LV tourism indicators still below 2000 levels

By Liz Benston (contact)

Friday, Nov. 15, 2002 | 11:10 a.m.

Visitor volume in Las Vegas surged by 8.6 percent in September compared with the same month last year, but tourism is still off from 2000 levels.

The increase was driven primarily by airline traffic that resumed following the terrorist attacks that profoundly hurt business in the weeks following Sept. 11, 2001.

Volume was still down by 6.7 percent from September 2000, a sign that the economy has not yet recovered from the terrorism and economic decline that has affected the city's tourism industry, according to data released Thursday by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

"While the 8.6 percent increase is a significant improvement over a depressed September '01, we shouldn't overstate its importance," Terry Jicinsky, the agency's marketing research manager, said. "The added two-year comparison makes it more relevant."

September marked the first month the tourism authority has issued comparisons to 2000. It will continue to release 2000 comparisons for the last three months of the year.

The authority doesn't offer projections, making it difficult to determine whether the figure is in line with expectations.

Wall Street analysts have so far been fairly bullish on Las Vegas' recovery, noting that August visitor volume was down less than 1 percent from the same month last year and before the effect of September's terrorism.

About 2.75 million people visited Las Vegas during September, up from 2.53 million visitors in September 2001 but down from 2.95 visitors in September 2000.

A 33 percent jump in airline passenger traffic during the period, to 2.83 million, drove much of that increase as people returned to the skies following Sept. 11, Jicinsky said.

Convention attendance is up 30.9 percent for the period, while the projected economic impact jumped nearly 22 percent, from $221 million to $269 million.

Room occupancy rose 6.4 points, to 80.1 percent. Weekend occupancy rose to 88.9 percent in September and midweek occupancy increased to 76.3 percent. The average daily room rate rose 1.1 percent, to $76.

Average daily auto traffic on major highways was nearly flat, increasing a half a percentage point for the period. Traffic on Interstate 15 at the California-Nevada border dropped by 1 percent.

In Laughlin, visitor volume fell by 2.7 percent, to 325,735, from September 2001. Convention attendance increased by more than 7,000, but total occupancy fell by 1.7 points, to 79 percent. Average daily room rates fell by 8.9 percent to $35. Airplane passengers to Laughlin-Bullhead City rose by more than 9,800, to 16,183. Average daily auto traffic fell by nearly 2 percent.

In Mesquite, visitor volume fell by 17.3 percent, to 115,512. Total occupancy fell by 10.2 points, to 73.8 percent, but average daily room rates improved by 2.3 percent, to $32. Average daily auto traffic was nearly flat for the period.