On October 8, Southern Nevada tourism officials welcomed news from Washington that restrictions for vaccinated international travelers will end November 8. The policy change was initially announced in September, but without a firm date, reported the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
“The U.S.’ new travel policy that requires vaccination for foreign national travelers to the United States will begin on Nov 8. This announcement and date applies to both international air travel and land travel,” Kevin Munoz, White House assistant press secretary, said on Twitter.
Billy Vassiliadis, principal of Las Vegas-based R&R Partners, advertising consultant for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA), was upbeat about the news.
“As long as we get the (airline) carriers back, we’re going to see the same sort of rush to return that we saw domestically when we reopened and when the restrictions were lifted,” he said. “I think demand is clearly there. I know our Mexican flights have been doing well all along and I know our Canadian partners have been shopping it big to get it back.”
Steve Hill, head of the LVCVA, also welcomed the news. “Today marks an important turning point in the recovery of international visitation essential to Las Vegas’ tourism industry,” Hill said. “This milestone is also significant and welcome news for many of our major trade shows and conventions that draw exhibitors and attendees from around the world.”
Convention attendance has suffered this season due to the lack of international participants. This month’s Global Gaming Expo was a prime example, drawing fewer than half the usual 27,000 attendees.
In other good news, according to CDC Gaming Reports, Wall Street expects a stronger 2022 for Las Vegas. Morgan Stanley told investors the first two months of third-quarter gaming data in Nevada was “remarkably strong for Las Vegas, with Strip volumes up 26 percent versus 2019 and Las Vegas locals up 12 percent. Our channel checks suggest activity levels for September were not as strong as July/August, but still above 2019 levels, which translates to the third quarter running ahead of our prior forecasts.”
The note from Equity Analyst Thomas Allen added, “The reopening of U.S. borders to international customers on November 8 (will) have an incremental benefit.”
