Las Vegas, January 6: The Las Vegas Convention Center has completed a $600 million renovation of its legacy campus, with CES 2026 set to become the first trade show to use the fully modernised facility, local tourism officials said on Monday.
The project, owned and operated by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA), began in 2023 and extended design, technology and customer-experience features introduced with the $1 billion West Hall, which opened in 2021. The full convention centre campus now spans 4.6 million square feet.
“This milestone signals the next leap for trade shows in Las Vegas, delivering a world-class convention center experience that reflects the scale and ambition of our city,” said Steve Hill, president and chief executive of the LVCVA.
CES 2026, owned and produced by the Consumer Technology Association, will anchor the upgraded venue and marks a continuation of a partnership that dates back to 1978, when Las Vegas first began hosting the global technology show.
“It’s fitting to share this moment with CES, the world’s most influential technology show and our long-standing partner,” Hill said.
CES draws attendees from more than 150 countries and generated $381.2 million in economic impact for Southern Nevada in 2025, according to the LVCVA. The 2026 edition will feature more than 4,000 exhibitors and use 2.6 million net square feet of exhibit space across 13 official venues citywide.
“Las Vegas is our home and I suspect will always be our home,” said Gary Shapiro, chief executive of the Consumer Technology Association.
The renovation includes a redesigned Central Hall Grand Lobby with a glass curtain wall, a 75-by-42-foot digital screen and two additional display screens, as well as a climate-controlled interior concourse linking the North and South Halls. The South Hall now features a new east-side entrance, boardroom and administrative offices, while the West Hall’s ribbon roof design was extended across the campus.
To accommodate CES 2026, airlines have added more than 360 flights, including routes from nine countries to Harry Reid International Airport. Las Vegas has about 150,000 hotel rooms, with conventions filling much of the capacity between Sunday and Thursday, officials said.
Las Vegas hosted 6 million convention attendees in 2024, generating $16 billion in economic impact. In 2025, the Convention Center held 49 conventions with about 1.06 million attendees, including CES, which attracted more than 140,000 visitors, roughly 40% from outside the United States.
The renovated convention center is projected to host 48 tradeshows and 1.23 million attendees in 2026.
“When we talk about meetings matter, it starts with CES,” Hill said.
CES was held in Chicago in 1977 before moving to Las Vegas, a decision that Shapiro described as risky at the time.
“There were no business events of any kind and it was considered a very risky move, but boy, did it work out well for us,” he said. “That truly shows this is a world trade center.”
Miller & Ham Project Development served as the owner’s representative for the renovation, with Klai Juba Wald as architect of record. Construction was carried out by a joint venture between Hunt Construction Group and Penta Building Group.
