When the Covid-19 pandemic forced an unprecedented shutdown of Nevada’s gaming industry in early 2020, many were unsure when revenue and visitation figures would return to normal, if ever. However, new data from the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) is indicating that the Silver State is likely to post record numbers again in 2022.
On September 29, the NGCB said that the state brought in $1.2 billion in gaming revenues in August, which is a 3.5 percent increase from the same month last year. Overall, statewide totals for the year are nearly 14 percent higher than this point in 2021, meaning that a new record appears to be on the horizon.
As expected, the Las Vegas Strip is leading the way—so far in 2022, Strip casinos are nearly 25 percent ahead of last year’s pace, having tallied $659.7 million in August alone.
Michael Lawton, senior economic analyst for the NGCB, told the Nevada Independent that the strong calendar of events and conferences “continues to impress me along with no sign of a downturn in visitation in the near future. I do believe we may see year-over-year (monthly) decreases, but in terms of the level of gaming win we are witnessing, I feel it is sustainable, especially on the Las Vegas Strip.”
As for last month’s figures, Lawton added that “the event calendar for September is off the charts and I believe (that) will translate into another impressive month for gaming win.”
Even though Southern Nevada accounts for the vast majority of the state’s success, Northern Nevada also has posted a 1 percent increase in revenue thus far in 2022, and that figure is expected to increase through the rest of the year now that Legends Bay Casino in Sparks is up and running. Legends Bay represents the first new construction casino to open in Northern Nevada in over 15 years.
As far as sports betting is concerned, revenue for August was just over $16 million, which is an increase of 12 percent from August 2021. Overall handle was slightly down, but that will surely increase in the coming months thanks to the MLB playoffs as well as the NFL, NBA and college football regular seasons. Interestingly, mobile wagers accounted for over 70 percent of total bets placed.
Visitation rates, according to the LVCVA, are still down from pre-Covid averages, but have continued to climb steadily since 2020. Through August, Las Vegas visitation figures are up a whopping 27.7 compared to the same period last year. Weekend hotel occupancy has now reached 90 percent or higher for six straight months.
Convention attendance, although still significantly less than 2019 totals, was over 20 percent higher in August than that of August 2021.
The only decline came from Harry Reid International Airport, which saw a total of 4.64 million passengers in August, down from 4.86 million in July and 4.68 million in June, both of which were record numbers. Overall, passenger volume is up 41.4 percent year-over-year thus far.
