The city’s economic recovery is picking up steam. According to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority’s 2011 Visitor Profile Study, the city recorded year-over-year revenue gains in lodging, food and beverage, shopping, sightseeing, local transportation and hotel packages. It also hosted 38.9 million visitors last year, a total second only to 2007, when it hosted 39.2 million visitors.
Average per-trip spending on food and beverage increased from $256.82 in 2010 to $274.69 in 2011, according to the study. Visitor spending on shopping rose to $129.34, up from $122.80 in 2010, and sightseeing ticked upward to $10.24, up from $7.21 in 2010.
Strip gaming revenue topped $6 billion for the first time in four years: casinos collected $6.07 billion last year, a 4% increase from 2010. In 2011, the city hosted 19,000 meetings and conventions, welcoming 4.8 million convention and trade show delegates. It’s on pace to top those numbers this year, said the LCVA.
“The Visitor Profile Study is a tremendous tool in understanding the visitors that come to Las Vegas,” Kevin Bagger, senior director of marketing for the LVCVA, said in a statement. “The primary takeaway from this year’s study is that visitor spending is on the rise, signifying a continuation in the recovery of the tourism industry in Las Vegas.”
Other highlights from this year’s study include:
• Visitor satisfaction remains strong, with 92% of visitors saying they were “very satisfied” with their visit and less than 1% reporting being “dissatisfied” with their trip.
• Word-of-mouth advertising is key: 91% of visitors said they would “definitely or probably will” recommend Las Vegas to others.
• Fifty-five percent of all visitors used the Internet to plan their trip, up from 53%.
• Forty-four percent visitors arrived by air, up from 41% in 2010 and 42% in 2009.
• The average Las Vegas visitor is 49 years old. Fifty percent are college graduates, 77% are married and 87% have a household income above $40,000.
The 2011 Visitor Profile Study compiles the findings from 3,600 personal interviews conducted throughout the year.