Las Vegas Chokes the Golden Goose

There was a day when Las Vegas’s economy was driven by Benny Binion’s simple philosophy: “Good food, good whiskey cheap, and a good gamble

Today, “Reports highlight eye-watering prices such as $33 bagels and $26 bottles of water, onerous parking and resort fees, and surprise charges for early check-ins and basic amenities," reports Yahoofinance. No wonder.hotel occupancy is 67%, visitor traffic is down 6.5% from a year ago and 7.4% from 2019. 

According to LasVegasDirect.com 

Parking fees in Las Vegas vary by hotel and can range from $15 to $30 per day for self-parking and $20 to $50 for valet. Some hotels offer free parking for hotel guests, while others charge daily fees. Resort fees are typically added to the room rate and can range from $20 to $55 per night. These fees cover access to amenities such as internet access, fitness centers, and spa services.

Most Vegas nightclubs (and dayclubs) have bottle service table minimums of $1,000. General admission tickets to see The Backstreet Boys at the Sphere are $863. The Backstreet Boys?

Of course this all may have something to do with the hotel/casino operators no longer owning their properties having sold the real estate to Wall Steet REITs and leasing back the properties. Gotta make those rent payments.

Vegas workers are all about no tax on tips, as The Wall Street Journal reports “But it doesn’t really do us much good if there aren’t any people to get tips from,” said Charlie Mungo, a tattoo artist.

In boom years for Vegas after the Covid-19 pandemic, Mungo said he earned between $3,000 and $6,000 a month including tips and regular pay inking tourists with little souvenir tattoos such as a pair of dice. Recently he estimates he has made only about $1,500 a month. Canadians, who Mungo previously counted as about 30% of his customers, are now rare.

While tips are down prices are up. According to AAA, regular gas is $3.73 a gallon in Vegas while the national average is $3.15. Lawrence Williams, a tourist from northeast Illinois who has been coming to Vegas for 15 years, told the WSJ that he now goes to In-N-Out Burger while visiting Vegas instead of going to fancier restaurants. “At the Mon Ami Gabi restaurant on the Strip, a dinner-menu cheeseburger with fries costs $30.95, plus tax and tip. Four years ago, it cost $16.95,” reports the WSJ.  

Washington DC is piling on with the Big Beautiful Bill which introduces a $250 “visa integrity fee” that would apply to most non-immigrant U.S. visas, including tourist, student and work visas. It also includes an increase from $21 to $40 for the U.S. Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) fee. 

Benny Binion is rolling over in his grave.