Steadily regaining altitude since recording 42.5 million visitors in 2019, Las Vegas welcomed 41.7 million leisure and business arrivals last year to the tune of $55.1 billion in visitor spending, up 2.3% from 2023. This year, the choppy air of macroeconomic, political and other turbulence has buffeted leisure demand, while conventions, with double-digit increases in five of the nine months between January and September, are currently just ahead of 2024 numbers.
National and international media outlets, and unfortunately, local influencers, honked the horn of Vegas’s demise like rageful drivers in traffic, which reverberated noisily in the echo chamber of social media.
Lull aside, Vegas is hardly dead. Crisscrossing town over six days during IMEX America this October, from Fremont Street to Mandalay Bay and multiple coordinates in between, I navigated houses bustling with business, leisure and gaming visitors.
Yes, visitation, occupancy, RevPAR and other metrics lag 2024. And yes, pricing, affordability and perceptions of value are genuine issues, which casino executives including MGM Resorts CEO Bill Hornbuckle to Circa Las Vegas CEO Derek Stephens openly addressed of late.
This is a historical cycle like many before it, however, and as Vegas has demonstrated repeatedly, most recently in the 2008 global meltdown and Covid shutdown, its leaders know how to weather and rebound from storms.
Buoyed by strong 2025 performances from Wynn Las Vegas in its 20th anniversary, off-Strip operators Red Rock Resorts and Boyd Gaming and the anticipated completion of the Las Vegas Convention Center’s $600 million renovation this year, the narrative is already shifting gears.
Year-end events such as the Specialty Equipment Marketing Association’s (SEMA) annual blockbuster automotive aftermarket tradeshow, which attracted 160,000-plus attendees in 2024, along with the third annual Las Vegas Grand Prix and 40th annual National Rodeo Finals, are providing hot lead-ins to CES 2026 in January.
In Vegas, along with Reno and Tahoe, confidence is returning as key infrastructure upgrades, exciting new venues, expanded airlift options and other developments clear the air for 2026 and beyond.
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Las Vegas Levels Up
Analysts believe that the culmination of the phased expansion of the Las Vegas Convention Center, which has boosted capacity by 30% from 1.9 million square feet to 2.5 million square feet, will yield 30% more convention business.
Following the $1 billion, 1.4 million-square-foot West Hall expansion in 2021, the concluding $600 million phase has elevated the North, Central and South halls to the same advanced physical and technological standards. Highlights include a climate-controlled corridor linking the North and South halls to beat the summer heat and inclement weather. Resort operators foresee strong group bookings for 2026, with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) forecasting at least 15 months of robust activity ahead.
While the typical widespread strategic investment in tourism infrastructure is comparatively constrained as Vegas rides out the current flat demand, there is plenty of excitement on the horizon.
Now taking distinct shape on the former Mirage site, the 36-story guitar-shaped hotel tower of the new multibillion-dollar Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas is poised to strike a power chord for groups. The new tower will add a reported 600 rooms to the renovation of the Mirage’s existing 3,000 rooms. Slated for 2027, the new resort will offer 200,000-plus square feet of versatile meeting and convention space and is now accepting group RFPs for 2028 and beyond.
Advancing Vegas’s position as a global sports hub, the Las Vegas Athletics of Major League Baseball broke ground this June on their new $1.75 billion, 33,000-seat ballpark at the former Tropicana site. With foundation work visibly underway, the venue is aiming to open for the 2028 season. Bally’s Corporation has announced plans for a new integrated resort at the site, including two hotel towers.
Opened December 1 ahead of schedule, M Resort Spa Casino’s new 375-room East Tower doubles the off-Strip property’s space to 765 rooms and suites. The $206 million redevelopment has also expanded meeting space, introducing the new 15,000-square-foot Montese Ballroom.
International visitation is a critical component for conventions, the larger Vegas tourism market and supporting trade, export and economic activity.
SEMA 2024, for example, attracted delegates from 140 countries. Nearly half (40.2%) of the total audience at CES 2025 were international, coming from 158 different countries, regions and territories. Expanding air routes to drive business travel, including major U.S. and international meetings, along with leisure and the strong-performing luxury market in Vegas, is the surest way forward. In mid-April 2026, Air France will commence non-stop, direct service from Paris to Vegas with three weekly flights.
Europe is a major feeder market, with nearly 1.2 million arrivals in 2024, including 86,000 visitors from France. This new service is expected to bring 26,892 seats per season, generating an estimated $34 million in direct economic impact and $57.5 million in overall impact per year.
As Cheryl Smith, director of airline service development at LVCVA, posted on LinkedIn, “This new route will foster business opportunity, global events, leisure tourism, culture and collaboration.” Echoing the spirit of Las Vegas meetings and tourism, she added that “the best kind of travel doesn’t just take us somewhere new, it brings us closer to what (and who) matters most!”
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Reno Continues to Rise
Historic capital investments, new flight routes and other strategic developments are also boosting Reno’s dynamic four-season appeal for groups and leisure travelers as “The Biggest Little City in the World” aims to build on visitor momentum.
According to a report from Tourism Economics and Visit Reno Tahoe, the region’s visitor economy generated $3.4 billion in direct spending in 2024, contributing to $5.2 billion in total economic impact. The destination is on a five-year winning streak, with visitor spending up 47.9% from 2020.
