Day: August 21, 2025

Despite what you may have seen on the internet lately, Las Vegas is not dead. The casinos are not empty. The streets aren’t bare. If I’m being honest here, I wouldn’t have minded a little less crowding during my little mid-August gals’ jaunt to Sin City in an ill-fated attempt to see Kelly Clarkson, who canceled her residency there this month. But the vibe in Vegas is different. It’s a slow summer, and it shows.

Touristically speaking, this has been an unfun year for Vegas. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority says visitor volume to the city fell by 11.3% in June compared to the prior year. Convention attendance and hotel occupancy declined, too. The total number of visitors is down 7.3% over the first half of 2025. Gaming revenue is up, a signal that the people who are going are still gambling. But consumer spending, including at restaurants and bars and apparel and jewelry retailers, is down millions of dollars over the last 11 months compared to the prior stretch. Some casinos have laid off workers.

Why this is happening doesn’t have one straight answer. A lot of factors are in play — the rocky state of the economy, tighter US immigration policies, hangover effects from the California wildfires that have some would-be visitors staying home. The tentpole events that drew in scads of visitors in recent years, such as March Madness and the Super Bowl, aren’t around this year for a 2025 boost. There are still Formula 1, the Raiders, and whatever is going on with the Sphere, which is hosting the Backstreet Boys, but those attractions are extra pricey in a moment when many travelers are feeling extra price sensitive.

Las Vegas has relatively recently developed a reputation for being expensive and for nickel-and-diming people at every opportunity. The costs of plane tickets, hotel rooms, food, drinks, and even parking have skyrocketed. The nature of the city has changed, too. Instead of existing as America’s slightly seedy city of vice, Vegas has gotten a sort of glow-up in an attempt to broaden its appeal. The upside: A broader audience might be up for a trip to Vegas than in the past. The downside: Vegas now resembles so many other destinations that it loses out to similarly priced (or even cheaper) competitors, especially if visitors aren’t having a bang-up time.

“You’re starting to change the mentality of the visitor where they’re thinking, ‘Well, I could go to Las Vegas, but it’s going to be a pain in my neck, or I could go to Cancún,'” says Michael Schoenberger, a professor of hospitality management at the College of Southern Nevada. “It’s a cumulative effect that’s just now starting to show up.”

While the “what’s wrong in Las Vegas” conversation is peaking right now, things have been shaky for a while, says Amanda Berlarmino, an assistant professor of hospitality at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. “To be honest, we’ve struggled with visitation since the pandemic,” she says.

Asian tourism has not recovered, she says, and this year, there’s been a decline in other international visitors, including, importantly, Canadian tourism, thanks in part to President Donald Trump’s antagonism towards America’s neighbors to the north. International visitors tend to do longer stints than domestic visitors, who might just pop down for a weekend, which makes their pullback cut a little deeper.

We are a more expensive market now than we’ve ever been before.

The domestic picture isn’t especially pretty, either. Worries about the economy may be keeping Americans at home. A disproportionate amount of Las Vegas visitors tend to come from California, but the number of vehicles crossing the California-Nevada border on Interstate 15 declined by 4.3% in June compared to the same month last year. Berlarmino chalks much of it up to the fires that hit Southern California at the start of the year. Schoenberger notes that disruptions from highway construction have been a problem, too.

Steve Hill, the president and CEO of the LVCVA, says while these issues are not ideal, Las Vegas has seen worse in the recent past. “It is not the crisis situation like we’ve seen through Covid or the extended downturn through the Great Recession,” he says.

Beyond some of these more acute issues, one major complication that’s gradually been growing may finally be reaching an inflection point: pricing. To put it plainly, Las Vegas is hella expensive.

The longtime proposition of Las Vegas was that it was relatively cheap to get there and stay there, because once people got there, the amount they spent on gambling at the casinos and resorts more than made up for it. But that’s no longer the case. Flights to the city may still be slightly less expensive than some destinations, but they’re not that far from trips to New Orleans, Miami, or Washington, DC. The same goes for hotels, though prices can vary widely. The typical clientele has also shifted. While Las Vegas’ traditional market was people over 60 who tended to be value-conscious, now more people are coming in their prime earning years and demanding more premium services and experiences. Resort economics have changed, too. Gambling is no longer so important as a revenue driver — it’s hotel rooms, food and beverage, and events. Combine all of that with inflation and consumer wallets being squeezed, and you can see why some visitors may shorten trips or just scrap them altogether.

