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No Resort Fees Las Vegas
Everything about Las Vegas is amazing with one minor exception- resort fees. Resort fees can be a major drawback to visiting Sin City, with that in mind here’s my guide: “How to Get waived Las Vegas Resort Fees 2023” edition. The good news is that not every hotel charges resort fees, so I’ll cover some of the best Las Vegas hotels without resort fees. The bad news is that Vegas hotels without resort fees aren’t exactly the epitome of luxury, which is probably why you clicked on my guide :), so we’ll cover how to avoid resort fees at any casino. I’ll also go over my best strategies to save on resort fees and how to avoid them completely by getting them waived. Unfortunately, there are times when you will have no choice but to pay them, even then I’ll teach you how to make the most of that spend.
Also Read: MGM Rewards: Should I Charge to MGM, Cosmo or Transfer Points to Marriott
In the Youtube Video I cover the ins and outs of getting waived resort fees in Vegas with a list of the top 7 ways that have worked for me.
- Casino status.
- Ask a host or the players club before you check out.
- Book a comped night.
- Book award nights via hotel partners.
- Promotional offers and rates that include resort fees. (like Treasure Islands TV Promo Rate). Also check the 3rd party OTAs for these rates.
- Use casino rewards apps to book a comp or redeem your points for a credit to offset the resort fee.
- Book a hotel with no resort fee to begin with.
Casino Status
Elite casino status is probably the easiest and most clear cut way to get the resort fee waived at casinos. Waived resort fees are a guaranteed perk of having a certain level of status in programs like Caesars, MGM and Cosmopolitan Identity. Here’s a list of players program status levels with waived resort fees:
- Caesars Diamond Status
- MGM Rewards Gold Status
- Cosmopolitan’s Identity Rewards Gold Status
Contact the Casino Players Club or a Host Before you Check Out
I cannot tell you how much money I have saved over the years by making sure I call the players club office before I leave. I’ve had them knock off anything from $20 to $800 off of my hotel bill in addition to waiving the resort fee. But here’s the thing- you have to ask. Don’t be shy, it’s standard and they expect people to ask. The worst that happens is they say, “sorry your play doesn’t qualify”. I swear that I am one of those people who is very shy about asking for free stuff but I’ve had such positive results with this. If you’re unclear exactly what to say, just say this exactly: “Hi, I’m checking out today and wanted to see if you could knock some charges off of my room bill or waive the resort fee based on my play. Thank you so much for checking!”
This is also a good strategy at one off casinos like Baha Mar and Atlantis. My most recent trip I think I was into slots for less than 2K and they took off $500 from the final bill. You can’t beat that.
Also Read: How to Match Hyatt Status to MGM Rewards [2022] Step by Step
Waived Resort Fees on Comped Nights
If you have a comped night, your resort fees may be included in your free room offer. In my experience, MGM and Caesars don’t waive the resort fee as part of the standard comp offer- however, you can definitely ask when you call to book and often they’ll check your play and extend the offer to include the resort fee. As for Identity Rewards, many of their comp offers include resort fees and their free nights earned as a perk of obtaining players club status include both taxes and fees. This is easily one of the best casino loyalty perks out there- with Identity Sterling status you’ll receive a comped night each year including taxes and fees.
Book Award Nights via Hotel Program Partners.
Some casino stays booked through hotel loyalty programs include the added perk of waived resort fees. Radisson Rewards Stays at Treasure Island means a waived resort fee, while casino stays booked through Choice Privileges are not waived. As for Hyatt, stays at Baha Mar are eligible for waived resort fees on award nights. Caesars and Wyndham don’t include waived resort fees on award stays.
Hotels Running No Resort Fee Promotional Rates
Several casinos run periodic promotions where resort fees are waived by booking a promotional room rate. Treasure Island for example has a long running promo where you can opt out of the resort fee by giving up access to certain hotel amenities. Another way to have the resort fee included in your room rate is to look for promotions on 3rd party OTA’s like Expedia and Hotels.com. If you’re a local, you’re in luck – many casinos offer waived fees for Nevada and Las Vegas residents.
Use casino rewards apps to book a comp or redeem your points for a credit to offset the resort fee
Casino rewards apps like Wynn Slots and MyVegas allow app users who are players club members to play slots and other casino games on their apps to earn points towards rewards. These rewards include comped nights among other things like free food, show tickets, discounts and more. The great news about this is that MyVegas and Wynn waive the resort fee on comped nights booked through the rewards apps. Wynn’s app is a bit harder to earn free nights but that’s no surprise when you consider that Wynn is more expensive than most MGM properties. I have found that the apps are pretty fun to play and you can really rack up points over time. You can book two comped nights with enough points, so considering there’s no resort fee- these are a great deal.
Las Vegas Strip hotels without resort fees
The best way to get out of paying a resort fee is to book a hotel with no resort fee to begin with. Here’s a non exhaustive list of casino properties in Vegas with no resort fees.
- Marriott’s Grand Chateau (Strip)
- Best Western Plus Casino Royale (Strip)
- Jockey Club (same building as Cosmo) (Strip)
- Club Wyndham Grand Desert
- Desert Rose Resort
- 4 Queens (Fremont Street)
What is a resort fee?
A resort fee is a daily charge that is added to your hotel bill in addition to the tax and room rate. The typical resort fee at an upscale hotel in Las Vegas is $45 per night plus tax.
Why Do Las Vegas Hotels and Casinos Charge Resort Fees
Resort fees are essentially part of the room rate billed in addition to the advertised room rate. By charging this separate fee, Las Vegas resorts are able to reduce the commissions paid to online booking engines and other booking partners since they’re not considered part of the hotel rate and are paid directly by the customer at the resort.
The resort fee includes: Access to the pool and gym, Property-wide high speed internet access (public spaces and in-room), local and toll free calls, airline boarding pass printing, daily digital newspaper access and fitness center access for guests 18+.
You can, but it’s not a great idea to refuse to pay resort fees, you’re much better off asking for a manager and letting them know you had issues during your stay to see if they’ll waive the resort fees.
Most casinos charge resort fees in Las Vegas, though there are many places to stay in las Vegas without resort fees.
You can avoid MGM resort fees by earning MGM Rewards Gold status or higher, or booking comped nights via the MyVegas app.
Resort fees are charged by so many hotels that it would certainly seem like they are legal, however there are a growing number of resources challenging the legality of resort fees, so this will likely be clarified in the near future.
Unfortunately, there is now a resort fee when booking Wynn with the Wynn slots app. There didn’t used to be, but it’s been going on like this for a while now. Comes to about $51/night including the resort fee tax.
another reason to avoid sin city!
By not tipping you can probably “get back” most of that resort fee.
I visit Vegas every 2-3 months and refuse to stay at ANY casino that charges a rip off resort fee. My rooms are always comped because of my play. Rpi off “Resort” fees should be declared illegal.
Biden has made that a priority iirc
Nice comment, douche.
Nice reply, douche.
How is he a douche? He’s right. Biden was trying to go after them, jerk. What did anyone do to you?
Great tips! I had no idea about the negotiation strategies! I’m definitely going to try asking at check-in next time I visit. Thanks for sharing these insider tricks!
Great tips! I never knew about the power of asking the front desk nicely. I’m definitely going to try that on my next trip. Thanks for sharing these insider tricks!
Great tips in this post! I had no idea about the strategies to waive resort fees. I’m definitely going to try negotiating at check-in next time I’m in Vegas. Thanks for sharing!