Summary
- March marked the end of an eight-month streak of gaming revenue increases.
- Numbers fell 1.65% for March 2023 totals.
- The Las Vegas Strip reported over $715 million in earnings.
Nevada is not doing so hot when it comes to gaming revenues, at least for the month of March. The Nevada Gaming Control Board recently released the monthly revenue totals, showing the state generated $1.29 billion for the month.
While this is a huge amount, it is a year-over-year decrease from 2023. The state saw a 1.65% decline, which marked the first drop in eight months since June 2023 of increasing earnings.
More Details on Earnings
The Las Vegas Strip brought in just over $715 million, which was a 1.2% decline from last year. Despite the drop, the Strip is up 2.5% for 2024. Local casinos brought in over $270 million for March, a 0.4% increase from last year. The local venues are also up 2.4% for the year.
Downtown Las Vegas and the Boulder Strip areas saw the biggest losses for March, dropping considerably from YoY totals. Downtown was 12.8% less than 2023, with $76.1 million in earnings. The Downtown area is not doing well in 2024, with a 3.4% decrease so far this year.
The Boulder Strip brought in just over $78 million, a 9.2% decline. North Las Vegas was in a similar situation, with a 4.1% decrease and only $25.7 million in earnings.
Boosted Visitor Totals
Although overall earnings decreased for the month, visitor numbers were up slightly. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority reported that 3.67 million people traveled to the area in March, a 0.4% increase from last year. College basketball events before March Madness likely helped push the total to new levels.
Unfortunately, convention attendance was down 37%. Hotel occupancy reached just over 85%, down three points from last year. Due to lower numbers, revenue per room decreased.
For the Strip, hotel occupancy was 88.3%, a huge decline of over 90% from last year. Downtown dropped by over 76%, with a 69.3% rate.
Events helped to boost travel rates somewhat, with musical acts like New Edition and Madonna offering shows in Las Vegas. The National Rugby League and NASCAR were in town to help boost overall totals.
Game Earnings
The Las Vegas Strip reported a slot win total of over $401 million, a 5% drop. Baccarat on the Strip typically performs well, with March bringing in $111.6 million, a jump of over $45 million from last year.
Sports betting brought in $29.8 million for sportsbooks, a decrease of 32.1%. It is unclear why sports betting dropped so significantly for the month.
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