Non-gaming recreation was the biggest gainer, up 4.5% over 2023. Transportation, doubling from $198.6 million in 2020 to $397.1 million last year, is another success story. Expanded airlift options for groups include new routes from major markets and hubs including Minneapolis, Chicago, Atlanta and Phoenix. In November, Southwest resumed non-stop service from Austin, while Alaska Airlines has relaunched year-round non-stop service from San Diego.
Inspired by the increasing air travel demands and rapid growth of the Reno region, MoreRNO is a multiyear infrastructure initiative aimed at modernizing Reno-Tahoe International Airport (RNO). Backed by a 10-year agreement with airline partners, the billion-dollar program, launched in 2021, has already produced a new $32 million ticketing hall.
This October saw groundbreaking on the new Ground Transportation Center, which will conveniently and efficiently house all car rental, taxi and ground transportation operations in a four-floor, 440,000-plus-square-foot structure. Work is scheduled to start in 2026 on the New Gen A & B Concourses, a $650 million investment that will double gate capacity with larger, brighter, more efficient spaces.
Non-gaming recreation’s healthy showing reflects the positive impact of the new 1,200-capacity indoor track at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center (RSCC).
Since debuting last December, the $5 million state-of-the-art competition and training facility—the first of its kind in Nevada—is already fulfilling its promise as a world-class venue for collegiate and professional events. Featuring a rubberized track customized by renowned Italian firm Mondo, the investment will also serve to drive room nights and economic impact. Feasibility studies forecast up to 20,000 room nights in year one, steadily escalating to 50,000 or more in year five.
Reno’s sports tourism appeal is also poised to surge following the official groundbreaking this September on a new 10,000-seat multipurpose arena at Grand Sierra Resort (GSR). First announced in 2023, the project, part of an envisioned broader entertainment district, is the first phase of a 10-year, billion-dollar redevelopment at the 140-acre casino-resort. Funded by GSR owner Alex Meruelo, it is the largest private capital investment in Reno history.
Targeting completion by fall 2027, the new home of the University of Nevada men’s basketball team will be available for groups, hosting an anticipated 100 annual events. The redevelopment plan also calls for a new 800-room hotel tower, 2,800-space parking garage, fan-centric central plaza and more.
“Tourism is a cornerstone of Reno Tahoe’s economy, fueling local businesses, supporting jobs and enhancing quality of life for our residents,” said Visit Reno Tahoe President and CEO Mike Larragueta. “Travelers are choosing to invest their time and dollars here, and that momentum drives us to keep elevating the visitor experience. With growth in areas like outdoor recreation and food and beverage that showcase our evolving appeal, Reno Tahoe’s tourism economy is not only resilient but positioned for continued success as a leading destination.”
[Related: Explore the Unexpected Side of the Reno Meetings Scene]
Lake Tahoe Transformations
The food and beverage growth in Reno referenced by Larragueta, rising 3.3% over 2023, includes the opening of more than 10 new restaurants and bars. Among them is Gordon Ramsay’s group-capable Ramsay’s Kitchen at Caesars Entertainment’s Silver Legacy Resort Casino.
Caesars Entertainment is also setting the table for success in Lake Tahoe with the transformation of storied Harveys Lake Tahoe.
In its pre-resort days, Lake Tahoe’s South Shore was an undeveloped wilderness largely without power, water, sewer or phone service. In 1944, Sacramento meat merchant Harvey Gross entered the picture, opening Harvey’s Wagon Wheel Saloon & Gambling Hall with his wife, Llewellyn.
Set on seven acres, their small log cabin cafe and gas station housed a lunch counter, three slot machines, two blackjack tables and the only 24-hour gas pump between Placerville, California, and Carson City, Nevada’s capital. With a business model based on establishing a niche market position and supporting community improvement, the couple catalyzed Lake Tahoe’s evolution into a year-round resort destination.
Adding an 11-story hotel in 1963 followed by later expansions, they also believed in winning customers’ hearts and minds with friendly, attentive service and quality entertainment.
Caesars Entertainment, which acquired Harvey’s in 2005, is elevating the 81-year legacy of Lake Tahoe’s original resort with a contemporary, luxurious reintroduction under its Caesars Republic lifestyle brand. Announced in April 2025, the reflag includes a comprehensive $160 million renovation of the 1.6 million-square-foot property, which offers 17 rooms and 25,000 square feet of versatile meeting space.
Already underway, the transition to Caesars Republic Lake Tahoe, slated for completion by mid-2026, includes remodeling all 740-plus rooms in the former Mountain and Tahoe Towers, now named the Remus and Romulus Towers, respectively. The latter’s refresh follows a full remodel in 2020.
Upscale dining experiences include a new lobby bar, Cleo’s Coffee and Cocktails, which becomes an upscale lounge by night, along with WOLF by Vanderpump and the recently expanded Gordon Ramsay HELL’S KITCHEN.
With an underground connection, sibling property Harrah’s Lake Tahoe, offering another 25,000 square feet of space, is undergoing property-wide improvements including upgrading the iconic Summit Suites.
[Related: Reno-Tahoe Is Welcoming Major Resort and Event Venue Additions]
