic recovery. While the U.S. economy has bounced back and weathered a steep ratcheting-up of interest rates — and even as many Americans catch up on vacation travel that the coronavirus derailed — the Silver State has been left behind.

Job numbers nationwide have continued to increase every month for more than two years, but the unemployment rate has remained stubbornly high in Nevada, a political swing state whose economic outlook often has national implications.

The state has had the highest unemployment rate in the nation for the past year, currently at 5.4 percent, compared with the national rate of 3.5 percent; in Las Vegas, it’s around 6 percent.

Because of Nevada’s reliance on gambling, tourism and hospitality — a lack of economic diversity that worries elected officials amid fears of a nationwide recession — the state was exceptionally hard hit during the shutdowns on the Strip. Unemployment in the state reached 30 percent in April 2020.

And although the situation has improved drastically since then — over the past year, employment increased 4 percent, among the highest rates in the country — Nevada was in a deeper hole than other states.

“This leads to a bit of a paradox,” said David Schmidt, the chief economist for the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation. “We are seeing rapid job gains, but have unemployment that is higher than other states.”

Nearly a quarter of jobs in Nevada are in leisure and hospitality, and international travel to Las Vegas is down by about 40 percent since 2019, including drops in visits from China, where the economy is slowing , and the United Kingdom, according to an estimate from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

Union officials say there are about 20 percent fewer hospitality workers in the city than before the pandemic.

Gov. Joe Lombardo acknowledged the state’s high unemployment in a statement, saying that “many of our businesses and much of our work force are still recovering from the turmoil of the pandemic.”

“The long-term economic solution to Nevada’s employment and work force challenges begins with diversifying our economy, investing in work force development and training,” said Mr. Lombardo, a Republican, who unseated a Democrat last year in a tight race in which he attacked his opponent and President Biden over the economy.

The state is making progress toward those diversification goals, Mr. Lombardo said, citing Elon Musk’s announcement in January that Tesla would invest $3.6 billion in the company’s Gigafactory outside Reno to produce electric semi trucks and advanced battery cells, vowing to add 3,000 jobs.

Major League Baseball is preparing for the relocation of the Oakland Athletics to Las Vegas, where a stadium to be built adjacent to the Strip will, by some projections, create 14,000 construction jobs. The Las Vegas Grand Prix — signifying Formula 1 racing’s return to the city for the first time since the 1980s — is expected to draw huge crowds this fall, as is the Super Bowl in 2024.

Despite the state’s unemployment rate, the fact that the economy is trending in the right direction, both locally and nationally, bodes well for Mr. Biden’s chances in the state as the 2024 campaign begins, said Dan Lee, a professor of political science at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

“Should it remain on the right track,” Mr. Lee said, “that’s clearly good for the incumbent.”

But a potential complication lies ahead.

The Culinary Workers Union Local 226, which represents 60,000 hotel workers, has been in talks since April on a new contract to replace the five-year agreement that expired in June. The union could take a strike authorization vote this fall in an attempt to pressure major hotels, including MGM Resorts International, Caesars Entertainment and other casino companies, to give pay raises and bring back more full-time jobs.

More than a potential strike, the union, which estimates it has 10,000 members who remain out of work since the pandemic started, is a critical bloc of Mr. Biden’s Democratic base in Nevada. In 2020, Mr. Biden won the state by roughly two percentage points in part because of a huge ground operation by the culinary union. Those members could be difficult to organize should a shaky economic climate in the state persist.

“Companies cut workers during the pandemic, and now these same companies are making record profits but don’t want to bring back enough workers to do the work,” said Ted Pappageorge, the head of the local, which is affiliated with the union UNITE HERE. “Workload issues are impacting all departments.”

For Juanita Miles, landing a stable, full-time job has been challenging.

For much of the past decade, she worked as a security guard, patching together gigs at several hotels and restaurants. But when the pandemic hit and businesses closed, she realized she would need to pivot.

“I’m now looking anywhere, for anything,” Ms. Miles, 49, recalled.

In late 2020, she took a $19-an-hour job as a part-time dishwasher at the Wynn Las Vegas, Ms. Miles said, but the hotel soon reduced its staff and she lost her job. She returned, for a time, to working security at hotel pools, nightclubs and apartment complexes.

