Strip gaming, Vegas airport site visitors fall sharply in January; commerce exhibits decide up slack

Thanks to expertise aficionados and gun lovers, January wasn’t a whole catastrophe for the Strip’s resort trade.

Gaming income declined 11 p.c on the Strip throughout the month, pushed by gamers lucking out at baccarat, whereas general passenger quantity at Harry Reid International Airport fell 8 p.c, the vacation spot’s twelfth straight month-to-month decline. 

However, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority on Friday afternoon reported customer quantity displaying only a 2 p.c drop in January, primarily resulting from Las Vegas internet hosting the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and the SHOT Show (Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade). The conferences mixed for some 200,000 conference attendees. 

With general conference enterprise reaching greater than 672,100 prospects, an almost 7 p.c enhance from a yr in the past, the Strip’s common day by day room charges and income per accessible room — a key metric used to gauge profitability — have been on the optimistic aspect for the primary time in eight months.  

During an look in entrance of the Nevada Gaming Commission final November, MGM Resorts International CEO Bill Hornbuckle touted his firm’s “massive convention calendar.” MGM operates 10 Strip properties. 

“Over the next 16 months, there’s more convention business on the books for Las Vegas in our hotels than the city has ever seen before,” Hornbuckle stated.

Still, Truist Securities gaming analyst Barry Jonas was extra cautious.

“Despite these improvements, we still think most operators are not expecting [first quarter cash flow],” Jonas stated, including that he tasks higher outcomes from the three months between April and June.

The Gaming Control Board stated the Strip’s gaming income decreased to $747.6 million, which was down from 2025 however nonetheless exceeded all Januaries from 2020 by means of 2024.

Analysts cited luck on the gaming tables by prospects as the first cause for the Strip’s income drop, regardless of casinos experiencing general wagering will increase in each class.

More than $5.1 billion was wager on slot machines, however income of $436 million was a lower than 3 p.c enhance. However, $1.4 billion was wager on non-baccarat desk video games, whereas income of $193.1 million was a 4 p.c decline. Baccarat wagering of $910.9 million led to on line casino income of $118.5 million, a 44.7 p.c decline from 2025.

J.P. Morgan gaming analyst Daniel Politzer instructed buyers in a analysis be aware that wagering quantity “was solid on the Strip,” however casinos with baccarat “faced a very tough comparison,” provided that casinos held 26.7 p.c of all wagers final January and noticed only a 13 p.c maintain in January 2026.

Every market in Southern Nevada, besides North Las Vegas and Mesquite, noticed gaming income declines in January, however none as steep because the Strip.

Total Nevada gaming income fell 6.5 p.c to $1.34 billion. Northern Nevada on line casino markets, together with Washoe County as an entire, Reno, Sparks and South Lake Tahoe, all reported gaming income will increase in January.

Reid Airport’s January passenger rely of simply over 4 million passengers was the ability’s lowest single-month determine since February 2025. The main Canadian airways proceed to expertise declines in passenger quantity after double-digit drops in 2025 resulting from boycotts of U.S. journey by Canadians.

In January, WestJet noticed a 28 p.c decline in passengers and Air Canada was down 34 p.c.

International passenger quantity fell 19 p.c in January, the fifth straight month of double-digit declines. Clark County Department of Aviation not too long ago introduced new one-stop flights between Las Vegas and Paris and Las Vegas and Sydney, Australia, in an effort to spice up worldwide journey.

The March tourism figures are anticipated to see a elevate from the four-day CONEXPO-CON/AGG development commerce present that begins Wednesday on the Las Vegas Convention Center and is predicted to attract greater than 100,000 attendees.