Las Vegas becoming 'playground for the affluent' as 'everyday traveler' left behind

As Las Vegas tourism continues to decrease, many are calling out the high prices, as others say Vegas is now appealing primarily to America’s wealthy rather than the "average traveler."

In the "r/LasVegas" forum on Reddit, one user wrote, "Las Vegas is overpriced and out of touch. I’m not surprised people aren’t visiting."

Said another person, "I actually think Las Vegas has shifted its strategy, and it’s not by accident, it’s by design. The city is no longer trying to appeal to the average traveler or budget-conscious visitor."

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The user went on, "Instead, Vegas is now targeting people with serious disposable income. It’s become a playground for the affluent, and that’s exactly what the current business model is built around.

The person added, "The Strip isn’t trying to be accessible anymore. It’s being curated. It’s becoming more exclusive, and that’s intentional."

Las Vegas tourism has been dropping as high prices and fees drive away average travelers. Critics say the city now targets wealthy visitors. (iStock)

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) recently released its numbers for July visitors, noting a 12% drop from last year.

There were 3,089,300 visitors this July compared to over 3.5 million last year, while occupancy on the Strip dropped 7% from 86.5% last year.

"They don’t want Jim & Marleen from Arkansas who won’t gamble, drink at the cocktail lounges, or eat at high-end restaurants and pinch pennies," commented another Redditor.

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"They want Bradley & Stephanie from California who blindly spend money without a second thought at every turn," the person continued. 

Rick Harrison of "Pawn Stars" previously told Fox News Digital the Las Vegas Strip has "gotten a little insane with their prices."

"The Strip isn’t trying to be accessible anymore. It’s being curated. It’s becoming more exclusive, and that’s intentional," said one user on Reddit.  (iStock)

"I've heard so many people complain," said Harrison. "They go to a hotel, they go to check out. And there's $500 in stupid fees on their bills — resort fees and parking fees and this fee and that fee."

Circa Casino and Resort CEO Derek Stevens told Fox News Digital earlier that tourism traffic is disproportionate. 

"I've heard so many people complain."

Stevens said he is seeing continued growth in the high-end market, but it is "the other end that is kind of hurting."

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Cirrus Aviation, a Las Vegas private jet charter company, said business for them is booming.

"It's the millionaires, the billionaires, the celebrities, the athletes, the residencies that we have the honor of accepting in Las Vegas to make our Las Vegas trip just move in groups. You name it, they're flying in," Travis Turner, vice president of Client Experiences, told Fox News Digital.

Las Vegas has intentionally shifted its strategy, say a number of people, to appeal to affluent visitors rather than budget-conscious travelers. (iStock)

Turner said they have not been impacted by a tourism decline and actually are seeing an increase in revenue.

"In Las Vegas, we're fortunate enough to have a lot of different conferences and a lot of big events that come back and forth," said Turner. 

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He said they see a lot mid-week travel based on the conferences and different activities going on.

"Typically, it's going to be a Thursday, Friday, Sunday, Monday turn based off what they have going on for the weekends," said Turner. "A lot of artists and different celebrities and concert performers come on Wednesday and Thursday to prepare for the weekend coming in."