But Ms. Miles started to feel increasingly unsafe on the job during her night shifts, she said, recounting the time a man who appeared to be high on drugs followed her onto her bus home early one morning after a shift.

“I was no longer willing to risk my life,” Ms. Miles said inside an air-conditioned casino along the Strip where she had stopped for a respite from the 110-degree heat outside.

As slot machines clanged in the background and people packed around craps tables, Ms. Miles reflected on the job interview she had just come from at a nearby Walgreens.

She thought it had gone well, she said, and she hoped it would pan out. The $15-an-hour pay would help cover her $1,400 rent, as well as the other monthly bills — cellphone, $103; utilities, $200; groceries, $300 — that she splits with her husband, who works at a call center.

“Things are going to be tight no matter what,” Ms. Miles said, adding that if offered the job, she still hoped to eventually find something with higher pay.

Her dream, she said, is to open a day care center — a fulfilling job that would allow her to alleviate some of the pressure she knows rests on many parents.

For Mr. Alvarez, the longtime Tropicana employee, any hope of returning to the job he long enjoyed is increasingly fleeting. The hotel, which opened in 1957, is on track to be demolished to make space for the new Athletics baseball stadium.

“The city and the state seem to be on the rise,” he said. “But workers cannot be left behind.”

After he lost his job at the Tropicana, Mr. Alvarez started working at Allegiant Stadium when it opened to fans in fall 2020.

He helped set up platters of food in the stadium’s suites during football games, but the work, which was part time, ended when the season was over.

“I was putting together two and sometimes three jobs, just to make enough to live,” he said.

Several times during the pandemic, he said, he has feared he might lose his home in North Las Vegas, which he bought in 2008. (Eviction filings in the Las Vegas area in April were up 49 percent from before the pandemic, according to a report from The Eviction Lab at Princeton University .)

He filed for unemployment benefits and eventually found part-time work at the Park MGM as a doorman. On a recent morning, Mr. Alvarez put on his gray vest and tie and prepared to begin his midday shift there.

In June, the Vegas Golden Knights won the Stanley Cup finals at the T-Mobile Arena next door to the Park MGM. Witnessing the joy and celebration that swept through the hotel reminded him of why he had stayed in the industry.

“Helping people and bringing them joy is what this city is all about,” he said. “I just hope I can keep doing this work.”

Audio produced by Adrienne Hurst .

Kurtis Lee is an economics correspondent based in Los Angeles. Before joining The Times in 2022, he was a national correspondent for The Los Angeles Times, writing about gun violence, income inequality and race in America. More about Kurtis Lee

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How will Las Vegas tourism evolve in 2023? We asked an insider who knows.

Nevada casinos are raking in more money than ever .

And while the number of visitors landing in Las Vegas remains behind peak levels recorded pre-pandemic, that number is ticking upward .

Shows are back. Conventions are back. And as far as Las Vegas tourism authorities are concerned, the pandemic is a thing of the past . But the Las Vegas of today remains in transition between then and now — in the middle of a reinvention that aims to shift its reputation from a desert city of sin to a global center of sports .

The NHL, NFL and WNBA have already settled into town. F1 is on the way , and an MLB franchise may be poised to relocate there soon. All the while, the powers that be are trying to figure out a way to retrieve international travelers that have yet to fully return. And sports may be part of the solution.

To get a sense of where Las Vegas tourism stands heading into 2023, the RGJ connected with someone who would know: Steve Hill, CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, the government agency tasked with getting people to the glittering tourism mecca.

Here's what he had to say about everything from the lack of international travel from Asia, the state of conventions and the role of sports in the future of Las Vegas. This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

On possible challenges to the Las Vegas tourism industry in 2023 : There are some potential headwinds, but so far the headwinds are there and we are just flying through them, and they’re not bothering us a whole lot. The tourism and hospitality industry nationally has done well despite concerns about a recession and inflation and things like that. The other couple (challenges) are the full recovery of international travel, particularly from Asia. And the war in Eastern Europe is generally a global concern — and those kinds of concerns aren’t helpful. All of those things reaching a conclusion, which will happen at some point, provides more opportunity going forward.

