Las Vegas Visitor Slump As New Visa Fee Starts

Published on Nov 30, 2025, 12:12 pm CST

10 min read

Key points

Las Vegas hosted about 41.7 million visitors in 2024 but 2025 counts are running several percentage points behind with some summer months down more than 10 percent year over year
October 2025 visitation was roughly 3.41 million, about 4.4 percent below October 2024, with year to date totals around 32.3 million visitors through October
A new $250.00 (USD) U.S. Visa Integrity Fee took effect on October 1, 2025 and now sits on top of existing nonimmigrant visa application charges for many travelers
International visitors account for about 12 percent of Las Vegas tourism so the new fee is a headwind for some markets but not the main driver of the visitor slump
High room rates, resort and parking fees, and stronger competition from regional U.S. casinos are pushing many price sensitive gamblers to stay closer to home
Over the next few months Las Vegas is likely to see busy event peaks, softer off peak weeks, and gradual additional drag from visa costs and weaker international demand

Impact

Where Impacts Are Most Likely: Expect softer crowds and more discounting at midscale Strip and downtown properties outside major event weekends while premium resorts stay busier
Best Times To Travel: Midweek stays and shoulder season dates are increasingly likely to offer lower Las Vegas rates and better value than peak sport or concert weekends
International Trip Planning: Travelers from visa required countries should budget higher upfront U.S. visa costs, start applications early, and compare Las Vegas with destinations that do not require visas
On The Ground Experience: Visitors will still find busy casinos and restaurants but can often trade down a tier or shift dates to get noticeably better room value
Onward Travel And Changes: Convention and event travelers should factor possible dips in international attendance into networking plans and remain flexible on dates and hotel choices
What Travelers Should Do Now: Price sensitive visitors should watch for package deals, consider older properties or downtown hotels, and decide if Las Vegas is still worth the premium over regional casinos

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A Las Vegas visitor slump is starting to show up in the official numbers even as the Strip stays visibly busy, with about 41.7 million visitors in 2024 followed by softer monthly counts through 2025. New figures from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, LVCVA, and local reporting show total visitor volume running several percentage points below last year, with some summer months in double digit decline and October down roughly 4.4 percent year over year. Travelers should expect crowds at headline resorts and big events, but more tactical discounting in between peaks.

The Las Vegas visitor slump is being driven mainly by price pressure, weaker international demand, and calendar comparisons to a blockbuster 2024, while the new U.S. Visa Integrity Fee acts as a fresh headwind for some overseas markets rather than the primary cause of the downturn.

How The Las Vegas Visitor Slump Is Showing Up In The Numbers

In 2024 Las Vegas hosted roughly 41.7 million visitors, about 2.1 percent more than 2023, and convention attendance reached about 6 million, bringing overall traffic close to pre pandemic norms. Average hotel occupancy ran around 83.6 percent with an average daily room rate near $193.16 (USD), which meant high prices but a healthy pipeline of guests. By mid 2025 that picture had shifted. LVCVA data and outlet summaries show June visitation down about 11 percent year over year, August down 6.7 percent, and October at roughly 3.41 million visitors, 4.4 percent below October 2024.

Through October 2025 Las Vegas had welcomed around 32.3 million visitors, roughly 2.6 million fewer than the 34.9 million recorded in the same period of 2024, which works out to a mid single digit decline overall. Analysts who track the trailing twelve month totals estimate a drop of about 3 to 4 percent compared with the previous year, with the sharpest falls clustered in June and July. That is a slump rather than a collapse, and it still means well over 3 million visitors most months, but it is enough to weaken room demand at the margins and force properties to work harder for some segments.

International travel is where the damage looks most concentrated. LVCVA visitor profile work and follow on economic analysis show that about 12 percent of Las Vegas visitors in 2024 came from abroad, roughly 5 million people, with Canada and Mexico as leading markets and the United Kingdom and other Visa Waiver Program countries also important. Several reports point to double digit drops in international arrivals through mid 2025, especially from Canada, Mexico, and parts of Asia, even as domestic drive markets and some U.S. fly in traffic remain more resilient.

Background, What The Visa Integrity Fee Does

On July 4, 2025, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act was signed into law, creating a new $250.00 (USD) Visa Integrity Fee for most nonimmigrant visa applicants at U.S. consulates. The fee applies to common categories such as B1 and B2 visitors, F1 students, J1 exchange visitors, and many temporary workers, and it is collected when the visa is issued, on top of the existing application charge. In theory the amount can be refunded if the traveler fully complies with visa terms and can prove that later, but expert commentary from tax and immigration firms notes that the refund mechanism is administratively vague and unlikely to be used heavily in practice.

Travelers from Visa Waiver Program countries, who use the Electronic System for Travel Authorization, ESTA, instead of visas, do not pay the Visa Integrity Fee, although the ESTA charge itself is set to rise from $21.00 (USD) to $40.00 (USD). Combined visa costs for many non waiver travelers now approach or exceed about $442.00 (USD) per person, which puts the United States near the top of global price tables for entry paperwork. Industry groups and global travel analysts have warned that these higher upfront charges will further depress an inbound market that was already seeing overseas arrivals down about 3.1 percent year over year as of mid 2025.

For Las Vegas specifically, this means the new fee falls hardest on a subset of long haul and regional visitors from non waiver countries, including parts of Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East, while leaving much of the Canadian, Mexican, and European market structurally unchanged but still affected by wider political sentiment and cost concerns.