“We are a more expensive market now than we’ve ever been before,” Berlarmino says.

Many Las Vegas casinos and hotels started charging for parking in the mid-2010s, and they’re piling on resort fees, too. My recent four-night stay at the Cosmopolitan Hotel included $249.44 in resort fees and associated taxes. While there are ways to do Las Vegas that aren’t so costly — staying in budget or value hotels away from the Strip, buying food and alcohol at a store, or abstaining from drinking entirely — all the little add-on fees can make people feel like they’re being ripped off.

“Since starting right before the pandemic and then continuing after the pandemic, we’ve introduced a lot of pain points to the visitors that historically were not present,” Schoenberger says. “Why we charge people to drink what drinks cost in New York City, I have no idea.”

Hill says that the narrative around the cost of Vegas is “overblown,” and says there are “all kinds of ways” to achieve a budget-friendly experience. “We’ve got 150,000 rooms and they, right this minute, run from $9 probably to $600,” he says. The slowdown in visitors has led some hotels to cut their prices, he adds.

Why we charge people to drink what drinks cost in New York City, I have no idea.

Gambling being more widely available around the US is both a blessing and a curse for Las Vegas, which used to be one of two major places in the states, along with Atlantic City, where you could legally bet. On the one hand, people who have the gambling itch can probably find a place to scratch it within a couple of hours from their homes. On the other hand, the proliferation of gambling may also mean more people get the itch.

Chris Grove, a sports-gambling-industry investor at Acies Investments, tells me the growth of sports betting has been “nothing but a net positive for Vegas.” It’s given people a taste of betting, and if they like it, it might inspire them to go to the biggest place in America there is to do it.

Grove compared it to the poker boom of the early 2000s. “Online poker got really popular, and you ask the question: Did that do anything to dissuade people from coming to Vegas to play poker? And the answer is no,” Grove says.

Plus, summer is a slow time for sports gambling. If people were sitting home on their couches on sports betting apps instead of going to Vegas, they’d be doing so during the NFL season and March Madness.

Other Vegas developments have been a mixed bag. Formula 1, back in Vegas since 2023, is an attraction, but preparing for it has caused transit disruptions, Schoenberger says. In the company’s second-quarter earnings call, MGM Resorts CEO Bill Hornbuckle said that Las Vegas remains “fundamentally solid” and blamed the company’s 9% drop in earnings from its Strip resorts on a “uniquely disruptive remodel” at its MGM Grand and slow mid-week bookings at two of its value operations. Caesars said in its second-quarter earnings that it had seen decent gaming results in Las Vegas during the period, even in the face of weaker demand for its hospitality offerings.

“The top third-ish of the market is still doing exceptionally well,” Hill, of the Convention and Visitors Authority, says. It’s when you get into the middle third that “it becomes more acute, the more budget-conscious the visitor needs to be.”

It’s tempting to ascribe to Las Vegas’ slowdown some greater meaning. Maybe it’s just a temporary blip, but what if it’s a recession indicator? Or a sign of the times and proof that Las Vegas is over?

Declaring that the slow summer is the end of Sin City as we know it would be a bit premature. The same goes for calling it a surefire sign of a recession. But it does seem like Vegas is in a sort of weird limbo, even if it’s only temporary. It’s a place that feels stuck in time — besides some of the outfits and what’s on the TV, you might not know if you’re in a casino in 2010 or 2025. After all, DJ Pauly D of “Jersey Shore” fame is playing. Where it is getting more modern, like the additions of the Sphere and the NFL’s Raiders, it’s still figuring out the logistics. It’s responding to consumer demand for a higher-end experience, but still faces with consumers who may not be prepared to pay such high-end prices. If a trip to Vegas is going to run you the same as a vacation to New York, San Francisco, Miami, or even Mexico, you might think twice about how much of a premium you actually put on the Sin City experience, especially when the main differentiator is that in Vegas, you’re surrounded by tables and machines designed to suck money out of you.

To be clear, Las Vegas is lovely. Gambling is fun, as long as it is done responsibly. The shows are great, the hotels are comfy. Its nightlife offers a good amount of (responsible) debauchery, and its daylife is fairly family-friendly. When it’s not sweltering hot out, the outdoor stuff is really great, too. Despite the videos, pictures, and memes floating around online, it was far from empty. (Also, anywhere could be painted as bare if you go at the right time of day.)

