A visitors profile released by the Las Vegas Convention And Visitors Authority has found that the average gambler budgeted $481 per trip last year compared with $532 in 2008 and more than $555 in 2007.

The report also found that average hotel spending per night was down 25 percent year-on-year to approximately $76 while the mean cost of a tour package in 2009 dropped 14 percent compared with 2008 to $640.

The study was conducted by GLS Research based on street interviews with 3,600 visitors and found that 15 percent of respondents were in Las Vegas to see friends or relatives, which a five-year high and up from eleven percent in 2008. The report concluded that these visitors would typically spend less than those who were in town mainly to gamble or attend conventions and business meetings.

It also established that higher-spending conventioneers and business meeting attendees accounted for only nine percent of the visitors in 2009, which was down from twelve percent in 2008 as the recession deterred corporate travel.

The study found that 40 percent of visitors were in Las Vegas for a vacation or pleasure while gambling accounted for 13 percent. Lesser reasons included special events and weddings and just passing through.

GLS Research found that 83 percent of visitors to Las Vegas had gambled in 2009, which was a five-year low and down from 85 percent in 2008, while those that had attended a show decreased by eight percent year-on-year to 64 percent.

Source: iGamingBusiness.com