On getting back to pre-pandemic visitor numbers : Vegas recovered back to a very healthy situation really quickly. From a visitation and occupancy standpoint, it’s not quite what it was in 2019 , but it’s within 10 percent. After that, it becomes an incremental process. If you do the math on this right now, most of that is the lack of international visitation — largely from Asia. We’ve recovered now maybe about 80 percent of our international visitation. A lot of those international visitors are also our meeting and trade show visitors. They play a big role in filling rooms midweek. We’re roughly full on weekends . We still have some work to do in the midweeks.

On the state of tourism and conventions after COVID-19 : We’re so far past COVID as a concern. It’s really not affecting much of anything in Las Vegas at this point. The first citywide show we had was World of Concrete in June of 2021, so it’s been 20 months since that show took place. Over that period of time, everything has gone back to normal. Individual shows are probably on average about 80 or 85 percent of what they were from a size standpoint. People have gotten more comfortable with Zoom and Teams calls, but I think it has more to do with companies realizing, "Hey, we can save a little money" after having been through a pandemic. What CEOs of companies around the country whose companies participate in these trade shows are telling us is, "Yes, we think we’re going to be at 85 or 90 percent of the size they used to be." That is turning out to be what we’re seeing.

On sports becoming the center of the Las Vegas experience : Sports is going to be at the center, along with the other great things that Las Vegas has to offer, going forward. We are going to be a center of the sports world. Vegas has drawn a lot of attention from some pretty interesting teams and leagues and events because of the success of the Golden Knights and the Raiders and the Aces and UFC. They have shown what the combination of sports and Las Vegas makes possible. It makes selling Las Vegas and sports a very easy thing.

On the evolution of the identity of Las Vegas : We talk a lot in Vegas about Las Vegas reinventing itself. And I think we’ve gotten to the point where we are just adding great things and not necessarily jettisoning the great culinary scene or the great shopping or gaming or all the things that Vegas has become known for. But sports has really expanded the brand.

On sports changing the reputation of Las Vegas : I hear this internationally when I travel about the old, stereotypical view of Las Vegas — that the further away you get, the more likely that stereotypical view of Las Vegas is going to be held. Sports — Formula 1 and the NFL in particular, because they are such global sports at this point — have started to really change how our international visitors view Las Vegas. And domestically, it’s just one really big, great thing to add to what Las Vegas has been. There is no city that is built in a better way for sports. The game in Philadelphia or Miami or Indianapolis can be a great game, but the experience around the game is so much different than it is in any other place in the world. Everything is walkable, you can have a great meal, you can go to a show, you can do anything you want around the game, where in most places you’re in traffic both before and after the game. And that has been a tremendous draw for the city.

Las Vegas May 2024: Visitor Traffic Up 4.6% YoY; Convention Traffic Up 2%

From the Las Vegas Visitor Authority: May 2024 Las Vegas Visitor Statistics

With festivals such as EDC, coupled with convention attendance ahead of last year, May saw the destination host more than 3.6M visitors, showing a healthy 4.6% YoY gain for the month. Among the churn of rotational shows, Waste Expo returned to Las Vegas in May (14k attendees, last here in May 2022), and the destination hosted the Advanced Clean Transportation (ACT) Expo for the first time (10k+ attendees). Overall hotel occupancy reached 86.1% (up 1.7 pts), as Weekend occupancy reached 93.4% (up 0.2 pts) and Midweek occupancy reaching 82.5% (up 1.7 pts). ADR exceeded $200 with RevPAR over $172, showing YoY increases of 9.1% and 11.3%, respectively. emphasis added

The first graph shows visitor traffic for 2019 (Black), 2020 (dark blue), 2021 (light blue), 2022 (light orange), 2023 (dark orange) and 2024 (red).

Visitor traffic was up 4.6% compared to last May.  Visitor traffic was down 0.9% compared to the same month in 2019.

Year-to-date visitor traffic is up 0.4% compared to 2019.

The second graph shows convention traffic.

Year-to-date convention traffic is down 8.7% compared to 2019.

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Fewer tourists and less spending in Las Vegas as inflation takes its toll

Americans are keeping their wallets closed as fear of a recession remains — even in las vegas.

Economic landscape is 'shifting from inflation risk to recession risk': Saira Malik

Nuveen CIO Saira Malik discusses Nuveen's 2023 Playbook, if a recession is inevitable, and provides tips and an outlook on stocks, on 'Barron's Roundtable.'

