Las Vegas revisited

I just got back from five days in Las Vegas, and it’s obvious that things have not returned to anything resembling the glory days.

In 2008, some 50 million people visited Sin City, ate in the restaurants, saw the shows and tried their hands at games of chance. A year later, only 30 million returned – a drop off of more than 40 percent. This year, it’s estimated that 40 million will take advantage of the fun city of the desert, but that’s still down 20 percent. That’s a major drop in revenue.

And it shows. Maintenance work has declined significantly. Roadways and sidewalks are a little shabby, the automated walkways and escaltors over the streets often don’t work or labor hard. In the casinos themselves, staffing has been signicantly reduced as they search for ways to save money. Fewer staff at check in, less maintenance and cleaning of the rooms, and fewer dealers, working longer hours.

Using an analogy that Las Vegas will understand. It’s like the difference between a 20-year old call girl and a 30-year old streetwalker. You get the same thing out of both, but you feel a little sorry for the streetwalker.

Still – there’s nothing like Vegas and I’ll keep going back.