Groups predict steady visitors for holiday

2008 file photo/Steve Marcus/Las Vegas Sun

The economy parking lot at McCarran International Airport is jammed in this file photo from last summer. Spokesman Chris Jones said that last weekend was the first time in recent months the airport had to close down some parking lots because they were full and warned that Memorial Day weekend travelers should make sure they have plenty of time to reach their gates.

By Kyle Hansen (contact)

Friday, May 22, 2009 | 1:59 a.m.

This weekend marks the unofficial start of summer as people take to the road and air for Memorial Day.

Fortunately for travelers, experts aren’t predicting many complications. And fortunately for the local economy, those experts also said visitor numbers this year shouldn't be too far from last year's figures.

Both AAA Nevada and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority said they expect about the same number of people traveling in the area this weekend as did for last year’s holiday.

A report from AAA said the organization expects 2.7 million people in the Mountain West region, which includes Nevada, to travel 50 miles or more this weekend. That's down less than 1 percent from last year.

The visitors authority expects 296,000 visitors to the area over the holiday weekend, which is the same as last year.

Those visitors mean there will be about 2.2 million cars on the road this weekend in the region, said AAA spokesman Michael Geeser.

But Geeser said he doesn’t expect highways in the area to be much more congested than a normal weekend.

“I think the roads will be fairly easy to navigate,” he said. “Given the fact that travel is down in the West, people will have a pretty easy time getting around.”

In addition to seeing an influx of tourists on the Strip, the expected pleasant weather means people are likely to head to outdoor destinations like the Grand Canyon, Lake Mead and Red Rock Canyon, Geeser said.

“This is the time of year when people like to get the boats out and hike and get to some of those outdoor destinations they don’t usually get to in the winter months,” he said.

Law enforcement agencies will be stepping up patrols on area roads, primarily looking for impaired drivers and people not wearing seat belts.

Trooper Kevin Honea said the Nevada Highway Patrol has had about 19 extra officers on overtime shifts in the region since Wednesday the extra patrols will continue through the holiday on Monday.

The highway patrol and Metro Police will be conducting DUI checkpoints today throughout the valley and law enforcement agencies in the area have been participating in the “Click It or Ticket” campaign to catch motorists without seat belts all week.

While AAA expects car travel to be about the same this year, air travel is expected to be noticeably lower.

The group expects 300,000 people to fly into the region this weekend, which is 7.5 percent fewer than Memorial Day last year.

Clark County Department of Aviation spokesman Chris Jones said air travel seems to have increased over the last couple of weeks, but he doesn’t expect the airport to be more congested over the holiday than most other weekends.

“I don’t think there’s going to be anything crazy,” he said. “Las Vegas has peak periods all the time, not just on three-day weekends.”

However, Jones did say that last weekend was the first time in recent months the airport had to close down some parking lots because they were full.

Travelers can expect similar parking shortages this weekend, and should plan on getting to airport check-in at least 90 minutes before their flight, he said.

People might be coming to Las Vegas for the weekend, but because of the increase of available rooms since last year and lower room rates, the same number of visitors means lower occupancy rates and less of an economic impact on the region, according to LVCVA numbers released Thursday.

There are 3.2 percent more rooms available this year, the authority said, making the weekend’s expected occupancy -- 93.5 percent -- 2.6 percentage points lower than last year.

And the authority said it expects the non-gaming economic impact from visits to the area this weekend to be $178.5 million, down from $189.2 million last year.

The number of people traveling in the western part of the country is not totally reflective of the national situation, Geeser said. Instead, AAA expects a slight increase in travel nationwide.

The group said it expects 32.4 million people to travel, an increase of 1.5 percent more than last year.

“There are signs that the economy is starting to turn around, which might influence people to travel who otherwise may not have planned a trip,” he said. “But economically, things don’t appear to have turned around enough to drive more people to travel, leading to another major holiday weekend in the Nevada area where we are seeing a slight decline in overall travelers.”