Inflation is taking its toll on Sin City as fewer tourists are visiting the gambling Mecca, and those who do spend less than usual, according to a new report.

The University of Las Vegas business school released a report forecasting the city's economic outlook between 2022 and 2024 and noted that its economy turned grim in June of this year, according to Fox 5. 

"Interest rates have gone up. And we know that we know that prices are going up as well. And that’s what the Fed is trying to get their hands around and solve. So it may be that the Fed’s policies is having an effect not only nationally, but it’s also affecting our economy locally," one of the study's authors, Professor Stephen Miller, told the outlet.

Miller's findings indicate that Las Vegas has had fewer and fewer visitors since this summer when adjusted for holiday travel surges.

ECONOMIC INDEX FLASHES MAJOR RECESSION WARNING SIGN

A stock photo of the world famous Las Vegas city skyline.

Inflation increased by 8.3% since August 2017. (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics / Fox News)

INFLATION FIGHT COULD LAST UNTIL 2024, FED OFFICIAL WARNS

While the rise of inflation has cooled somewhat since late summer, the issue remains top-of-mind for most Americans.

The Federal Reserve has adjusted interest rates in an attempt to bring down inflation, but some members have criticized President Biden's efforts to address the issue.

Austan Goolsbee, the new president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, criticized Biden's calls to limit the price of gas, arguing a windfall tax on oil companies would only exacerbate the problem.

President Joe Biden speaks about the Paycheck Protection Program during an event in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus, Monday, Feb. 22, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) (AP Photo/Evan Vucci / AP Newsroom)

Biden, though, has been a vocal supporter of a windfall tax on oil companies, which he has blamed for higher gas prices in the wake of the Ukraine war. He has also asked Congress to suspend the federal gas tax .

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"They — they have the opportunity to do that — lowering prices for consumers at the pump," Biden remarked during a speech on Oct. 31. "You know, if they don’t, they’re going to pay a higher tax on their excess profits and face other restrictions." 

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• >> Business
• >> Housing

Welcome to Las Vegas’ housing crisis in 2024

Industry experts, analysts, stakeholders and even the government agree that the Las Vegas Valley is mired in a serious problem.

There is no way around it, the Las Vegas Valley has a big problem, said the leader of the Nevada Housing Coalition.

“Straight answer is we have a housing crisis in every sense of the imagination,” said Maurice Page, executive director for the coalition.

Nevada is short more than 78,000 affordable rental units for extremely low income renters, according to estimates from the National Low Income Housing Coalition. Plus, the valley is landlocked with 88 percent of Clark County alone controlled by the federal government.

Steve Aichroth, administrator for the Nevada Housing Division, agrees the valley is in a housing crisis. He said the state department is working to incentivize the private sector to build more affordable units and has administered $1 billion in housing assistance since the pandemic, including rental assistance, homeowner assistance, eviction diversion and housing development.

The shortage of housing has hit the desks of various politicians and looks to be a prime issue in the November election. Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nevada, sent a letter dated June 13 to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development expressing her concern over the impact corporate investors are having on the housing market.

“At a time when hardworking Nevada families are facing high prices and low supply when looking for a place to call home, predatory practices by corporate landlords exacerbate existing barriers,” the letter states.

A Las Vegas Review-Journal investigation, done in conjunction with research data from Shawn McCoy, director of the Lied Center for Real Estate and an associate professor at UNLV, found investors could own more than 15 percent of all of the valley’s residential housing stock.

Several stakeholders, analysts and government officials who spoke to the Las Vegas Review-Journal all agreed the valley is in a “housing crisis” and serious action needs to be taken. According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, someone making minimum wage in the state of Nevada would have to work 82 hours a week, essentially double a regular working week to be able to afford a one-bedroom apartment at fair market rate.

Purchasing power of California residents

Page said one of the biggest problems is Nevada’s proximity to the mighty purchasing power of California residents who have been inflating the valley’s real estate prices and squeezing renters for decades.

The median sale price for a Los Angeles home, according to Redfin, is $1.05 million. The average wage in the state is $73,220, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The median sale price for a home in the valley is $440,000 and the average wage is $55,490, Redfin said.

“In my estimation we needed to start looking at this issue as far back as 2011 or 2012 after the recession, because what we saw were individuals and investors starting to come to Nevada to buy up homes,” Page said.

