Meet You in Nevada: Reopening to Visitors Far and Wide

By Jennifer Rachel Baumer

For the first time since the pandemic quarantine, Nevada’s visitor volume was more than 4 million in June, said Brenda Scolari, director, Nevada Tourism & Cultural Affairs, TravelNevada. “Even though that’s 16 percent below comparable in the same month in 2019, we have had visitation growth steadily improving month to month.”

Visitor numbers reflect tourism trends statewide and show a difference between northern and southern Nevada. Recent research from TravelNevada shows Las Vegas down approximately 10 percent below July 2019; comparably, Washoe County was down 5 percent.

Tourism by the Numbers

“July marked the strongest visitation month since the pandemic began,” said Steve Hill, president and CEO, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA). The destination saw 3.3 million visitors, up 11.2 percent month over month and down 10.4 percent from July 2019.

“This last summer we saw really historically strong numbers,” said Charles Harris, president and CEO, Reno-Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority (RSCVA). “Specifically, we set an all-time record in the month of July for the most taxable room revenue for a single month.” Following the best June on record with $45 million in taxable income, July came in at $53.8 million, making it the best month in RSCVA history.

“If you look at the summer, we had backto-back months that were [in the] top five [in taxable revenue] of all time,” said Harris. “But if you look at the first three quarters of the last fiscal year, there were struggles due to the pandemic. In fiscal year 2021, taxable revenues were down about 19 percent compared to pre-pandemic numbers of 2018, 2019.”

Other areas rebounded even faster. When Tahoe reopened to visitation after the 2020 shutdown, demand was instant and unexpected. Outdoor recreation was in demand, and in winter 2020-21 the ski season was mostly normal.

Read the entire article at Nevada Business Magazine: https://www.nevadabusiness.com/2021/11/meet-you-in-nevada-reopening-to-visitors-far-and-wide/