Las Vegas Strip Casino Revenue Down Through Three Quarters After September Disappoints
Casino revenue along the Las Vegas Strip is now down 0.2% for the first nine months of the year, following September's third straight monthly drop.
On Tuesday, the Nevada Gaming Control Board published its monthly report on gross gaming revenue (GGR) for September. Although statewide winnings increased by 3.3% to reach $1.31 billion, GGR on the Las Vegas Strip fell by 1.8% to $727.6 million.
Once more, baccarat was the culprit.
The table game favored by Asian gamblers brought increased luck to players in September, with the 24 casinos featuring the game on the Strip noting a 40% drop in hold compared to last year. Strip baccarat produced GGR of $88.5 million, a decrease of almost $59 million from September 2023. The Baccarat hold for last month was 17%, down from 22% the previous year.
“The decline is being driven by difficult hold comparisons,” Michael Lawton, the NGCB’s senior economic analyst, said of the Strip’s struggles.
The losses on the Strip were readily compensated by gains in downtown Las Vegas and other areas of Clark County, markets that typically do not capture a significant portion of the baccarat segment. Downtown GGR increased by 33% to reach $91 million, Boulder’s revenue rose by 19% to $80.4 million, Mesquite's winnings grew by 2% to $14.1 million, and the remainder of Clark County saw an almost 16% rise to $156 million.
Across the state, slots drove the annual rise, with the machines generating $896.9 million, reflecting a 10% increase. Revenue from table games fell approximately 15% to $335.1 million.
Nevada bookmakers retained $80.9 million of the $764.6 million bet to boost sports betting income by 30%.
Mistakes in Baccarat
July, August, and September represented the first instance of a decline in Las Vegas Strip GGR for three straight months since the previous occurrence from March to May 2019. September also drove Strip revenue into the negative for the year.
Although there are worries regarding a decline in leisure travel, Lawton attributes the Strip’s GGR decline solely to baccarat.
"When you remove baccarat from the totals, the Strip is up 3.4%, or $60.8 million, for the quarter, and the state is up 3.3%, or $114.2 million,” Lawton said.
Even with baccarat factored in, statewide gaming revenue increased over the first three quarters of the year. GGR of roughly $11.54 billion indicates a 1.2% increase from the previous year, equating to around $140 million.
Visitor Numbers Increase
In addition to the gaming report, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) published its executive summary for the month of September. The statistics indicate that approximately 3.39 million individuals traveled to Las Vegas last month, reflecting an increase of 1.6% compared to September 2023.
The rise was driven by conventions, which experienced a 29% increase in attendance to reach 527,200 participants. Hotel occupancy increased by 1.3 points to reach 83.9%, despite a reduction in available hotel rooms following the Mirage's closure in July.
Even with an increase in visitors to the city, the typical nightly price for accommodations on the Strip and throughout Las Vegas decreased by roughly 3%. Strip rooms had an average price of $210, whereas other rooms were priced at $196. Both rates exclude resort fees and taxes.
Authorities at Harry Reid International Airport reported a 0.8% decrease in passenger traffic for September, with the airport accommodating roughly 4.75 million travelers arriving and departing.
