LAS VEGAS — Never mind “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.” Perhaps the new slogan for America’s gambling capital should be “Stop over for a quickie in Sin City.” A quick visit, that is. Las Vegas tourism officials are betting that a new air terminal will lure some travelers to use Las Vegas as a regular stopover en route to Asia or other foreign places.
Some might never leave McCarran International Airport, while others might decide to make casinos happy by hopping into a cab and spending a few hours gambling.
Either way is fine with the airport — it just needs enough people traveling here to justify a $2.4 billion expansion conceived when Las Vegas was much busier. The new terminal opens in June.
The city still expects most visitors to vacation here for longer periods, but the new pitch marks a big change from past years, when Vegas could count on filling planes solely as a destination. Since the Great Recession crushed tourism, airlines have canceled Vegas-bound routes and left casinos scrambling for customers. The Associated Press
