Downtown Las Vegas casino executives say business remains solid and they are optimistic for the future, but acknowledge the current uncertainty around shifting travel patterns, a widening “K-shaped economy” and growing concerns about the city’s rising prices.
At an hour-long community forum Wednesday evening, hosted by the Downtown Vegas Alliance, leaders from several major downtown hotel-casinos, including Plaza, Circa and El Cortez, along with the new head of the Fremont Street Experience, discussed topics ranging from the state of downtown gaming, customer trends, development activity and the economic forces shaping the city.
The primary message from the panel was clear: Las Vegas is neither dead nor dying; it is changing.
“It has been a challenge. We have some headwinds,” said Cliff Atkinson, the recently appointed chief executive officer of the Fremont Street Experience, who spent the previous two years as president of Virgin Hotels Las Vegas. “But I believe in the resilience of this city. You look at what’s coming on the books in 2027 and 2028, we’re reinventing ourselves, and I think that’s what this city is most known for.”
For much of 2025, declining tourism numbers and the increasing public perception that casinos, particularly those on the Strip, are nickel-and-diming visitors were the main stories coming out of Las Vegas. At the start of the forum, Joe Woody, chair of the DVA and chief financial officer for El Cortez hotel-casino, made clear what the purpose of Wednesday’s event was.
“There’s a lot of social media, there’s a lot of news media that we thought was overreporting the overcharging and prices and affordability of Las Vegas in general,” he said, “and we didn’t like that message.”
‘It’s still pretty good’
Jonthan Jossel, CEO of Plaza hotel-casino, reminded the audience that the city’s post-COVID successes may be distorting the current picture.
“I think the challenge that a lot of (casino operators) face is when you compare to 2022, 2023, and you had record growth in the city. It’s hard to compare,” Jossel said. “There’s an expression that trees don’t grow to the sky. And so, while things may not be as good as they were 12 to 24 months ago, it’s still pretty good.”
Jossel reiterated a point that several of the Strip’s biggest casino operators have made in recent earnings calls, which is that the market itself is healthy even if some of the city’s traditional visitors feel priced out.
“There is still a tremendous amount of visitation, tremendous spend (and) gaming spend,” he said.
Jeff Victor, vice president of operations for Circa Hospitality Group, which operates Circa, The D and Golden Gate casinos in downtown Las Vegas, said he has seen the impact of the emerging “K-shaped economy,” given the different price points of the three properties.
‘We’ve been watching this for several years now, where the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer,” he said. “Circa has done quite well. Those customers are not feeling it like some folks that are below the 9 percent line. The D has definitely felt it, and the Golden Gate has felt it quite a bit.”
The last six months have been “remarkable” at the El Cortez, Woody said, due in no small part to the historic property’s recent $20 million expansion and renovation.
“We’ve seen a change in our customer. Our core customer is still coming in, strong play out of them,” he said. “(But) we’re seeing a lot of people that are coming from the Strip and outside of Las Vegas. So, we’re getting new faces in there, and it’s the higher end player.”
Appeal to a mix of visitors
Downtown executives said part of their optimism comes from the area’s appeal to a mix of visitors who want a different experience from the Strip, including those seeking lower minimum bets, shorter walks and more direct interaction with staff. They said that combination continues to bring both longtime regulars and first-time visitors.
“The thing that we have downtown that I hear a lot is the relationships that people feel like you developed,” Jossel said. “Whether it’s meeting Kenny (Epstein at El Cortez) or Derek (Stevens at Circa), people love coming downtown, meeting the individuals, talking to (them) and feeling like have a relationship.”
Jossel said there is a belief among downtown operators that they can “take care of a customer in a much more meaningful way,” than their Strip counterparts.
“We can make (guests) feel pretty special downtown,” he said. “And, ultimately, we can repeat that time and time again.”
Despite the challenges described earlier in the forum, panelists said they expect downtown to remain resilient in the coming years. Atkinson, the downtown newcomer, said the area has something that cannot be replicated or reproduced elsewhere in the valley.
“It’s an authentic experience,” he said. “You can’t recreate the history (of downtown Las Vegas).”
Contact David Danzis at ddanzis@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0378. Follow @AC2Vegas_Danzis on X.
