Posted on 07/13/2025 1:00:16 PM PDT by MinorityRepublican
On a sweltering morning as tourists line up for pictures with the famous welcoming sign, one topic of conversation dominates: when did Las Vegas become so expensive?
Hannah Warren, a 50-year-old assistant costume designer from Essex, was still reeling from paying $33 for coffee and a bagel at the Fontainebleau hotel.
Gary Langlois, a 65-year-old retired salesman from Minneapolis, paid $40 for two coffees and a couple of croissants. That is on top of the resort fees, parking charges and various other costs that have become a fact of life for Las Vegas tourists.
Now, after a post-pandemic boom, there are signs the Strip has pushed visitors to a tipping point. Visitor numbers have dropped every month this year when compared with 2024, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
Overall, Las Vegas in 2025 is 6.5 per cent behind 2024 in the number of tourists. Airport traffic is down and gaming revenue has declined, with experts blaming a combination of President Trump’s economic policies and the high cost of a Vegas holiday.
(Excerpt) Read more at thetimes.com ...
And thank you for serving too.
When the mafia ran Vegas they kept prices low knowing they could skim 2% of the profits and make an absolute killing. And they kept the place free of riff raff and crime. Now that casinos are corporate run, it’s all about gouging and nickle and diming the customers...and they don’t care about the riff raff on the dirty streets outside.
Greed will do that to people.
Tourists will stop going to Vegas. We are not going to consent to getting ripped off by the corporate-run casinos.
I see that they are catering to the 1%. But they won't fill the rooms in Vegas.
“Indian Casinos have put a huge dent in the allure of LV.”
There’s little doubt that when the Indian casinos went big into slot machine, they ate Vegas’ lunch with respect to the “old lady with a gambling problem” market. So Vegas pivoted. Instead or trying to lure in the “problem gamblers” (who were and are sensitive to room and food prices), they have focused on other markets that are less cost-oriented such as conventions/trade shows which Vegas is #1 at nationally... beating out Orlando, etc.
https://socialnomics.net/2025/07/11/top-10-u-s-conference-destinations-in-2026-best-cities-for-business-events-and-conventions/
Overall, Vegas now targets customers who are more interested in partying than gambling.
I read that investors that control a lot of casinos now just want quick money so the charge more and give less. They have no intention of keeping customers happy and coming back to Vegas on a regular basis. That being said I’ve never done much research into this topic.
I had a conference there about 20 years ago. It took forever to check in. They could have at least brought us a cold drink while we were standing in line.
I remember $29 flights to Vegas. At the card tables, as long as you kept playing, the scotch & soda was no cost. I never enjoyed hours at the slot machines, but there also, as long as you fed the machine, no cost drinks.
When I was at the black jack tables, and some idiot was getting really sloshed, I moved to a different table.
One time, I had three 21 blackjack winners in a row. They immediately changed dealers, and several supervisors appeared. I simply smiled and said “I don’t blame you, but today, I’m just lucky.” Nobody smiled back.
You’re correct. I have to go to the cesspool once or twice a year for trade shows. They hate me because I’ve never spent a penny on casinos or shows.
I am forced to pay $40 a night for “resort fees”. For me that works out to $40 a day for lousy internet service.
I travel about 50% of the time for my job and generally stay at modest hotels. Comfort Inn or Hampton usually.
There you get breakfast included and coffee 24 hours a day.
I recently stayed at a ore expensive resort hotel and was halfway done with the complimentary bottle of water when I saw the sign. $6.
> Vegas used to be fairly cheap because they wanted you to spend money gambling
This is true. You could get a pretty schmantzy room comped if you lost a lot at the tables.
My friend recently went to Vegas, lost $1000 at BlackJack, and all they got was a $50 voucher for the restaurant.
I wanted to go to Vegas for my birthday in the fall and the only decently nice rooms for a reasonable price are off the strip, which is definitely not as fun. And the food prices are insane.
Augh, that’s disgusting! I didn’t know. I haven’t been to Vegas in a long time.
My opinion (and - full disclosure - I hate Las Vegas) - but, that having been said, there may be an oversupply problem.
I mean, the supply of potential tourists is limited. I don’t know how many people who go there once, never go back, but them, plus people who would never go there, is a big number.
Looks to me like LV has been through a building boom - but the market for losing your money and whores has a natural limit.
Maybe the limit has been reached.
Other cities have hookers.
We went about 20 years ago as a “bucket list” item - wanted to see the Vegas of the “Rat Pack” days but the only vestiges - even way back then - were Downtown, the Flamingo, Trop, and Circus Circus.
And Ellis Island still had the cheap steak-and-eggs breakfasts
Hated all the faux-fancy that’s taken over. Have no desire to return.
I used to attend the COMDEX computer show every fall. I stayed at the Vegas Hotel (about 100 yards from the 4-Queens downtown) for $18 a night. It was a dump, but virtually free. The Rio was new and had the best buffet. Then they built the Bellagio and they raised the heck out of buffet prices but upped the quality to excellent. When those prices went way up, I started staying out in Jean.
I get my two large whatevers, coffee in this case, I pay about 4 to 5 bucks at a gas station.
Maybe a croissant at a grocery store. 5 bucks at most. \\Better than paying 40 bucks.
Residence Inn and Homewood used to throw in what amounted to a free dinner and a couple of free drinks three nights a week in addition the the free breakfasts.
I will say that Hampton is cutting corners these days compared with what they delivered pre-covid. TVs have gotten bigger, though.
It pays better to rip you off for $33 for a coffee and bagel.That’s about $32 pure profit.
For the last few yrs hubby and I have been getting offers for a Bellagio suite for 4 nights with $400 in free play, a $250 dollar food credit, no resort fees, and free parking. We took them up on their generous offer the last 2 yrs but not sure if we can go this yr. Now if the casino could only be as generous, our stay would be perfect. 🤣
I won $6300 on a Dragonlink machine last yr at my local Indian casino. That same night hubby won $3500. Indian run casinos are highly regulated and the scenario you mentioned is an anomaly. If what you said is true, casinos would have no customers at all, which is a terrible business model.
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