Tourists in Las Vegas are getting younger, indicating a positive trajectory for Southern Nevada.
In recent times, the standard traveler heading to Las Vegas has become younger, with the city's Strip, downtown, and Southern Nevada regions successfully attracting more millennials and 30-somethings.
Recently, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) disclosed the 2022 Las Vegas Visitor Profile. This data was collected by Heart+Mind Strategies, a research and consultancy firm based in Virginia.
The Visitor Profile revealed that the typical age of all tourists who visited Las Vegas last year was 40.7 years old. This figure is a decrease from the average age of 43.2 in 2021 and 46.2 years old in 2019. There was no Visitor Profile for the pandemic-impacted 2020.
Visitors aged 21 to 39 accounted for more than half (53%) of the total tourist volume in 2022. This represents a 7% year-on-year increase and is 16% higher than in pre-pandemic 2019.
From 2017 through 2019, tourists in Las Vegas were getting older. The average age rose from 44.3 to 46.2 before a reversal to a younger age. The 30-39 age group accounted for the most visitors last year, representing 30% of all tourists.
Approximately 38.83 million people traveled to Las Vegas last year, with conventions accounting for around 4.9 million people. In 2019, the total visitor volume was 42.5 million guests and 6.3 million conventioneers.
Positive Shift
The LVCVA, the organization responsible for promoting Las Vegas as a tourism and business destination, noted that the 2022 Visitor Profile showed many positive signs. Alongside the influx of younger visitors, the marketing agency claimed that visitor satisfaction rates are steadily improving.
The Visitor Profile concluded that 77% of visitors were "very satisfied." Although this is a 7% year-over-year increase, it remains below the 94% satisfaction rate reported in 2019.
In 2022, Las Vegas showed a strong comeback from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic while still bringing in new visitors. As the pandemic gradually subsided over the course of the year, the 2022 data demonstrated that tourist planning horizons, activities, spend, and satisfaction evolved from the COVID era," the LVCVAβs executive summary of the 2022 Las Vegas Visitor Profile concluded.
Hotel complaints made up the most common grievances, with 16% of those who said they werenβt completely satisfied with their trip citing their overnight accommodations. High costs were the second most frequent issue at 14%, and the trip being too short, although not directly Las Vegas's fault, was next, cited at 10%.
Other frequent complaints included Las Vegas being "dirty/deteriorating" (9%), gambling complaints (8%), hot weather (6%), and being too crowded (5%).
Gaming Rebound Without Increased Visitors
Despite welcoming fewer visitors in 2022 compared to 2019, casinos earned more money than ever before. Gross gaming revenue in Clark County totaled almost $12.8 billion β a 12% year-over-year growth and a record for Southern Nevada.
Strip casinos accounted for about $8.3 billion of the record earnings β an 18% increase from 2021.
The 2022 Las Vegas Visitor Profile found that the average visitor planned to spend around $761 on gambling β a significant increase from pre-pandemic figures when the average guest was prepared to lose less than $600.
Gamblers were less likely to spread their gaming money throughout the city, as guests gambled at an average of 2.2 casinos during their stay β down an entire casino from 2021.
