Las Vegas rarely hits capacity. Major conventions, sporting events, and concerts certainly pack the city, but with so many hotel rooms on and just off the Strip as well as the explosive growth of the Downtown Fremont Street area has made it truly difficult for the entire city to reach full occupancy.
Prices, of course, go up during major events and desirable rooms at properties owned by Caesars Entertainment (CZR), MGM Resorts International (MGM), Wynn Resorts (WYNN) and other top operators become scarce. But, you can almost always find a room even if it's not your first choice or exactly where you want to stay.
The same might be said of restaurant reservations. You're not getting into Nobu or one of Wolfgang Puck's restaurants during the busier times on the Strip, but there are plenty of lesser places that will be able to feed you.
As the Strip grows, however, the number of rooms, restaurants, casinos, and entertainment venues keeps climbing, allowing the city to accommodate more people. The problem isn't going to be finding places for people to sleep, eat, and have fun.
Instead, the Las Vegas Strip (and the city overall) face a crisis when it comes to getting people to the airport.
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Harry Reid Airport Nears Its Capacity
Airports have a number of factors that set their capacity. First, there are only so many runway slots as planes' takeoffs and landings have to be spaced out. There are also practical concerns over how many gates are available and also worries about how many seats, bathrooms, and places to eat the airport contains.
Many airports also have curfews when flights must stop or be severely limited. And, in some cases, it's possible for airports to simply max out. That's why New York City has two airports as well as one in Newark, N.J., and a smaller one on Long Island.
As one of the 10 busiest airports in the United States, Las Vegas' Harry Reid Airport (formerly known as McCarran) keeps getting busier.
"Harry Reid International Airport hosted a record high 52.6 million passengers in 2022, according to figures it released on Monday [Feb. 6]. That shatters its previous record of 51.5 million, set in 2019, and represents nearly 13 million more travelers and a 32.6% increase over 2021," Casino.org reported.
That's a problem because the airport is nearing its capacity limits.
"Here’s the bad news – it leaves only 10 million-12 million more passengers before Las Vegas’ only major airport reaches its capacity. That’s expected to happen around 2030," Casino.org's Corey Levitan wrote.
Las Vegas Has a Long-Term Plan
In order to handle growth and increased demand, there has been a plan for decades to build a second airport. Called the Southern Nevada Supplemental Airport (SNSA), the project has started to move forward again with environmental and airspace studies currently underway.
Clark County, the county where the new airport would be located, is expected to ask the state for permission to begin design work.
"First proposed as the Ivanpah Valley Airport in 1998, it is slated for 6,500 acres of former Bureau of Land Management desert 30 miles south of Las Vegas between the towns of Jean and Primm. It will host up to 35 million travelers per year," according to Casino.org.
The problem -- and it's a big one -- is that Harry Reid will hit capacity in 2030 and SNSA is not expected to be completed before 2037. In the interim, capacity could be managed by airlines flying more at off-peak hours and using larger planes (since capacity is based on planes, not people).
In addition, some private jets, could be diverted to smaller air fields nearby.
