- Nevada casinos shattered their single-year gaming revenue record in just 11 months in 2022.
- The Nevada Gaming Control Board reported that the state’s 459 casinos combined to produce $1.2 billion in gaming win for November 2022.
- Las Vegas visitor number increased by 4.9% to 3.3 million in November 2022 according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitor Authority.
Nevada casinos not only hit the $1 billion mark for the 21st consecutive month but they also shattered their single-year gaming revenue record in less than a year.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board revealed last Thursday that the state’s 459 casinos combined to produce a gaming win of $1.2 billion for November 2022, bringing the year-to-date total to $13.5 billion.
The @NevadaGCB has published its Abbreviated Revenue Release for November 2022 (~$1.22 billion): pic.twitter.com/rsYNvVDNF8
— Nevada Gaming Control Board (@NevadaGCB) December 29, 2022
That total is roughly $100 million more than the 2021 total of $13.4 billion which before last month, stood as the state’s single-year gaming revenue mark. With still a full month to tally, Nevada is heeded to its first-ever $14 billion year.
Year-on-year 7.6% Decline
However, while the year-to-date revenue is 10.% better than its previous year’s counterpart, Nevada’s November 2022 gaming revenue represents a 7.6% year-on-year decline It’s also only the second time in the last 21 months that statewide gaming revenue showed a decline, after July.
Out of 20 casino markets in Nevada, only Sparks, Lake Tahoe, and Wendover showed higher numbers than in November 2021. Clark County was down 8.4% while the Las Vegas Strip made 11.3% less than the $755 million it produced during the same period last year. Downtown Las Vegas was also down, but minimally by 0.1% to $82.8 million, after recording a best-ever $90.5 million in October 2022.
But there is a valid reason for those declines, according to Nevada Gaming Control Board senior economic analyst Michael Lawton. Per Lawton, the gaming revenue figures collected from a year ago represented the third-highest ever on record for the state and Las Vegas Strip.
Also, Lawton pointed out that statewide gaming revenues continued to exceed their pre-pandemic levels. Nevada’s gaming revenue saw a 30.2% increase compared to November 2019 while the Las Vegas Strip Casino revenue has gone up by 45.8%.
Las Vegas Visitor Number Increases
Las Vegas visitor numbers benefited from several entertainment and sports event in November 2022 with Elton John performing at the Allegiant Stadium last November 1st, The Who at Park MGM on November 4 and 5, and Post Malone holding a concert at the T-Mobile Arena on November 11th. British singer Adele also opened her residency at Caesars Palace while the Las Vegas Raiders hosted the Indianapolis Colts at the Allegiant Stadium also in November.
The NGCB added that November 2022’s billion-dollar performance was helped by the increase of visitor volume by 4.9% to more than 3.26 million in November 2022, as per data from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. Through November, the 2022 visitor volume sits at 35.5 million which is 21.1% better than the January-November 2021 numbers.
Hotel occupancy rose by 3.6% on a year-on-year comparison to 82.1% in November 2022, with weekend occupancy at 89.6%. The average daily room rate was up 19.6% from a year ago to $187 and more than 19% from November 2019. That was, however, lower than the $210 in October which was the highest ever recorded in Sin City.
Per a research note from Truist Securities gaming analyst Barry Thomas, many resorts on the Las Vegas Strip are already sold out during various conventions and special events during the first quarter of 2023. Jonas wrote that the Strip’s average room rates are trending up to 105% from a year ago for both the Consumer Electronics Show in January and the Con/Agg Expo concrete trade show in March.
Harry Reid Airport Also Looking at Record Numbers
Meanwhile, the passenger volume at Harry Reid Airport is also closing in on its single-year record following a strong November 2022 performance. The airport reported 4.56 million passengers in November, giving it an 11-month total of 48.3 million travelers through the first 11 months of 2022. That 11-month total is the 4th-highest one-year total for the airport and is closing in on the record of 51.5 million passengers set in 2019.
Southwest Airlines, the airport’s busiest carrier, serviced more than 1.5 million Reid passengers in November and nearly 16.7 million during the first 11 months of 2022. It flew more than 18 million passengers in 2017 and 2018 before dropping to 17.3 million in 2019. According to airport data, Southwest accounts for 35% of the total volume at Harry Reid Airport
International passenger volume was 238,000 for November 2022 and a total of 2.3 million international travelers from January to November 2022. The airport’s annual international passenger record is 3.8 million which was set in 2019. The airport had direct service to and from 17 international destinations during November 2022.
