Las Vegas 2026 is a global destination. It has excelled at innovation, competition, commercialization and adaptation to become the apex of hospitality evolution, delivering well with the current metrics of tourism needs: engaging experiences, entertainment, business travel, luxury service and sports. Strategies forged in this city are being studied, embraced and replicated, with outcomes applied in every market. But like much of the tourism and hospitality sector, there is a shifting pattern, with clear winners and a growing list of casualties. 

The emergence of Las Vegas

When we talk about the experience economy, Las Vegas was it, decades before the term entered parlance.

As Nevada was the only state permitting legal gaming, visitors traversed the nation to Reno, Tahoe or Las Vegas, played games of chance or skill… and then departed. As part of the tactical mix to entice gamblers to market, the offer was enhanced by introducing amenities to complement play for gaming customers, notably pools, unique restaurants – creating the all you can eat buffet in the process, golf courses, theming hotels, and integrating entertainment into the hotel experience.

The showroom was a staple in every resort, used as a differentiator to attract gambling patrons and, to supplement the weekend travelers, the convention hall was added in 1959. It hosted rare, larger entertainment events (famously the Beatles in 1964) as well as business events to meet midweek slack; however, the continual expansion and improvement of the convention product transformed the city into the national center of conventions and associated business travel.

Both Las Vegas’ residents and patrons loved sports, and major sporting events dominated the casino calendar, with the aim of attracting high rollers to town, although by the 1980s many of the top boxing fights were shared with Atlantic City. Despite multiple attempts to bring professional sports to the city, there was both an insufficient demand to sustain a domestic sports team, outside of college level. But, more importantly, the stigma of betting associated with the “purity” of the game, was an evident deterrent.

Despite the imagery and opulence, outside of the VIP casino spaces, historically, Las Vegas was not a luxury hospitality experience. Steve Wynn led the transition at The Golden Nugget Downtown, when he brought in true hospitality professionals, such as Barry Shier from the Waldorf Astoria, and built and trained their own teams, via the MAP, to deliver at scale for The Mirage and Bellagio projects. Many of those that joined the industry went through those processes, the expanded UNLV Hospitality School, or the internal training created by Phil Satre, who led Harrah’s in the late 1990s. By 2010s, operations were worlds away from the 1970s. 

Post-inflection point

Around 15 years ago, I assessed the Las Vegas business model. There was something for everyone, with a focus on conventions mid-week and gaming customers at weekends. As Tribal and commercial casinos expanded gaming nationally, headliners were skipping Las Vegas to play in large venues, and the economic benefits of business tourism were being realized by many major markets. It was clear that Las Vegas was at an inflection point.

Although many development analysts had identified the demand for an arena-sized venue, penciling the investment case (compared to additions to the casino floor, or acquiring a rival) was a challenge. It has now been a decade since the T-Mobile Arena opened in Las Vegas, then the largest entertainment venue on The Strip. The Golden Knights bet by Bill Foley (to play at the then-conceptual AEG-MGM funded indoor arena) was the catalyst for NHL expansion to the city.

Attitudinal and legislative changes to sports betting enabled The Raiders’ relocation from Oakland to Vegas and the development of The Allegiant Stadium in 2020. James Dolan embarked on planning and construction his Sphere venue, opening in 2023. With F1 a calendar highlight, the A’s baseball stadium rising from the caliche, and active moves for an NBA franchise to enter the market, it is clear that the fabric of Las Vegas’ event infrastructure is changing to be the finest not just in America, but globally, which is already changing the nature of how the city is programmed and perceived. 

2015-2025 – The customer transition 

The rationalization of the economics of properties post-Covid-19 increased competition nationally and rising costs, most notably in labor and construction, led to an elevation in the price of the Las Vegas experience in recent years. We have also seen a deliberate move to shift the offer to meet a new generation of customers from those that came a decade ago.

In 2015, Las Vegas achieved visitation of over 42 million. Las Vegas Strip averaged occupancy of 89.4%, ADR of $129 and REVPAR of $115. By comparison, in 2025 visitation had fallen to 38.5m. held occupancy of 80.3%, ADR of $196 and REVPAR of $163. A decade ago, 35% of visitors were under 40, with 19% over 65 years old. In 2025, 44% were under 40, with only 4% over 65. Fundamentally, older customers are no longer coming to Las Vegas (although active in regional and Tribal gaming), certainly not in the same numbers as before.

With the new programming, it is clear that older customers are not a target segment. Moreover, the behavior of the younger demographics is proving economically beneficial to many of the operators. We see that, in 2015, the average visitor spent $292 on food and beverage. In 2025 this was $582. Over the same period, gaming budgets have increased from $578 to $848.

Also notable in the shift in trends is that, in 2015, 6% of visitors had someone under 21 in their party. In 2025 this was 14%. Despite the drop in visitation, nearly double the parties visiting are bringing “minors” to Las Vegas. A potential opportunity? In summary; fewer customers, younger, spending more. 

