Only 26% of Vegas room bookings in 2023 were either comp or casino-related discounts

[Dan Druff]

As you can see above, only 14% of rooms were comped, and only 12% were at a "casino rate" (discounted due to previous casino play).

A whopping 54% paid regular/rack rates for rooms. The remaining 20% got some kind of other discount, such as a convention rate.

I'm actually pretty surprised that only a quarter of Vegas visitors were getting some form of casino discount. I would have guessed that a lot of people at the casino are on SOME kind of offer, even if not a comped one.


If you'd like to see other 2023 statistics, you can download this Excel file from the LVVCA: https://assets.simpleviewcms.com/sim...1174cb4c1.xlsx

[Dan Druff]

You might also be interested in Clark County room inventory.

You can find that for 2023 here: https://res.cloudinary.com/simplevie...f043568562.pdf


Las Vegas has over 153,000 hotel rooms. Laughlin has about 8700.

[MDawg]

Yes, there was a lot of business traffic such as conventions last year, including top execs who would tie up the suites at the majors on the Strip. None of those corporate bookings was getting comp'ed.

Some evenings especially at one of the majors the restaurants would be entirely booked for special events such that they wouldn't even do take out orders.

Non-gamers paying for regular rooms is not all that unusual but people paying straight up for suites is where it gets interesting.

This is how comps work:

Perpetual Comp Machine

Comps are handed out based on two different bases:

1) Actual loss. Typically 10% of an actual loss is available for a player’s comps.
a. This was up to 15% during certain periods, such as for example during COVID some resorts were giving 15% of actual loss, but 10% is the norm.

2) Theoretical (theo) loss. Typically 35% and up to 40% of a player’s theoretical loss is available for comps. Theo loss is calculated based on what the player is expected to lose, based on average bet times number of hours played against whatever the house edge is on the game being played.

You have to figure that these businesses are just writing it off, and they don't have a mechanism to apply an individual player's comps to across the board corporate bookings anyway.

It just comes down to how much money the casino resorts are making off non-gaming traffic. When we're in the casino restaurants too and notice someone paying with a credit card, which I see that a lot, it makes you wonder where they are even staying - not even charging it to the room, comp'ed or not. The prices at the top casino restaurants is so inflated that I probably wouldn't bother to eat at any them if it weren't comp'ed.

[accountinquestion]

Yes, there was a lot of business traffic such as conventions last year, including top execs who would tie up the suites at the majors on the Strip. None of those corporate bookings was getting comp'ed.

Some evenings especially at one of the majors the restaurants would be entirely booked for special events such that they wouldn't even do take out orders.

Non-gamers paying for regular rooms is not all that unusual but people paying straight up for suites is where it gets interesting.

This is how comps work:

Perpetual Comp Machine

Comps are handed out based on two different bases:

1) Actual loss. Typically 10% of an actual loss is available for a player’s comps.
a. This was up to 15% during certain periods, such as for example during COVID some resorts were giving 15% of actual loss, but 10% is the norm.

2) Theoretical (theo) loss. Typically 35% and up to 40% of a player’s theoretical loss is available for comps. Theo loss is calculated based on what the player is expected to lose, based on average bet times number of hours played against whatever the house edge is on the game being played.

You have to figure that these businesses are just writing it off, and they don't have a mechanism to apply an individual player's comps to across the board corporate bookings anyway.

It just comes down to how much money the casino resorts are making off non-gaming traffic. When we're in the casino restaurants too and notice someone paying with a credit card, which I see that a lot, it makes you wonder where they are even staying - not even charging it to the room, comp'ed or not. The prices at the top casino restaurants is so inflated that I probably wouldn't bother to eat at any them if it weren't comp'ed.

You charge to the room in hopes they comp at end of the trip? Basically freerolling? Is that your thought?

[MDawg]

What I mean is, even for the guests who are not on a comp, they would have a credit card on file for the room and could charge to the room and then the charge would land on the credit card anyway. So when I see someone at the casino restaurants just pulling out a credit card to pay for the meal, I wonder if they are even staying in house.

The prices at these casino restaurants are so high, you have to wonder about who would come in just to dine at them, not even being a hotel guest.

[MaxPen]

What I mean is, even for the guests who are not on a comp, they would have a credit card on file for the room and could charge to the room and then the charge would land on the credit card anyway. So when I see someone at the casino restaurants just pulling out a credit card to pay for the meal, I wonder if they are even staying in house.

The prices at these casino restaurants are so high, you have to wonder about who would come in just to dine at them, not even being a hotel guest.

Not any higher than any other destination city. Have you been to a restaurant in NYC lately?

[MDawg]

If you compare the prices at the exact same restaurant inside a Vegas hotel with one outside and not in a hotel, the prices are higher in the Vegas hotel. This goes across the board whether it be McDonald's or some high end steak house chain.

[mickeycrimm]

I remember when Comdex came to town every year the rooms were sold out and the casinos were empty. The joke about the comdexers was "they come to town with one neck tie and one twenty dollar bill and don't change either one while they are there."

[soxfan]

Gotta say, honest I can't remember the last time I actually pony up to pay for a room in Vegas. With all these new joint opening and the extra supply of room should put down-wards pressure on the rooms rate, hey hey.

[jdog]

The most interesting part of the data is between 2018 and 2019, then look at 'regular rate' and 'another special rate'. Somehow 19% of previously discounted rooms become full price.

I realize it's Vegas but the number of fully comped guests is even lower than I would expect. In 2021 it's less than 10%!

[MDawg]

2021, was the year people let loose post-Covid shutdown and casinos were very busy. We spent over 9 months of 2021, staying in a huge suite in Vegas. At my level of play no big deal, but actually, a lot of people could afford suites comp-wise or even rack rate right after Covid as room and suite prices at some of the Strip majors were at extreme lows compared to pre- Covid.

Wynn experimented with cut rate rooms and suites post-Covid, then raised them right back up to keep out undesirables. Venetian, for example, lowered room prices and kept them very low until around 2022, when they started bringing them back towards normal levels.