Dramatic drop in Las Vegas hotel rates triggers F1 fans chasing refunds

Jamie Woodhouse 06 Nov 2023 8:15 PM

The Las Vegas F1 track pictured at night.

A portion of Formula 1 fans are said to be “very disgruntled” after analysis revealed reductions as high as 83 per cent in hotel prices as the Las Vegas Grand Prix debut looms.

Formula 1 pushes on with its expansion into the United States market, a popularity boom in the nation triggered by the success of Netflix’s hit F1 docuseries ‘Drive to Survive’.

And a key milestone is now on the horizon, as Formula 1 heads to Las Vegas, Nevada for the eagerly-anticipated debut of the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Las Vegas hotel prices plummet as event draws near

Of course, an event such as this was never expected to be cheap for anyone wishing to attend, though Formula 1 has faced criticism for the extreme pricing of tickets and events, while the hotels it now seems have price-related dramas to answer for.

Research by Oversteer48’s Alex Gassman generated a full price analysis of the 22 biggest hotels on the Las Vegas Strip, directly comparing the prices for each hotel over the Grand Prix weekend compared to a year ago when Formula 1 confirmed the Las Vegas GP.

Only one hotel analysed has not changed their rates, though the other 21 demonstrate extreme reductions, the peak being the ‘Circus Circus’ hotel which has dropped prices by 83 per cent. The average decrease across the 22 hotels analysed is 58 per cent.

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The report states that tickets for the Las Vegas Grand Prix are yet to sell out, in contrary to the expectations of Formula 1 and the hotel owners, triggering this price slash as hotels attempt to draw fans in.

Gassman reports that some fans have managed to secure compensation or have rebooked hotels at the current, drastically lower prices, though others are left stuck with non-refundable bookings and counting the cost of this price drop, having responded to the anticipated scramble for tickets and hotels.

The inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix is a Saturday-night race, taking place on November 18 at a street circuit which takes in the Las Vegas strip among its course.