Vegas Tourism Takes A Dive

Officials there are expecting to see the fewest amount of tourists visiting town since 1999.

"The Strip's business model for the 21st century, which was to tap into an ever-expanding supply of free-spending visitors clamoring for first-class hotel rooms, four-star restaurant fare and high-priced shows, has been shattered by its worst recession in decades.

Vegas' ability to weather previous declines made it seem recession-proof. No longer. The carnage left by the economic downturn that began last year is unlike anything this town has seen.

Tourism is down for the second year in a row, and the people who come aren't spending with the abandon of the past."