Las Vegas Considering $6 Million Investment to Try to Lure Canadian Visitors Back
by Bruce Parkinson
Photo: Shutterstock.com
Stung by a 24% decline in Canadian visitors to Las Vegas in 2025, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is considering a a $6 million, five-year Canada marketing contract to help rebuild its most important international relationship.
Online publication Gaming America reports that LVCVA staff are recommending a renewal of a contract with Toronto-based Reach Global Marketing, its current Canadian representative.
Under the proposed agreement, Gaming America states, the LVCVA would pay $1.12 million for fiscal year 2027, starting July 1. Similar amounts would be committed in 2028 and 2029, followed by two optional additional years in 2030 and 2031. At $1.245 million and $1.285 million respectively.
The scope of work for the contract includes direct airline support, leisure sales, trade public relations, and consumer-facing PR campaigns.
The LVCVA has maintained a presence in Canada for 20 years, and Canadians represent the entertainment capital’s largest international market. In 2025, the destination attracted nearly 1.2 million visitors from Canada, accounting for 25% of all international visitors.
Vegas is currently in a bit of an overall slump. The total number of visitors to Vegas between January and November 2025 dropped 7.4% year over year. Outside of the pandemic years, this was the largest drop since the LVCVA started keeping statistics in 1970. But as bad as that is, visitors from Canada dropped off a cliff in the same period, down by a startling 24%.
Air Canada reported a 36.9% decrease in travellers, and Porter Airlines registered a 43.8% drop on routes to Harry Reid International Airport in 2025.
While a weak Canadian dollar and high Las Vegas prices are contributing factors, it is clear from research that many Canadians are avoiding the U.S. in general due to politics – mostly caused President Trump’s frequent musings about Canada becoming a 51st state, along with punishing tariffs that have hurt Canadian businesses.
The LVCVA is not acting alone. Individual operators have launched their own campaigns to try to move the needle in attracting Canadian visitors.
As Travel Market Report Canada reported last week, some Las Vegas properties have held their own campaigns to try to entice Canadians to overcome their objections and visit a favourite destination.
Downtown Las Vegas’ Circa Resort & Casino, the D Las Vegas and Golden Gate Hotel & Casino saw a surge in Canadian visitation after launching a program that treats the Canadian dollar at par with the U.S. dollar.
The participants says the promotion drew more than 15,000 visitors in its first month and generated more than 2,700 hotel room bookings. The resorts’ “At Par” commitment will continue through Aug. 31 and applies to select gaming, hotel, beverage and entertainment offerings.
