Las Vegas Mayor Shelley Berkley issued a heartfelt plea to Canadian guests this week, acknowledging the town’s tourism-dependent financial system is affected by a dramatic decline in worldwide guests, notably from Canada, which represents the town’s largest worldwide market.
“As the mayor of Las Vegas, I’m telling everybody in Canada, please come. We love you, we need you, and we miss you,” Berkley mentioned throughout a press convention this week, the place she addressed the a number of challenges dealing with the leisure capital’s tourism trade.
The mayor’s newest feedback echo issues she first raised in an August press convention, the place she painted a stark image of the tourism decline.
“International travel is way down. People are not coming to the United States,” Berkley mentioned final month. “We have a rather large market with the Canadians. It’s gone from a faucet to a drip. Same thing in Mexico. We have a number of very high rollers that come in from Mexico that aren’t so keen on coming in right now.”
The numbers help the mayor’s issues. Town welcomed slightly below 3.1 million vacationers in June, marking an 11% drop in comparison with the identical month in 2024. Worldwide customer numbers fell by 13%, whereas lodge occupancy charges declined by roughly 15%, in accordance with information from the Las Vegas Conference and Guests Authority.
The decline in Canadian tourism has been notably steep. Statistics from Vegas’ Harry Reid Worldwide Airport present Air Canada passenger numbers plummeted 33% in June in comparison with the earlier 12 months, whereas WestJet noticed a 31% drop. Price range service Aptitude Airways skilled probably the most dramatic decline, with passenger numbers falling 62%. Canadian guests, who numbered practically 1.5 million in 2024, traditionally signify the biggest phase of worldwide vacationers to Las Vegas.
The financial affect is substantial. Canadian vacationers contributed roughly $3.6 billion to the Southern Nevada financial system in 2024 and supported greater than 43,000 jobs within the area, exceeding employment within the manufacturing sector. UNLV economics professor Stephen Miller famous Canadian tourism ranks simply behind main establishments like Nellis Air Pressure Base by way of financial contribution to the state.
Mayor Berkley hits Vegas’ affordability disaster
Through the August press convention, Berkley highlighted how Las Vegas has strayed from its worth proposition that traditionally attracted thousands and thousands of tourists.
“When I was growing up, Las Vegas was a great value. I mean, you could have a 49-cent breakfast at any of the hotels and 99-cent shrimp cocktail. Rooms were cheap, food was cheap. Just come have a good time, gamble,” she mentioned in the course of the August look.
The mayor, who labored on the Sands Lodge as a school scholar, recalled when the Sunday brunch price simply $2.99 for all-you-can-eat eating.
“That doesn’t exist anymore,” she mentioned final month. “People are feeling that they’re getting nickeled and dimed and they’re not getting value for their dollar.”
In her newer remarks this week, Berkley attributed the downturn to a sluggish nationwide financial system that has shoppers holding onto their cash “just in case things get worse or they lose their jobs.” She additionally pointed to what she described as trade practices that alienate guests.
“There is a concern that the gaming industry in general is nickel and diming people. They don’t like it,” Berkley mentioned. “And I think that’s going to self correct. I mean, if you have to pay $70 for valet parking, you’re going to find out very quickly that people don’t want to pay $70 for parking.”
Resort charges at main Strip properties now vary from $44 to $57 per night time, whereas MGM Resorts just lately raised parking charges to $20 throughout weekdays and $25 on weekends, with valet parking leaping to $40 every day. Through the August press convention, Berkley famous rising leisure prices have modified customer conduct, explaining that whereas vacationers beforehand would see a distinct present an evening over a protracted weekend, “now they’re seeing one show because they’re so expensive.”
Business observers have famous the decline extends past financial components. Journey brokers in Canada report politics performs a big function, with some Canadians staying away from the US as a consequence of commerce tensions and immigration coverage issues. Ted Pappageorge, head of the Culinary Employees Union, dubbed the phenomenon the “Trump slump,” citing fears associated to the present administration’s insurance policies.
Companies feeling the ache
Main gaming corporations have acknowledged the affect throughout current earnings calls. Caesars Leisure CEO Tom Reeg mentioned Canadian guests represented “a significant piece” of a 27,000 room-night decline within the second quarter, though Canadians comprise solely “3% or 4% of the total pie.” MGM Resorts CEO Invoice Hornbuckle equally highlighted the challenges posed by decreased worldwide visitation.
The tourism decline has additionally prompted different trade course corrections. A number of main properties have begun rolling out value-focused promotions in response to mounting criticism over excessive prices. Resorts World Las Vegas eradicated parking charges and waived resort charges on choose rooms, whereas Caesars Leisure launched a $300 bundle for 3 Strip properties that features taxes and costs for a two-night keep plus $200 in meals credit.
The tourism decline has broader implications for Nevada’s financial system, because the trade generates $85.2 billion in complete financial affect in Southern Nevada. Las Vegas customer volumes have declined every month up to now in 2025, with the primary six months exhibiting a 7.3% lower in comparison with the identical interval in 2024.
Through the August press convention, Berkley referred to as on tourism trade leaders to “re-examine some of these business decisions and see if we can’t make it more affordable for people to come in and have a good time.” Her message was easy: “Want them to come in, have a good time, spend their money, go home, come back in six months.”
Regardless of the challenges, trade leaders stay optimistic about restoration prospects. Conference bookings for the fourth quarter and past present promise, with sports activities tourism anticipated to drive future development, notably with the upcoming System 1 Grand Prix and different main occasions. The Las Vegas Conference and Guests Authority has additionally invested $3.25 million in advertising campaigns concentrating on Canadian, German, and South Korean markets.
Berkley, who was elected mayor in November 2024 after serving 14 years in Congress representing a lot of Southern Nevada, emphasised Las Vegas’s resilience throughout each press conferences. Her attraction to Canadian guests displays the town’s recognition that rebuilding worldwide tourism relationships can be essential for financial restoration.
For this story, Fortune used generative AI to assist with an preliminary draft. An editor verified the accuracy of the data earlier than publishing.
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