Tourism

Visitor volume still down — but by only 2.9%

Southern Nevada visitor volume showed the shallowest decline in 11 months and weekend occupancy rates were ahead of last year’s pace in April.

12 June 2009
By Richard N. Velotta

Lawsuit spotlights illegal taxi, limo kickback practice

A lawsuit filed last week spotlights a problem that has existed in Las Vegas for years and never seems to come to resolution: the alleged diversion of tourists by some taxi and limousine drivers.

12 June 2009
By Richard N. Velotta

Friendly helpers greet bus passengers

Durango High School senior Colby Laub, 17, answers questions for tourists as a Deuce ambassador at a Las Vegas Strip bus stop on May 31.

A half-dozen tourists congregate at a bus-ticket-vending machine on the Strip, exasperated.

11 June 2009
By Brian Eckhouse

Rossi Ralenkotter

Rossi Ralenkotter, president and CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, is shown in his office May 28.

It’s almost hard to imagine that in the 50-year history of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, President and CEO Rossi Ralenkotter has only missed 14 of them.

5 June 2009
By Richard N. Velotta

Elections won’t change the face of LVCVA board much

By the time you read this, Southern Nevada voters will have chosen new representatives to city councils in Henderson, North Las Vegas and Boulder City. Next comes the wrangling to determine which elected officials will be chosen to get a plum assignment and serve on one of the most influential boards in the tourism industry, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

5 June 2009
By Richard N. Velotta

Room-tax collapse leaves LVCVA with scaled-back budget

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority has approved a vastly scaled-back $231 million budget for the 2010 fiscal year.

29 May 2009
By Richard N. Velotta

Transportation experts have an ACE up their sleeves

Three public bus models converge at the Downtown Transportation Center on May 25. At the left is a Citizens Area Transit bus, to the right is a Metropolitan Area Express (MAX) bus used between downtown and North Las Vegas and behind that, a pair of double-deck Deuce buses. When the Regional Transportation Commission begins its ACE bus routes along the Las Vegas Strip next year, vehicles similar to the MAX buses will be used.

Anyone who has watched tourists load and unload the popular double-decker Deuce buses on the Strip knows that there has to be a better way to move visitors up and down our fabulous neon byway.

29 May 2009
By Richard N. Velotta

LVCVA steps up convention marketing

Attendees browse exhibits at the National Association of Home Builders show in January at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Whether you blame the ragged shape of the economy or President Barack Obama’s unfortunate choice of words when he used Las Vegas as an example of how not to spend government bailout money, it’s painfully clear to the local tourism industry that shoring up convention attendance has to be a priority.

29 May 2009
By Richard N. Velotta

Travel execs told vacationers prefer value over glitz

Americans still want to take vacations. But travel industry executives were told Wednesday that with their limited budgets, families are shopping around for deals and, more and more, are choosing their destination based on cost.

28 May 2009
By Steve Green

Soon two will be flying London-to-Vegas

Has Las Vegas become the latest battleground in a 25-year-old feud between British Airways and Virgin Atlantic CEO Richard Branson?

26 May 2009
By Richard N. Velotta,
Buck Wargo

Can Virgin survive rival’s new London-Las Vegas route?

The Las Vegas tourism industry received unexpected news from abroad this week: British Airways, an airline known around the world for its high standards, global reach and sterling service, will begin nonstop daily flights to McCarran International Airport from the world’s busiest international terminal.

22 May 2009
By Richard N. Velotta

Groups predict steady visitors for holiday

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.

This weekend marks the unofficial start of summer as people take to the road and air for Memorial Day. Lucky for travelers, experts aren’t predicting many complications.

22 May 2009
By Kyle B. Hansen

‘Fabulous’ sign garners historic designation

County and state officials announced on Thursday that earlier this month, the 50-year-old "Welcome to Las Vegas" sign had been added to the National Register of Historic Places. From left to right: Clark County Manager Virgina Valentine, Clark County Commission Chairman Rory Reid, Nevada Historic Preservation Officer Ron James and YESCO Vice President and General Manager John Williams.

The “Welcome to Las Vegas” sign is now officially etched into history. Clark County officials announced today that the famous Las Vegas landmark has been accepted into the National Register of Historic Places. The sign, which has welcomed visitors since 1959, was inducted into the register on May 1 after months of research and paperwork by Clark County officials. A plaque was placed at the sign today, marking its place in the registry. “The sign is one of the few landmarks on the Strip that has lasted 50 years,” Clark County Commission Chairman Rory Reid said.

21 May 2009
By Amanda Finnegan

Southwest to begin service in Milwaukee

When Southwest Airlines, the busiest carrier at McCarran International Airport, begins flights to and from Milwaukee later this year, Las Vegas is expected to be one of the nonstop destinations to be served.

20 May 2009
By Las Vegas Sun Staff

Forecast: City's recovery will trail national rebound

The worst U.S. economic downturn since the Great Depression is likely to end in October, a national economist told Las Vegas convention-goers today. But while things may improve on a nationwide basis, a Las Vegas forecaster said the outlook for Southern Nevada remains grim through the end of 2010 because the recession has left U.S. consumers with little cash to spare on Las Vegas vacations.

18 May 2009
By Steve Green
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