How Much Of The Slump Comes From The New Fee

The timing suggests that the Visa Integrity Fee is a contributing factor, not the spark. The steepest monthly declines in 2025 visitation appeared in June and July, when overall visitor numbers fell about 11 percent compared with 2024, months before the fee took effect on October 1, 2025. LVCVA leaders and local economists have repeatedly flagged a drop in international travel tied to broader U.S. immigration and tariff policies, shifting exchange rates, and changing perceptions of how welcoming the United States feels.

Because international visitors account for roughly 12 percent of total Las Vegas tourism, the fee can only directly touch that share, and in practice only the portion that needs full visas rather than ESTA or visa exempt entry. Analysts interviewed by global outlets frame the Visa Integrity Fee as another reason for marginal visitors to stay away, especially from non waiver countries already facing interviews, documentation hurdles, and long wait times, rather than as the main reason that millions of visitors are missing from the 2025 totals.

What is more, the fee sits inside a broader package of rule changes, including proposals for visa bonds and tighter limits on some student and work visas, which together reinforce the perception that the United States is a high friction, high cost destination. For a city like Las Vegas, which relies on visitors with discretionary income, that stack of friction tends to push some demand toward other countries or toward closer domestic destinations.

Prices, Perception, And Competition

Price is the bluntest part of the story. LVCVA figures show average daily rates near $193.16 (USD) in 2024, with resort fees, parking charges, and premium show and dining prices on top. Coverage from business and gaming outlets describes a perception shift in 2025, where many travelers still see Las Vegas as exciting but no longer see it as acceptable value for a spontaneous long weekend or multiple trips per year.

At the same time, regional casinos across the United States are enjoying a rebound as more gamblers choose to stay closer to home. State level revenue data compiled by financial analysts show gross gaming revenue at casinos outside Nevada up about 5 percent in July and 6 percent in August 2025 compared with a year earlier, even as Las Vegas visitor counts dropped around 8 percent in the same period. Operators and analysts quoted in those reports say frustration with resort fees, parking costs, and expensive cocktails on the Strip is nudging people toward casinos in states such as Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, and Louisiana, where the travel cost is lower and the gambling product feels similar.

For travelers, that dynamic means Las Vegas still fills up for key weekends, but there is more discounting on the edges. Some properties are experimenting with more aggressive midweek rates, basic all inclusive offers, or bundled resort credit to keep occupancy from slipping further. Adept Traveler readers who want to go anyway can use that to their advantage by pairing event tickets with midweek arrivals or by considering older Strip properties and downtown hotels that often show the biggest price moves between peak and off peak dates.

Politics, Sentiment, And Border Controls

Politics and border rules are the other drag that does not show up directly on a resort fee line. National and local coverage ties the sharpest drops in 2025 international visitation to what some union leaders and business groups call a Trump slump, where tariffs, high profile immigration raids, and aggressive rhetoric make parts of the international audience feel less welcome in the United States. Travel from Canada and Mexico, both crucial feeders for Las Vegas, has fallen notably in some carrier and tourism board statistics, and Canadian airlines in particular have reported steep declines on Las Vegas routes.

The Visa Integrity Fee is amplifying that mood because international media and advocacy groups often frame it as a symbolic penalty as well as a cash grab, even though only some travelers actually pay it. Industry lobbyists warn that the fee, stacked on top of other measures, risks pushing international visitor spending in the United States down from about $181.00 billion (USD) in 2024 to roughly $169.00 billion (USD) in 2025, a drop that will be felt most clearly in gateway cities such as Las Vegas, New York, and Orlando.

What Travelers Can Expect If They Plan A Trip Now

For individual travelers, the Las Vegas visitor slump will not look like an empty Strip. Peak weekends around New Year s Eve, major sports events, and top tier concert residencies are still likely to sell out, and premium resorts are still aiming high on their pricing. The difference is more visible in the shoulder weeks and midweek periods, where slightly lower occupancy gives hotels more reason to offer tactical deals, particularly on older properties, secondary towers, and downtown hotels.

Domestic travelers deciding whether a Las Vegas trip is still worth it should compare total trip cost, including resort and parking fees, with the cost of a closer regional casino break or a city break somewhere else. For many travelers within driving distance of other casinos, the numbers will now favor staying closer to home unless there is a specific Las Vegas event or show that justifies the premium. Adept Traveler s earlier coverage of Las Vegas value trends and travel deals can help build a realistic budget before committing to flights and nonrefundable rooms.

International travelers from visa required countries need to factor in the higher upfront cost of U.S. entry. By the time consular fees, the $250.00 (USD) Visa Integrity Fee, and ancillary charges are totaled, a family of four could easily spend more than $1,600.00 (USD) before buying plane tickets, which makes alternatives such as Mexico, the Caribbean, or parts of Europe more competitive. In many cases the smarter move is to start the visa process earlier than before, to check existing visa validity before booking, and to compare Las Vegas with destinations that deliver similar entertainment without a U.S. visa requirement, as outlined in Adept Traveler s guide to U.S. tourist visas and ESTA rules.

Looking ahead into early 2026, convention season will be an important test. Global shows such as CES rely on a mix of domestic and international attendees, and even a small percentage drop in long haul participation can translate into thousands of fewer badges, room nights, and restaurant covers. Most forecasters expect a managed slowdown rather than a collapse, with Las Vegas still functioning as a major convention and leisure hub, but with a softer international contribution and a heavier reliance on drive markets and regional air traffic. For travelers, that likely means the Las Vegas visitor slump will continue to coexist with crowded evenings on the Strip and occasional bargains for those willing to travel off peak.