Doing the right stuff... right

I recall sitting in a development meeting, discussing investment strategy. The conflict in the room was clear. On one hand, one of the older executives was arguing that all business must focus on driving gaming revenue. On the other was the case that the company must invest in non-gaming amenities and attractions, pointing out plans for the forthcoming Area 15 adjacent to The Strip, and successes of theme parks in driving tourism.

The opening of The MGM Grand (with theme park), Luxor and Treasure Island – all within a couple of months in 1993 – cast a shadow of concern that exists today. These new resorts, with a family-friendly focus, attracted new customers to Las Vegas in record numbers, but gaming revenue per person decreased. The prevailing wisdom was that non-gaming attractions encouraged visitation, but not gamblers.

In 1993, 57% of the $4.7bn of revenue generated on The Strip was from gaming. With the final number for 2025 still being determined at time of writing, it is expected not to deviate significantly from 2024’s total revenue on The Strip of $25bn of which c.35% was generated from the casino. Non-gaming attractions are not increasing visitation, but they are driving all revenue verticals.

With gaming found across the world, Las Vegas is not the most convenient location for customers to place their bets. There must be a different reason to come. Those operators that are positioned with strong non-gaming amenities and infrastructure, such as restaurants, day/nightclubs, venues and convention facilities (which can be programmed to offer limited-time engagements and unique offerings) are well placed in this new era.

Likewise, those in the luxury segment with real – or perceived – hospitality platforms are finding business robust, across all verticals. Indeed, many of those properties are further investing to meet customer needs.

The inelasticity of sports economics is widely acknowledged. In Las Vegas, the sporting infrastructure, although young, is already established among the finest in the country, especially for visiting fans. The A’s relocation and the arrival of an NBA team will bring Las Vegas into the group of 12 US cities with teams in the “Big Four” sports, plus with a potential MLS relocation, F1, UFC, boxing and WWE events. Within a decade Vegas will have shifted from a sporting desert to the premier sports city in the world.

With music festivals, the Sphere, various residencies and every possible type of events dominating the calendar, proactive event programming is paying dividends for those with the ability to capitalize. Global hospitality operators have seen Las Vegas’ successes. Not only are the business economics of this new model favorable, but it seems that the cocktail that has been created is a highly desirable recipe. 

The problems of success...

Resort and property ownership varies from structured corporations, required to meet quarterly earnings targets, to private equity seeking to build value, to individual owner operators running their properties to maintain positive cashflow. In some cases, the only thing they have in common is the city that they are located. There are different capital structures, operating styles and customers.

Considering the customer universe, brand Las Vegas was clear – the adult Disneyland – have fun, spend money – and make memories.

It is noted that with wider economic bifurcation, particularly older and lower income visitors are no longer coming to Las Vegas. It is no longer perceived as a value destination (although we could make the opposite argument compared to many other destination locations) and the price to participate, especially in sports and events, is notably higher than in other markets. This is not an issue for many operators, but what was once a cheap stay and gamble, leveraging off other people’s spend, has changed.

Across the market, some resorts have repositioned and transitioned customer demographics, but there are legacy issues present; many of the properties were built without understanding customer needs. This leaves some operators with a problem.

The Riviera and Tropicana have already been imploded to make way for new convention and sporting amenities. The Monte Carlo is now the Park MGM, with visitation highly reliant on events at Dolby Theatre and T-Mobile arena. The once imperious Mirage is currently a concrete husk, sold to Hard Rock and subjugated to supporting accommodations for the pop-culture inspired resort’s metaphoric new tower.

The implosion and reinstatement costs for many of these resorts, unless with a clear infrastructure or repositioning rationale (such as a new stadium, operator, or arena) are prohibitive; thus operators have sought to reposition appropriate assets to a value offer, while avoiding totally discounting the proposition to maintain profitability.

The traditional value properties in Downtown and off-Strip that face the same increased operating costs, are feeling the effects of the discounting on The Strip in terms of occupancy and margin. Some are reinvesting in their product, where possible, to maintain profitability, but already we have seen casualties, with Rio recently changing ownership and Virgin changing leadership. Boyd reported strong national gaming performance, but slowdown in some of their key Las Vegas properties. The future of these properties is a challenge and requires deeper, strategic thinking.

Within the portfolio companies, capital is reinvested to maximize return, thus the better performing properties (with the higher or more focused customer profile) seeing the greater share of investment.

In Las Vegas, some operators gambled that providing a range of emotionally resonant experiences, amenities and events, combined with a luxury product, would be a winning strategy. They won, big. The thesis that these changes would lead to repeat visitation, extend length of stay and command loyalty is proven. The old bet that going big, with something for everyone, driving maximum occupancy, has not led to success.

And still, some are still placing those same bets. Welcome to Las Vegas 2026.

Oliver Lovat is the CEO of the Denstone Group. He consults on development and the strategic positioning of casino resorts.