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 ...
Vegas is in a RE buyers market now.....
Vegas increased Inventory:
.
The number of homes available for sale in Las Vegas has been increasing, signaling a potential shift away from the seller’s market conditions seen in previous years.
The months of available inventory in Las Vegas has risen, suggesting a shift towards a more balanced market where buyers have more negotiating power and potentially longer days on the market for sellers.
Anybody who used to go to Vegas back in the 50s and 60s would be a fool to go there today. IMHO, Vegas is a sewer compared to what it used to be.
So long as you have at least $20 in the machine and keep the buttons going.
Last time I went there back in the late 90s, the sidewalks were lined shoulder to shoulder with illegal alien Mexicans handing out porn fliers to the gringos. Made me sick. I remember what it was like when it was Las
Vegas. Now, it’s more like Tijuana than it is Vegas.
Not sure when you were there last, or what you consider ‘cheap’.
It’s why I don’t go...good luck getting breakfast & coffee for under $30 (for one). I was there in January for a conference, I had a ‘cheap’ $20 burrito and when I asked for a cup of water with it I was told “no”, only bottled water or fountain drinks.
It almost costs you to walk down the strip and breathe air these days.
I have never been to ‘Vegas.
I just remember hearing that they used to subsidize the buffet’s to get people to gamble.
I used to really like buffets, and wouldn’t have minded going to one of them, but I am not mathematically impaired and don’t have any desire to gamble at a casino.
The comps started changing in the 1990’s right when I became of age. I hardly ever go to a casino, but I would definitely spend hours at the table if I knew I was getting prime rib, free beer, and a room for the night like they once offered.
Prices go up, everywhere Big Money shows up. 2005 in San Diego, $250 per night at waterfront - because the U.S. government was paying for the rooms. Universities also paying for their sports teams and “leaders.”
The market may support that in SD and NYC.
But not Vegas.
various factors
resort fee skyrocketed to build stadiums most visitors do NOT want or need.
pandemic got rid of some very good value buffets (some station casinos had fabulous cost/value ones)
the derivative-like split of ownership of the mgm and caesar properties into property owners and leaseholders surely is putting some financialization pressure on company policies as well
on top of that, strip has changed for the worse. in many ways it is a latin american party street now. open air drug use everywhere. and fremont is 10x worse, open air drug bar. I used to take my son there 10 yrs ago during the day. I would never now.
the cheap ones are gone.
used to go to sunset station, with player card it was either 10 or 14$. fabulous value. station canned it post-pandemic and is clearly never bringing it back. it may have been a loss-leader but it got people in the door who otherwise would not have played.
yes i forgot to add extortionate parking to just visit the strip. TI and CC are still free but if you want to go to south strip, plan to pay.
“I used to take my son there 10 yrs ago during the day. I would never now.”
Ten years ago the druggies did not hit the street till after sundown.
I had to do recovery work at the NTS after the one of the last underground nuke tests, unfortunately it was the same time as COMDEX and there wasn’t a room to be had in Vegas. Had to stay at a true craphole in Indian Springs, no dining options other than the Area 12 cafeteria and vending machines in Mercury. That week was the longest year of my life.
an otherwise very tasty pizza place at paradise and (tropicana?) refused tap water as well. didn’t realize that was legal in NV.
right. daytime they had vendors out with family-tolerable or interesting stuff/talents.
of course, actually living there I never went to the strip (except when family visited) and only near fremont to go to pizza rock (like it better than the GVR one).
I would still like to move back to henderson at some point.
Circus Circus is still the cheapest hotel on the strip. Yeah, it’s old and musty but still a pretty good deal.
They had great shows long ago—Elvis, Sinatra, Rat Pack, who do they have now? Carrot Top, Blue Man Group.Last time I went—I saw Donny and Marie—not a bad show. No big names. Vegas had things others did not—big fights! Big shows! Music! Great Food! Now its only a dark shadow of what it was.
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