In Atlantic City, high hopes that tourist interest is rising

Though gaming and tourism in Atlantic City were just about static in June, compared to figures from a year ago, a tourism official said the spike in visitors to the Atlantic City Convention & Visitors Authority's Web, mobile and social media platforms should bring more visitors to the Boardwalk in July and August.

"The numbers show more people are interested in Atlantic City, and having more people who are interested will translate into more visitors, whether it's next week or next month," said Jeff Vasser, president of the agency. "We're getting the message out there that there are a lot of things for people to do. What we're trying to do is let people know that gaming is not the end all, and the more we can add in — with more retail and shows — the better we'll do going forward."

While June 2012 was more favorable for tourism than the previous year — with two additional weekend days and gas prices down 6.4 percent — Vasser said the storm during the last weekend of the month stunted a potential uptick in visitors.

Car, day bus and plane arrivals were mostly flat in June compared to May, though the number of overnight bus passengers grew from 6,015 to 9,992, according to a report by the tourism agency.

Atlantic City's 12 casinos reported a 0.6 percent decline in gaming revenue from June 2011, winning $274.7 million last month.

"I think you'll see an uptick soon. You're not going to see it in the gaming numbers, but you will see it in the tax receipts," Vasser said, though he noted room fee revenues were up only 1 percent in April from the previous year, and luxury tax revenue was flat.

Vasser said May's tax receipts come out on July 15 and "will reflect a boost from the first month of Do AC" — the advertising campaign — "and Revel."

According to Vasser, Boardwalk Hall will host nearly twice the amount of shows in July than it did in the previous year, and casinos like Revel "have a great list of people coming this summer," which he said will improve Atlantic City's nongaming revenues and tourism business climate in July and August.

"It's a game of leapfrog. If Revel's doing shows, then someone is going to jump over them," Vasser said. "People were starting to look at us in May … and are now planning their vacations. The more diverse offerings we have, the more people we're going to bring in."