Room rates inching up as Strip hotels see steady demand

This past weekend marked some of the busiest days Las Vegas has seen since the onset of the pandemic. Judging by room rates, that level of demand could carry forward this weekend.

After seeing room rates climb significantly during the first weekend of March Madness, some properties are inching up prices during the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Others have already sold out of rooms for this weekend.

“Things are looking up,” said gaming consultant Debi Nutton, a former Wynn Resorts Ltd. executive who now consults for Resorts World Las Vegas. “Looking at the room rates, it shows demand.”

Pent-up demand

Room pricing between last weekend and this Saturday varies by property.

Some are slightly cheaper than last Saturday. A stay at Aria went from starting at $349 to $329, and starting rates at Wynn Las Vegas dropped from $399 to $359 in that time span, according to Hotels.com.

Gaming consultant Josh Swissman of The Strategy Organization said that slight drop follows similar trends seen during previous years’ NCAA tournaments. He said room rates would stay “relatively even” between the first and second weekend of the tournament, despite far fewer teams playing.

While it’s “not uncommon” to see hotels sell out the second weekend of March Madness, Swissman said the price boost seen this year hints that demand for Las Vegas visits remains high.

Rates at Excalibur started at $139 last Saturday. On Monday, Hotels.com showed room listings starting at $238, a 42 percent increase. The Flamingo is set to jump 32 percent from $175 to $259 over the week. And Caesars Palace’s website shows that the Strip property is already fully booked Saturday.

“The first week of March Madness is always great because of all the games,” Nutton said. “You’d think next week wouldn’t be as good, but when we talk about pent-up demand and the great weather in Las Vegas, it’s a great time to go. … I think people feel comfortable returning.”

Representatives for Caesars Entertainment Inc., Wynn Resorts Ltd. and Las Vegas Sands Corp. did not respond to requests for comments on business demand this weekend. MGM Resorts International, Red Rock Resorts Inc. and Boyd Gaming Corp. declined to provide comment.

Reasons behind the rates

Swissman believes there are a few reasons why room rates could be higher this weekend.

It’s possible that last weekend was even busier than expected, he said. Now that operators realize just how in-demand rooms are again, they could be adjusting rates accordingly.

“I bet some operators were perhaps a bit skeptical on whether the visitation volume would be as big as it was,” he said. “(There could have been) a little bit of compression in rates to account for that slight bit of hesitancy.”

Walk-up business — customers who book a stay the day of their arrival — could have been one segment that threw off demand estimates.

“People haven’t had as much time to plan their trips because there’s been so much uncertainty,” leading to more walk-up customers, Swissman said. He believes operators could be betting on more walk-up business this weekend and increasing rates in anticipation.

Overlapping spring break travelers also could be boosting rates, he said, as well as a growing sense of pent-up demand among travelers.

Contact Bailey Schulz at bschulz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @bailey_schulz on Twitter.