Las Vegas Strip Reports Strong Bookings Despite Higher Prices Turning Some Away

Posted on: March 17, 2025, 02:15h. 

Last updated on: March 17, 2025, 02:58h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More

Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

• Las Vegas Strip room bookings remain strong
• Some Vegas travelers, however, are more than annoyed about ever-increasing fees and costs
• MGM and Caesars says its first quarter was good and the spring remains solid

The Las Vegas Strip is more expensive than ever, and while that’s presumably keeping some guests away or taking them downtown or to the suburbs for their Southern Nevada excursions, marquee properties on S. Las Vegas Blvd. say their near-term bookings outlook remains rosy.

Barry Jonas of Truist Securities, which provides equity research on the gaming industry, wrote recently that check-ins with Strip resorts revealed that there’s plenty of appetite for Las Vegas in April and ahead. The first quarter of the year was also strong despite a tough February comparable since Las Vegas hosted the NFL title game in 2024, which increased visitation and led to higher room rates around Allegiant Stadium.

Jonas added that room rates on the Strip for April are up 11% from the previous year at MGM properties and 1% at Caesars casinos. MGM and Caesars operate the bulk of the Las Vegas Strip casino hotels with a combined 17 resorts.

What Slowdown? 

As Casino.org reported last week, there’s growing unrest among a considerable demographic of Las Vegas Strip guests who continue to push back against ever-increasing costs. Tensions on social media are high, though the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority (LVCVA) reported in its 2024 Visitor Profile that nearly 87% of overall guests last year left “very satisfied.” Another 10% were reportedly “somewhat satisfied.” Just 2% reported that they were “dissatisfied.”

The number of people who visited Las Vegas last year was up 2% to 41.67 million. However, last year’s visitor haul remained 2% lower than pre-pandemic 2019, a difference of 847,400 travelers.

2025 got off to a slow start, as January visitor volume was down 1.1% despite convention attendance soaring almost 13%.

Strip casinos aren’t overly worried about winning back those leisure travelers, as hotel rates, resort fees, and parking charges continue to climb. The average nightly rate for a Strip room was nearly $200 in January, up 2% from January 2024 and up $30 from January 2019. 

Las Vegas Strip Price Gouging 

Casino.org’s article last week regarding the LVCVA Visitor Profile touched on growing frustrations among consumers regarding $25 cocktails, 6:5 blackjack, double-zero roulette, high table minimums, and poor slot payouts becoming the norm on the Las Vegas Strip.

The nickel-and-diming trend began in 2016 when MGM folded on free valet parking for most guests — a luxury that had been afforded to players of all tier levels and spending capabilities for decades. Resort fees followed, once a minimal small charge that today is as much as $55 a night before tax (Resorts World Las Vegas).

A social media post that’s gone viral on X over the past few days was a photograph of the Pin-Up Pizza menu inside Planet Hollywood. The two slices and fountain drink combo priced at $19.99 last week jumped to $26.99 over the weekend. Chris Homes of the X account @seventensuited first shared the pricing update.

In its defense, a whole pizza at Pin-Up measures 28″, considerably larger than the 16″ norm.