In the summer of 2023 it seemed clear that something had changed in Las Vegas. The data They corroborated it: the “city of sin” had fewer clients than in 2019, but in return Much more money squeezing your visitors as never before. Since then until now, drifting towards exorbitant prices for anything has done nothing but grow. The problem is that he has done it at the same pace that lost the most important thing: the tourists who supported her.
Neons cemetery. I told the weekend in A report The New York Times. A few steps from the strip, in a plot where old marques rest, the condensed history of Las Vegas can be read: pink feathers of the Flamingo, the red martini of the Red Barn, or the dancing shirt of a dye frequented by Liberace.
This Neon Museum Remember that the city has managed to reinvent itself again and again, from that to the game, of gastronomy to the sports show. However, the present does not distill so many “vibes” as turbulence. The imitation elvis, almost empty coffees and European tourists who are surprised to pay one hundred dollars for a breakfast They feed the feeling that the world capital of excess goes through a stage of uncertainty.
A descent as a warning of something worse. Recent figures from the Convention and Visitors Authority talk about a 11% setback In the volume of visitors in a single year. What happens in Las Vegas resonates beyond: experts like Andrew Woods They warn that the city works as an advanced barometer of the US economy.
In other words, if the Vegas cools, the country could be at the gates of a broader brake. The fall is perceived In details: nightclubs without queues, gondolas sailing empty in artificial channels and half -filled card tables.
The Canadian facor. One of the most sensitive blows comes from the north. Canada, which contributes 1.4 million visitors a year, has reduced In almost 20% His trips, dragged by commercial and diplomatic tension with the Trump administration.
He Canadian boycott Threat to subtract hundreds of thousands of tourists from the final numbers of 2025. For a city where the international clientele represents the oxygen of hotels, restaurants and shows, that absence translates into less busy rooms and revenues that evaporate.
Price bubble. The other great wound is in The traveler’s pocket. Room prices have gone from an average of $ 120 in 2019 to more than 160 this year, with peaks of more than 1,000 in luxury hotels, to which are added resort rates of 50 dollars daily and tickets to shows that exceed 300.
After The “Revenge Travel” From postpania, the industry got used to it To collect expensive. Now, in a context of uncertainty, that strategy is perceived as greed and dissuades the average visitor. The buffets of 29 dollars gave way to banquets of 90, and even a simple bottle of water or a parking lot have become Symbols of increation.
The crossroads of identity. The city had always maintained a balance between luxury and accessibility. But today the balance leans towards the exclusiveleaving behind that tourist who once found in Vegas an affordable destination. The risk is clear: lose the essence of “theme park for all” and become An unsustainable bubble.
Voices such as Guy Martin, veteran contractor, defend that prices respond to mathematics and not to greed, remembering that structures Like Sphere or the Allegiant Stadium cost more than 2,000 million each. Others, as Caesars executives, admit that the industry “went from enthusiasm” after the pandemic.
Global comparative. The Las Vegas dilemma is not unique. Macao, who in the last two decades displaced Las Vegas as the world’s world capital in terms of income, A collapse in 2014 When Beijing imposed restrictions on capitals from the Chinese continent. The city then turned to diversify with family tourism, conventions and shows, and although it recovered muscle after the pandemic, the dependence of the visitor of high purchasing power remains an Achilles heel.
Dubaifor his part, he opted for a radically different model: Instead of lowering, it has consolidated a premium destination with massive infrastructure and a global luxury story. But even there, price inflation and event saturation generate similar tensions. Both examples show that raising indiscriminate prices can turn the destination exclusive, but also fragile and vulnerable to geopolitical or economic changes.
Persistence, nostalgia and uncertainty. Despite the storm, andn the Times remembered That there are faithful visitors who are still considering the city of their ritual refuge, such as Mary Reyes and her husband, who have returned twice a year for decades and barely notice the difference.
He neons museum It symbolizes that duality: the city of a thousand reinventions that never ends, but that today hesitated before him Dilemma of your future. Will you be able to recover the vibrant and affordable destination image, or will it become a prohibitive enclave for majorities? The outcome will mark whether the Las Vegas brightness continues to dazzle the world, or if the bullshit signs of the museum cease to be a relic to become an omen of so many other cities with the same bet.
Image | PxhereStefan Wagener
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