Page said the pandemic put the local housing crisis into overdrive as remote workers flooded into the valley, and now the shortage of real estate and affordable homes and rentals are pinching all aspects of residential real estate.

Clark County has also thrown hundreds of millions of dollars at the problem through various funds including its Welcome Home Program and Community Housing Fund. But Aichroth did concede that is seems simply trying to spend our way out of the problem isn’t necessarily working.  

“So yes, government is part of the problem, but is government part of the solution? Yes. We occupy that space, we like to think that we are on the solution side of creating the opportunities to provide these homes, and I think we are in a different place than where we were heading into the Great Recession,” he said. “There was a lot of freewheeling and so the government clamped down and that’s to prevent something like that happening a second or third time, so there needs to be regulation in the private market to do this.”

Government in the way?

The Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act, which was passed in 1998, has come under increased scrutiny as of late as many say hundreds of thousands of acres within the valley are prime for development but are not being put up for auction by the Bureau of Land Management in a timely manner.

Theresa Coleman, the district manager for the Southern Nevada District Office, said in an email response to the Review-Journal that the BLM works closely with local governments and that parcels that are made available are determined through a joint selection process.

The interested party must ask the local government where the land is located to approve the land being sold. If the local jurisdiction agrees, it submits a nomination to sell the land to the BLM. BLM then moves the land to be sold at an upcoming auction.

Approximately 27,000 acres (which is approximately the size of Summerlin) remains available for “disposal” by the BLM.

Bob Cleveland, chief executive officer for Rebuilding Together Southern Nevada, which helps low income people with home repairs, said unlocking land for development is a good step, but it’s more complicated that the government simply getting out of the way of the private sector and letting capitalism take its course. In fact, he said that could make things worse given the current market and overall economy means price points are incredibly high for developers.

“Long term, yes, short term I don’t think it matters,” he said when asked if the government releasing more land for residential development will help the valley’s housing crisis.

“There is a lot of land that has already been released. The housing crisis comes because there is no affordable housing and you talk about people coming here from California, they’re selling their three bedroom house for a million bucks, and coming here and buying a 2,500-square-foot house for $600,000 and it’s just driving the prices up and that is going to continue and there’s nothing we can do about that. Just because you release BLM land that just gives developers more room to build and they’re not going to build affordable housing.”

Contact Patrick Blennerhassett at [email protected].

UNLV’s Center for Business and Economic Research’s report nearly 30 years ago had some spot-on projections for 2024.

The hotel near the Las Vegas Strip is up for sale a little over a year after it reopened under a new name.

Clark County population projections from UNLV for 2024 are out, and the forecast has ticked up slightly in terms of growth.

The house has a 13-foot doorway that allows the owner to drive cars and park them in the living room.

Redfin says rents are on an upward trend in Las Vegas, while the National Association of Realtors says home prices hit a new record high in May.

North Las Vegas was once known as a bootlegging settlement and Reno as a “cow county,” so how have both cities changed their image and economic reputation over time?

From World War II to a master-planned community, this particular piece of east Henderson real estate has an interesting backstory.

Jerry Lewis bought the Scotch 80s home in 1982 as his primary residence until his death in August 2017.

The small city to the northeast of the Las Vegas Valley is the fastest growing city in the state, according to the latest Census data.

The City of Henderson approved a motion to ask the U.S. government to auction off key chunks of land in one of the fastest-growing areas of the Las Vegas Valley.

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20 Las Vegas Restaurant and Bar Closures to Know About — June 2024

A running list of restaurant and bar closures in Las Vegas and Henderson

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The first few months of 2024 have brought a slew of closures to restaurants and bars in Las Vegas and Henderson. While the Las Vegas Valley continues to see frequent openings, other businesses have closed or scheduled their final days of service. Check back as this list is updated regularly.

See something missing? Hit up the tipline .

Sundry Food Hall

Nearly a year to the day after opening at Uncommons in southwest Las Vegas, the Sundry food hall has closed shop. The 20,000-square-foot food hall saw a lot of turnover in its short existence, rotating more than a dozen different restaurants through the space. At the time of closing, the lineup in the food hall included only: Center Bar, Messina, Easy Sliders, Mabel’s, Calle, and Deo. It’s the first food hall in Vegas to call it quits. Its last day was June 22.