The city might just be in the midst of a slight pivot moment — not that it’s changing its identity, but it’s finding an identity in a culture and economy that are changing around it.

“Las Vegas is still attractive to people,” Schoenberger says, “because it’s a place where you can go and no matter where you’re from in the world, it looks different.”

Emily Stewart is a senior correspondent at Business Insider, writing about business and the economy.

Charles Meoni may be 82, but he knows he can drive an 18-wheeler. He just can’t seem to find a hiring manager who agrees.

For decades, Meoni worked as a truck driver, earning about $1,200 a week at his peak. Twenty years ago, his heart and neck started to hurt. Doctors found he had an aneurysm. He treated his condition with medications, then had a major heart surgery this February that put him out of work.

Once he was ready to return, his job was no longer available. He sent applications to other local transportation companies, and still couldn’t find work.

“Most places don’t want an 82-year-old driver,” said Meoni, who lives in Florida.

He said he’s too old to apply for long-haul jobs, and the companies with shorter routes won’t bite. A connection found him work as a restaurant valet, but Meoni turned it down because he couldn’t handle the physical demands and weather exposure.

Meoni’s wife, 85, is also on the job hunt and is very concerned about their finances, he said. She ran a bar years ago and held a clerical job. He and his wife have about $20,000 left in savings. He now receives about $2,000 a month in Social Security, which isn’t enough to cover all their expenses, including roof repair costs.

“Everything fell down, and I’m just trying to survive right now,” Meoni said. “I have to dig out a little more money all the time. Even $500 a week more would save me.”

Over the past year, Business Insider has heard from dozens of older Americans navigating unemployment. Most said they don’t have enough savings to retire comfortably, and that hundreds of applications have yielded no work. Some opted to take major pay cuts just to have some income.

Little has been reported about what job hunting looks like two decades after retirement age. For the small population of 80-somethings healthy enough to work, applying for jobs often feels futile, particularly in more manual or technical roles. For those who do find work, it’s often in part-time retail, caregiving, or nonprofit roles that pay slightly above minimum wage.

Ageism in the workplace is often hard to prove. AARP research from 2024 found that six in 10 workers age 50 and older have either experienced or witnessed age discrimination at work. Over two dozen experts on aging and retirement recently told Business Insider that ageism is prevalent in the workplace, and shared some solutions.

Ashton Applewhite, an anti-ageism activist and author, said employers have misconceptions about older workers’ technical abilities or dedication to work. They’re generally offered fewer training opportunities, but are as motivated to learn new technology as younger workers, she said. She added that there is little evidence that older workers are less economically productive than their younger colleagues.

“Data shows that if you give someone who’s been on the job for a while new challenges, they are as able and interested in adapting as a younger worker,” Applewhite said.

Of course, some jobs are especially dangerous for workers in their 80s and 90s or anyone facing medical issues. One wrong step on a construction site could be fatal, while standing for five hours or lifting heavy objects could exacerbate arthritis or joint pain. Some companies may not want to take the liability risk.

For this story, Business Insider spoke to eight people in their 80s navigating unemployment after a layoff or medical issue, and nearly two dozen more reached out through an ongoing reader survey of older workers.

‘I’m probably a liability’

Many of the older workers who can’t find jobs told Business Insider that they have applied for physically demanding roles in driving, construction, transportation, and maintenance. Some of these are among the most fatal jobs for workers of all ages.

William Coburn, 83, said he would be living on the street if it weren’t for job search and supportive services through the Senior Community Service Employment Program — a federal program for which the Trump administration later paused funding. He can’t find anything in his previous line of work, which he suspects would pay him much more.

Coburn ran an appliance maintenance business for 25 years before retiring about three years ago.

He sent in his résumé for any maintenance technician role he could find in his area. He applied to drive a forklift and secured a commercial driver’s license in May.

“I’m 83 years old, but I feel like a 40-year-old man,” Coburn said. “I’m strong and have no health problems whatsoever. But I’m probably a liability to them because of my age.”

Coburn received $15.49 an hour, 20 hours a week, while training and looking for work through the nonprofit PathStone since December. The pay wasn’t sufficient to cover all his expenses, and with SCSEP cuts, he relies solely on his $1,200 monthly Social Security check. He has lived in a motel for the last six months, which costs around $1,400 monthly, and he’s struggling to make car payments.

He said he’s already burned through $150,000 he saved for retirement. “Social Security does not pay you enough money to even live on,” said Coburn. “By the end of the month, I’m broke.”

