Do New Las Vegas Gambling Resorts Signpost Market Optimism?

Resorts World opening up their new Las Vegas property now is one of two things. It’s either a savvy and profitable business move….or a desperate disaster they ought to have seen coming. Time will tell. Some might argue that Las Vegas gambling resorts are already too numerous. It is no longer one of few options. Casinos are commonplace in the US now. Plus of course one can so easily gamble at home with online betting sites in the US like Bovada. So why take the risk? 

Naturally, this mammoth complex hasn’t sprung from anywhere. Years in the planning and construction it should have opened last year. Obviously, that couldn’t go ahead, so whilst this may seem inopportune timing, what choice do they have? If you spend $4.3bn on the newest of Las Vegas gambling resorts you’ll want it to start earning quickly too. As quickly as possible. However, beyond the recent difficulties, is Las Vegas really all it once was in terms of travel?

Las Vegas gambling resorts are, depending on your mindset, either famous or notorious. You either believe them an evil hub of crime and debauchery or just another tourist destination. Either way, gambling is the first thing you associate with Las Vegas. So when US gambling laws began to liberalize across the country, opening casinos just down the block….well….Las Vegas lost some of it’s appeal. Which meant the city had to undergo some changes of focus or face ruin.

Vegas Visitors Down 27% On 2019

However, some believe Las Vegas will never shrug off its roots. The Genting Group for one. They own Resorts World and that shiny new example of Las Vegas gambling resorts is theirs. Of course, they’ve had a mixed track record in the US. They have not always found success in their efforts. Still, they’ve never been afraid to go big, and this resort certainly does that. What it lacks in great timing it definitely makes up for in great scale and facility. It’s not short on distractions.

“We’re just so excited to be part of the return of travel to Las Vegas and the U.S.”

• Lim Keong Hui – Deputy CEO – Genting Group 

Celine Dion and Katy Perry take up residencies in the new 5,000 seat theatre, the three hotels service 3,500 rooms, and there’s five pools to choose from. Trying to blend in it’s a cosmopolitan place with a speak-easy, a street food area, and cashless payments. They’ve even kept some of the trees from the Stardust casino which stood on the same site. So can all this really generate the revenues you need to keep Las Vegas gambling resorts competing with online sportsbook sites in the US like Bovada? 

Bovada Competes With Las Vegas Gambling Resorts

We’ll find out. So will Genting. The last time they spent over a billion on a project, in New York’s Catskills, traffic was disappointing. They hope for better things this time round. They might get them. Many observers expect a surge in travel in mid to late 2021, with 2022 seeing something similar. So far from being odd white elephants these Las Vegas gambling resorts could actually work. Genting has always wanted a global reach, this would achieve that long-held aim.

“This city rebounds faster than anybody.”

• Scott Sibella – President – Resorts World

Those who like to bet on sports in the US might point out they’ve a slot machine parlour in Queens. They know. However to number among the glittering Las Vegas gambling resorts on the Strip? A different league entirely. Perhaps they think that aspiration is worth the risk. Still, perhaps the age of these massive edifices is over. We really can all gamble at home, and Vegas will always have certain connotations to it, connotations no amount of glitz will disguise.

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We take a look at the astonishing gamble that new Las Vegas gambling resorts represent in the current travel climate.