Las Vegas saw its fewest visitors in four years during 2025, and Strip gaming revenue rose less than 1 percent, according to statistics released this week that give a picture of a full calendar year.

Gaming and tourism leaders are ready to look past 2025, a year beset by economic upheaval locally and nationally, a 43-day government shutdown and a steep decline in international visitation brought on by boycotts of travel to the U.S. by Canadians.

“Despite a challenging environment, convention demand remained steady, the events calendar remained strong, and the destination continued to adapt in real time,” Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority CEO Steve Hill said in a Wednesday statement. 

Hill said the year represented one of the more complex operating environments Las Vegas has navigated outside of the pandemic. Las Vegas was viewed as being overpriced when tourism dropped off during the summer. 

Las Vegas drew more than 38.5 million visitors in 2025, down 7.5 percent from 2024 and the lowest annual total since 2021. The market experienced 12 consecutive monthly declines, including double-digit drops in February, June and July. 

December’s 9 percent decline to just under 3.1 million visitors was surprising given Las Vegas hosted the sold-out National Finals Rodeo over 10 days, two Las Vegas Raiders home games and the Las Vegas Bowl college football game on New Year’s Eve.

Conventions and meetings drew just under 6 million attendees, which nearly matched 2024’s total. However, average daily room rates on the Strip fell almost 5 percent to less than $200 a night, Strip occupancy fell 3 percent and revenue per available room (RevPar) — a metric used to gauge profitability — was down 8 percent to $163.52.

Truist Securities gaming analyst Barry Jonas said Wednesday that December’s poor results weren’t a surprise to the investment community, which understood Las Vegas’ yearlong challenges. However, Macquarie Securities gaming analyst Chad Beynon expects the “softness from the international and leisure customer will persist this year.” 

The Gaming Control Board said the Strip collected $8.8 billion in gaming revenue in 2025, finishing ahead of 2024 by less than $3 million — a 0.03 percent increase. Statewide, gaming revenue was a record $15.8 billion, up 1.2 percent, with all major markets coming in on the positive side of the ledger for the 12 months.

Baccarat wasn’t favorable to the Strip in December, with revenue falling almost 21 percent to $156.7 million in the month. However, for all of 2025, baccarat revenue was $1.4 billion of the overall Strip total, a 3.4 percent increase. 

Citizens Bank gaming analyst Jordan Bender wrote in a Wednesday research note that the timing of New Year’s Eve, which landed on a Wednesday, hurt the Strip’s end-of-year gaming results. However, he expects January and the rest of the 2026 first quarter to give a bounce to Strip resorts.

Locals and Northern Nevada markets shine

The bright spot in Southern Nevada was the Las Vegas locals market. While the Strip struggled in 2025, other areas of Clark County prospered during the year. 

Bender said the fourth-quarter gaming revenue in the locals market was a record total, backed by the dominant operators in areas outside of the Strip — Red Rock Resorts and Boyd Gaming.

Downtown gaming revenue grew 2.1 percent to $951.2 million; North Las Vegas gaming revenue increased 4.6 percent to to $298 million; Laughlin saw a 2.4 percent increase to $493.6 million; Boulder Strip casinos netted a combined $996 million, a 3.8 percent jump; and the unincorporated areas of Clark County grew revenue 1.2 percent to $1.9 billion.

Along with the Strip, Clark County casinos produced $13.7 billion in combined gaming revenue, nearly 87 percent of the state’s total gaming revenue.

Northern Nevada casinos also finished 2025 on a positive note.

In Washoe County, casinos combined for just under $1.1 billion in revenue, up 3.4 percent. Reno led the market with $786.2 million, a 3.6 percent increase, while Sparks casinos collected $182.2 million, up 2.6 percent.

South Lake Tahoe casinos ended 2025 with $247.6 million in gaming revenue, a 1.5 percent increase.

Airport sees 6 percent decline in 2025 passenger volume  

Harry Reid International Airport experienced 11 straight monthly declines in passenger volume during 2025, ending a two-year streak of record-setting totals. 

The Clark County Department of Aviation said Thursday the airport served just under 55 million passengers last year, compared to the record 58.4 million in 2024, a 6 percent drop. December’s 10.3 percent decline in passengers followed November’s 9.6 percent decrease.

International passenger volume, which had returned to pre-pandemic levels in 2024, fell 7 percent to more than 3.4 million in 2025, including a 22 percent decline in December — the fourth consecutive monthly double-digit drop.

Reid Airport’s two largest Canadian air carriers, Air Canada and WestJet, each saw more than 20 percent passenger declines in 2025.

In a statement, aviation department officials did not comment on the declines but touted Las Vegas’ connectivity to more than 170 markets and improvements at the airport for safety, accessibility and passenger experience.

Hill said the Las Vegas gaming and tourism community is ready to rebound in 2026. With more than 150,000 hotel rooms, the market has the largest number of rooms in the U.S. 

He said the Las Vegas Convention Center, which completed a remodel last year, has several trade shows lined up with a combined 1.2 million attendees, including CONEXPO, a large-scale construction industry conference and exposition.

“Las Vegas operates at a scale that few destinations can match, and 2025 required us to remain nimble as conditions evolved,” Hill said.

Updated at 10:40 a.m. on 1/29/2026 to include airport passenger statistics for 2025.