Gary Officer, president and CEO at the nonprofit CWI Works, which helps older Americans secure work, said more employers need to recognize the benefits of hiring older workers. Older workers often have deep experience in soft skills like teamwork and communication, he said. “Those are traits that come with wisdom,” he said.

Ifeoma Ajunwa, a law professor at Emory Law School, found in a study that hiring and social media platforms use practices that deter older people from applying — like job postings with ageist language such as “digital natives” or “energetic.”

Ajunwa said that AI has opened doors for some older workers, making remote work easier and streamlining tasks with AI assistants. Older workers who struggle to adopt AI could be left behind, she said. And some hiring sites have used AI to estimate a candidate’s age by scanning graduation dates or years worked.

‘I’m sinking, but I’m not sinking fast enough to drown yet.’

A long and varied career isn’t a guarantee of being able to find work in your 80s. Pat Fagin Scott, 85, stopped putting her age on her résumé and has applied to any relevant job she could find. It’s proven fruitless.

Scott, a Howard University graduate, began her career in teaching before working as a tour guide at the United Nations. She held jobs in the film industry, worked at the Urban Institute, and spent 16 years at the DC Housing Authority. She’s lived for 47 years in the same five-bedroom home in Northwest DC, which is now too large for her.

In 2017, she retired from the housing agency, where she was earning over $150,000 annually. She expected that after taking some time off, she would land a new opportunity, given her long résumé.

Scott has been job hunting on and off since retiring. She’s applied through job boards like LinkedIn and Indeed, and she’s networked online. At times, she stopped applying altogether after receiving a string of rejections, opting to volunteer instead.

“I’m an old girl, but I’m not a dead girl,” Scott said. “I applied to join the Army, and that’s when I found out there’s an age ceiling.”

David Neumark, an economics professor at the University of California, Irvine, found that companies often subtly dissuade older workers from applying to jobs or call back older workers less frequently than younger workers. When online applications are age-blind, older applicants are not under-selected, though the hiring rate plummets after an in-person interview, he said.

Scott said she’s sharp and active, but it’s hard to prove that to hiring managers. She gets over $5,000 a month between her Social Security and government pension, and she recently took out a reverse mortgage to cover her bills. She wishes she had saved more so she could better weather her long unemployment.

“There are so many things going on in my life that it’s like a boat that is gathering water. Every time I plug up a hole, another hole comes,” Scott said. “I’m sinking, but I’m not sinking fast enough to drown yet.”

Michael North, an associate professor of management and organizations at New York University, said that as the workforce ages, tension between generations could grow — and impact hiring decisions.

“The older you are, the more that people see you as blocking opportunities that some believe would be better allocated to younger generations,” North said.

Sharon Solomon Rose, a social gerontologist who works as a ProAdvisor at the consulting services organization Business Authority, said employers should foster intergenerational workplaces. Companies should not isolate people in their 20s from people in their 60s.

“We need what’s called reverse mentoring,” she said, referring to younger workers mentoring older workers.

‘You have to roll with the punches’

Many older Americans are getting creative about finding work. Some said they became authors, while several opened craft businesses. Others have launched startups or handyman businesses.

Henry Montez, 87, figures he’ll land back on his feet after a layoff this year, though he won’t be applying for 9-to-5 jobs.

In the late 1960s and 1970s, Montez worked in film, television, and fashion. He said he arranged an interview with Gerald Ford in the Oval Office, did television production work in South America and Africa, and filmed young Chinese Americans tracing their roots in China. He founded and ran a production company for decades until it shut down due to pandemic-related pressures.

Through SCSEP, he found work with an organization called CASA that assists working-class Americans through financial education and legal services. He was paid around minimum wage and felt fulfilled by his work. Within CASA, he developed two bilingual programs teaching Microsoft Office to older Americans, then was laid off shortly after the Trump Administration cut the nonprofit’s AmeriCorps funding.

“You have to roll with the punches and just keep moving,” Montez said.

Montez doesn’t plan to look for a traditional 9-to-5 job. He said he’s planning to tutor high school students in arts and technology. He began working with a young entrepreneur on marketing and branding projects. The extra income will help him stay afloat and afford payments on the house he shares with a woman in her late 70s who teaches yoga and pilates.

“Too many people are willing to write things off because they’re old,” Montez said. “It’s just a number. Dying is not on my bucket list.”