The widely reported tourism declines in Las Vegas, Nevada, continued in October, although it was considered a “relative improvement” compared to the previous nine months of 2025.
Leaving Las Vegas
Had it not been for the 30,000 people visiting Las Vegas for Oracle’s annual convention, Oracle AI World Tour, the numbers would have been worse. However, the 3.4 million visitors in October revealed a decrease of 4.4% in October, down from 3.56 million a year ago.
Las Vegas tourism has declined year-over-year in every month this year, but if there is any solace to be taken in that number, the 4.4% drop in October was the smallest decrease since the 1.1% decline in January. Some of that optimism was tied to the Oracle convention, which moved its freshly branded Oracle AI World Tour (formerly Oracle CloudWorld) from September to October.
LVCVA Spins the Positives
Looking to put a positive spin on the data, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) released the following statement: “October proved to be a strong convention month with attendance up 7.9% year-over-year, supported in part by the scheduling shift of Oracle CloudWorld with 30,000 attendees, which fell in October this year versus September last year.”
The hotel occupancy numbers show that rooms were filled at 83.7% compared to 85.7% in October 2024, while weekend occupancy tumbled from 94.6% a year ago to 92.7%. Midweek occupancy also dropped slightly from 82.6% to 80.1% year-over-year, while the Strip hotels sustained a mild drop of 1.8%, from 87.8% to 86% this October. However, the downtown hotels suffered the biggest October plunge, dropping from 80.4% in October 2024 to 75.2% in October 2025.
Overall, Las Vegas has seen 2.6 million fewer visitors this year, roughly 260,000 fewer per month after the first 10 months of 2025, or a total of 32.3 million, which is down from last year’s 34.9 million visitors.
November Looms Large
Despite the 4.4% year-over-year drop in October, the outlook for Las Vegas tourism remains optimistic in November, as its third Formula 1 Weekend attracted 150,000 people. Moreover, the visitors spending a Thanksgiving in Vegas should bolster November’s numbers.
The F1 crowd is largely a higher-spending category of tourists, and that was a big boon to the resorts, the sportsbooks, and Las Vegas as a whole.
Bill Hornbuckle, CEO and President of MGM Resorts International, commented on the extravagant event, saying, “If you recall, this is the second or third most-worst weekend of the year, so to be able to put this injection into the community and the city and obviously for us at MGM Resorts for what we do at the (Bellagio) Fountain Club is a real boost, and we look forward to doing this for many, many years to come.”
Long-Term Growth for F1 in Vegas
MGM Resorts’ properties boasted a 98% occupancy rate during the F1 weekend, and even actor Mark Wahlberg, a full-time Las Vegas resident when he is not jet-setting to film locations, believes the F1 series is going to become ingrained in the city’s cultural landscape.
“I think people are really starting to gravitate towards it,” Wahlberg said. “It’s a bit of a slow build, because it’s not the most popular sport in America. But I think locals are even starting to appreciate it. People complained a lot about traffic and things of that nature, but it’s doing so much for the economy and so much for the city as a whole. So, I think it will continue to grow. It’s nice to see every year; it’s got a nice, slow build. Which I think is going to make it a lot more sustainable.”