Chef Julian Serrano has announced his upcoming retirement, stepping away from Lago and closing the storied Picasso restaurant this summer. Picasso was the first Las Vegas restaurant to receive a James Beard Award nomination for Best New Restaurant and one of only two restaurants in the city to receive two Michelin stars. The restaurant inside the Bellagio became one of the first landmark restaurants on the Strip, often credited with raising the city’s dining profile to what it is today. Picasso will close in August.

Holsteins, a burger joint in the Cosmopolitan known for its over-the-top burgers and shakes, is closing this summer. Employees of the restaurant were notified of the closure on May 10 and are being encouraged to re-apply to the hospitality group’s next restaurant, which is currently in development. Holsteins opened in 2010 and had become a favorite on the Strip over the years. Its last day of business will be July 9 .

The Mirage Casino is closing permanently — with plans to reopen in three years as a nearly 700-foot-tall guitar-shaped hotel. The Mirage closure means the end of the Cirque du Soleil Beatles-themed show, Love, and the resort’s volcano fountain — which was one of the first attractions on the Las Vegas Strip. It also means final service for the resort’s restaurants: Heritage Steakhouse, Osteria Costa, Otoro, Diablo’s Cantina, Pantry, Paradise Cafe, California Pizza Kitchen, and the Still. The Mirage will close on July 17 .

Kitchen Table

When Kitchen Table opened in Henderson in 2015, it quickly became popular for its Nutella s’mores French toast, Benedicts topped with pork belly, and crispy chilaquiles with scrambled eggs and Oaxacan cheese. After nearly a decade of serving brunch, the restaurant closed for good on Monday, May 28 .

Chinglish Cantonese Wine Bar and Kosher Chinglish

A pair of family-owned Chinese restaurants abruptly closed in the Boca Park shopping center. Kosher Chinglish opened in October of 2020 and Chinglish Cantonese Wine Bar debuted soon after. The fully kosher counterpart prepared meals like Poh Poh’s chicken dumplings and hot and sour soup while the wine bar paired a collection of some 40 wines with lettuce wraps of minced duck and shiitake mushrooms and Beijing duck with crispy skin. The two restaurants’s last night of service was June 10 .

The Latin American restaurant with a psychedelic Palm Springs flair closed abruptly, surprising both staff and fans. The restaurant at Fergusons Downtown was owned by Corner Bar Management, the group that owns bars and restaurants like Park on Fremont, Lucky Day, and the Laundry Room. Sitting right on Fremont Street, the restaurant served dinner with dishes like grilled octopus and sirloin steak, and a brunch of chilaquiles and challah French toast. It closed on April 29 .

The restaurant's three locations closed within months of each other between February and May. The owners posted on Instagram in March, saying that they opted not to renew their leases at Boca Park, the District, and on Blue Diamond. In addition to serving lunch and dinner, the restaurant also often hosted live music.

Shalom Ya’ll

The Israeli restaurant opened along with the Proper Eats Food Hall inside the Aria in December 2022. The quick-service eatery served cauliflower shawarma and fluffy pita. The restaurant has closed and is set to be replaced with Parm this spring. It closed on April 14 .

Lost Spirits Distillery and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

One of Las Vegas’s most fantastically weird attractions closes at the end of April. The Lost Spirits Distillery is equal parts functioning rum distillery, walk-through attraction, and circus show. While meandering through Lost Spirit’s winding pathways, visitors will come across stations for rum tastings or aerialists suspended from the rafters, spinning mind-bendingly quickly.

The 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea restaurant inside is one of the more bizarre dining experiences in Las Vegas. Helmed by chef Taylor Persh, each dinner is available only to 16 people, seated around a communal wooden table illuminated by candles. Grilled octopus is skewered on a small fencing sword, more or less encouraging diners to play with their food. Uni is served in the raised mouth cast on a ceramic plate (yes, you might kiss your dishware). And chef Persh takes to a podium to hand-slice a pig’s head. Lost Spirits closes on April 29.

