Las Vegas vs Panama City

Las Vegas leads Panama City by 1 points on the CIRA Index, 59 to 58. Las Vegas grades better on 13 measures, Panama City on 8; the same 35 measures from public sources for both.

Scores by each organisation's criteria

• CIRA Index: Las Vegas 59, Panama City 58
• OECD: Las Vegas 60, Panama City 55
• UN Tourism: Las Vegas 56, Panama City 61
• UNDRR: Las Vegas 67, Panama City 56

Theme by theme

• Demand and seasonality: Las Vegas 79, Panama City 67
• Economy and jobs: Las Vegas 81, Panama City 50
• Climate and hazards: Las Vegas 35, Panama City 40
• Water and environment: Las Vegas 31, Panama City 58
• Community and housing: Las Vegas 50, Panama City 42
• Access and continuity: Las Vegas 83, Panama City 67

Where Las Vegas is stronger

• Domestic share of nights: 88 % of nights by residents of the same country (metro figure) (Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA), 2024 Las Vegas Visitor Profile Study, 2024). At or above 45: grade 4/4.
• Hotel bed or room occupancy: 80.3 % average annual occupancy (metro figure) (Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA), Research Center FAQ & 2025 Year-End Summary, 2025). At or above 75: grade 4/4.
• Jobs in tourism industries: 6.3 % of employment in accommodation and food services (country figure) (World Economic Forum, TTDI 2026 (data: Travel & Tourism Economic Impact Research by World Travel & Tourism Council; Travel & Tourism by World Travel & Tourism Council), 2026). At or below 8: grade 4/4.
• Unemployment rate: 4.8 % of the labour force (metro figure) (Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation (DETR) and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), August 2026). At or below 5: grade 4/4.
• Income per head: 63,767 GDP per capita, USD PPP (metro figure) (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) via Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis FRED / Trading Economics, 2023). At or above 60,000: grade 4/4.
• Flood hazard: low (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 3/4.
• Country disaster risk: 3.3 INFORM Risk index, 0–10 (country figure) (INFORM Risk (European Commission JRC), INFORM Risk Mid 2026, 2026). Between 2 and 3.5: grade 3/4.
• Wastewater safely treated: 99 % of domestic wastewater safely treated (metro figure) (Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA), 2024). At or above 95: grade 4/4.
• Rent growth: -4.2 % change in rents over the last 12 months (Apartment List, Las Vegas, NV Rent Report (September 2026), August 2025–August 2026). At or below 3: grade 4/4.
• Tourism crisis and recovery plan: A plan with named owners, operators and recovery funding (Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) Financial & Operations Policies, 2025). Grade 3/4.
• Government effectiveness: 84 World Bank WGI percentile rank, 0–100 (country figure) (World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025). At or above 80: grade 4/4.
• Travel advisory: 1 stricter of the US and Canadian government advisory for the country, 1 (normal precautions) to 4 (do not travel) (country figure) (US State Department and Government of Canada travel advisories, 2026-09-29). At or below 1: grade 4/4.
• Dedicated tourism funding: A dedicated source plus a reserve or stabilisation fund for downturns (Las Vegas Review-Journal / LVCVA FY 2026 Budget, FY 2025–2026). Grade 4/4.

Where Panama City is stronger

• Recovery against 2019: 111.6 % of 2019 visitor nights reached in the latest full year (country figure) (Autoridad de Turismo de Panamá (ATP) / Contraloría General de la República via Road Genius & La Prensa, 2024). At or above 110: grade 4/4.
• Average length of stay: 8 nights per visitor (country figure) (Autoridad de Turismo de Panamá (ATP), 2024). At or above 3.5: grade 4/4.
• Extreme heat days: 0 days a year at or above 35°C (last 5 full years) (ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, 2021–2025). At or below 5: grade 4/4.
• Water scarcity: very low (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 4/4.
• Municipal waste per resident: 500.1 kg per resident per year (EcoIncinera / Alcaldía de Panamá, Challenges for Panama's Sustainable Development, 2016). Between 450 and 550: grade 2/4.
• Tourism intensity: 16.8 visitor nights per resident per year (country figure) (Autoridad de Turismo de Panamá (ATP) & Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censo (INEC), Reporte: Análisis de desempeño Turístico de Panamá 2023, 2023). Between 10 and 20: grade 2/4.
• Short-let density: 1.1 short-term rental listings per 100 dwellings (Global Property Guide / AirDNA and INEC Panama, Q1 2026). Between 1 and 2: grade 2/4.
• Access redundancy: 4 independent ways in: international airport, intercity rail, port, motorway (GLP International Sales / Panama Canal Authority & Metro de Panamá, 2024). At or above 4: grade 4/4.

Country context (World Economic Forum)

• United States: #2 of 110 in the WEF Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026
• Panama: #65 of 110 in the WEF Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026

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