Las Vegas records ninth straight month of visitor increases

By Amanda Finnegan

Tuesday, Jan. 11, 2011 | 11:47 a.m.

November brought Las Vegas its ninth consecutive month of increases in visitation, according to numbers released today.

The number of visitors in November increased by 1 percent from about 2.9 million visitors in November 2009 to more than 2.93 million this past November, according to a monthly report today from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

Citywide hotel occupancy declined by 1.3 percentage points to about 77 percent as Las Vegas’ room count increased from 141,989 to 145,694.

The average daily room rate increased by 2.3 percent from $92.61 in November 2009 to $94.73 this past November, the LVCVA said.

Overall gaming revenue fell 4.7 percent from $750.8 million in November 2009 to $715.8 million in November 2010 due to a tough comparison to last November, which saw a strong baccarat win, the LVCVA noted.

Convention attendance declined nearly 15 percent in November 2010 as larger tradeshows fell in different months from last year, the LVCVA said. Those shows included the International Association of Amusement Parks, SupplySide West International and the International Autobody Congress.

Passenger traffic at McCarran International Airport was down 1.2 percent, but vehicle traffic on Interstate 15 at the Nevada/California state line was up 5.5 percent.

Visitor volume to Laughlin increased 2.6 percent from November 2009 to November 2010, while the number of visitors fell 3 percent in Mesquite.