The Tropicana

The Tropicana has put locks on the door for the first time in 67 years. The Las Vegas Strip casino is closed — the space will eventually be turned into a baseball stadium. It closed up with its handful of restaurants and bars, including the higher-end Oakville Tuscan Grill , the quick-service Red Lotus Asian Kitchen , the Trago Lounge cocktail bar, a coffee shop, and a small bar for frozen daiquiri drinks called Chill’m . Most notably, celebrity chef Robert Irvine’s sleepy Public House restaurant also shuttered. It closed on April 2.

Jason James Pizza Bistro

A pizza restaurant known for its crispy thin-crust pizzas has closed. Located in the Southwest, near Rhodes Ranch, the casual restaurant also served pasta, sandwiches, salad, and a really good prime rib dip. It closed in March .

Nightmare Cafe

The horror-themed bar and restaurant that served cocktails in skull-shaped glasses, hosted Haunted Brunch events, and featured walls covered in homages to slasher films, has called it quits. Nightmare Cafe, which opened in the Las Vegas Arts District in October of 2022, hosted a send-off on Saturday, March 27 .

Trevi Italian Restaurant

Anyone who has ever stepped foot in the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace should be familiar with the Trevi Italian Restaurant. It was not acclaimed for its pasta nor for its gelato — but made popular by its central location and ancient Roman theming. The restaurant’s tables were strewn across the mall’s faux cobblestone walkway, surrounded by the fallen column ruins that double as benches, beneath the mall’s painted sky, and in the shadow of the Fountain of the Gods. On Monday, March 25 , it abruptly closed.

Margaritaville

After more than 20 years on the Las Vegas Strip, the Margaritaville restaurant is closing. The restaurant inspired by the late Jimmy Buffett’s song opened in Las Vegas 2003 and the three-level restaurant with six bars hosts live music, serves those 45-ounce cocktails that tourists love to haul around, and serves burgers and expected bar food. Margaritaville will close on April 15.

Astronomy Aleworks

On March 9, the Astronomy Aleworks brewery in Henderson will close its doors for the last time. “We ran out of money,” Astronomy Aleworks founder and brewer Matt Brady told Eater Vegas. Brady opened the family-owned taproom in October 2017 in Hederson’s Booze District. It will continue hosting trivia nights through its last day on March 9.

This bar inside the Flamingo used to be part of Margaritaville, before becoming a casual bar. At one time, it had the cheapest craps tables on the Strip. It closed abruptly in January .

Graze Kitchen

Graze Kitchen, a casual restaurant that served vegan food closed in late February. The restaurant, from the owners of Firefly Tapas Kitchen & Bar, was located at 7355 South Buffalo Drive. It served appetizers, chips and dips, soup and chili, Firecracker Cauliflower, and vegan sandwiches and salads. Its last day was February 29.

Bad Beat Brewing

Bad Beat Brewing, which had been at 7380 Eastgate Road in Henderson’s Booze District since 2014, has closed its Henderson location — but is already working on reopening in a new space at 142 South Main Street in the Las Vegas Arts District. It has brews like the Little Death salted watermelon gose, a Hoppy Times IPA, and the Bluffing Isn’t Weisse German hefeweizen. Its Henderson brewery closed on February 18.

Trustworthy Brewing Co.

Trustworthy Brewing Co. opened in the Grand Canal Shoppes at the Palazzo in 2019 as the only functioning brewery on the Strip. It had a 60-seat bar, a beer garden, and, overall, room for 430 people. It closed in early February.

See the full listing of 2023 restaurant closures here.

Stack Restaurant and Bar

The restaurant at the Mirage known for serving steak, seafood, and typical American fare closed its doors without fanfare. The restaurant had interesting dimensional wood paneling on the walls and ceiling and served dishes like loaded mac and cheese and mini lamb gyros.

Paymon’s Fresh Kitchen & Lounge

Paymon’s closed its spin-off locations Paymon’s Fresh Kitchen & Lounge, and Paymon’s Fresh Express at 8955 S. Eastern Avenue. The Vegas restaurant that has been serving Mediterranean food for more than 35 years is still open at its 8380 West Sahara Avenue location.

Paymon's Fresh Kitchen and Lounge - Sahara

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FOX5 talked with a few people in line waiting to check in last night. Some say they were waiting for three hours. This issue also happened a few weeks ago.

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Just past 10 p.m. last night, an executive with MGM told FOX5 all systems were running normally at that moment.

Officials call the holdup a “brief internal issue.”

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