You Can Get Free or Discounted Vegas Hotel Rooms Without Gambling?

^{Many hotel rooms on and off the Las Vegas Strip can be booked without gambling through hotel reward points. (Photo: Maverick Helicopter on X)}  

LAS VEGAS -- We usually default to casino rewards programs when looking for discounted or complimentary rooms in Las Vegas. That’s no longer the only option, and it appears to be part of a growing segment of bargain travel. 

This might come as a surprise, but not everyone who visits Las Vegas is a gambler (GASP!). Many visitors come for relaxing vacations, spending their afternoons by the pool or spa, and evenings of great restaurants and shows. Even more are visiting for major events and games at Allegiant Stadium or the Sphere. 

Comp Your Stay Without Having to Play

For gamblers, the easiest way to earn complimentary rooms is by spending money playing in the casino. But business travelers and families have some competitive alternatives if they don’t gamble and earn points or status that way. 

Instead, travelers can use points earned from staying at hotels throughout the US and around the world. Major international hotel rewards programs offer visitors access to rooms along the Las Vegas Strip, from Mandalay Bay to Treasure Island. 

Some hotel-casino partnerships allow visitors to only book rooms in Las Vegas, while others let travelers redeem points for hotels worldwide. Some programs offer both. Regardless, it’s good to have more options when booking trips to Las Vegas. 

MGM Resorts has frequently highlighted the results of its partnership with Marriott over the past year. During its most recent earnings call, the company said it expected about 900,000 room nights to be booked through Marriott last year. 

MGM also expects that number to grow with a new group and convention initiative launching this year. 

Unfortunately, most hotel rewards programs are not linked to off-Strip casino hotels. That makes sense, as many of those casinos cater primarily to local customers. This is also why newer casinos like Durango have relatively few rooms. The property has just over 200 rooms, while megaresorts on the Strip have thousands. 

Visitors will still need to rely on casino rewards programs for complimentary rooms at most locals casinos. However, many of those programs have evolved to reward guests more for non-gaming spend, compared to their Strip counterparts. 

Some partnerships even work in the opposite direction, allowing members with linked accounts to earn points at casinos and redeem them for hotel stays around the world. 

Even better, some programs offer tier status matches. As with casino rewards matching, members typically must earn the higher tier during a trial period to keep the upgraded status. 

Las Vegas Casino and Hotel Brand Tie-Ups 

Hotel rewards programs are connected to the vast majority of casinos on the Strip. Best of all, these partnerships cover properties across a wide range of budgets. 

Below is a breakdown of major hotel programs and their affiliated Las Vegas casinos. Some deals are exclusive, but that’s not always the case. There are also a few exceptions, such as timeshares connected to hotel brands. 

Marriott Bonvoy 

• Aria (and Vdara) 
• Bellagio 
• Cosmopolitan 
• MGM Grand (and Signature) 
• Luxor 
• Mandalay Bay (and W - formerly Delano) 
• Park MGM (Soon to be The Reserve) 
• The Resort at Summerlin (formerly J.W. Marriott at Rampart Casino)  
• New York-New York  

Wyndham 

• Caesars Palace 
• The Cromwell (Soon to be Vanderpump) 
• Flamingo 
• Harrah’s 
• Horseshoe 
• The Linq 
• Paris 
• Planet Hollywood 

Hilton 

• Elara (at Planet Hollywood) 
• Resorts World  
• Virgin 
• Waldorf Astoria 

Hyatt 

• Rio 
• The Venetian and Palazzo 

Accor  

• Treasure Island 

Choice 

• Circus Circus 
• M Resort 
• Westgate  

Best Western 

• Casino Royale 

Preferred Hotels & Resorts is the world’s largest independent hotel brand, with connections to properties that are not part of major chains. Its “I Prefer” rewards program does not offer reciprocal benefits, but Encore, Wynn, Downtown Grand, and several Station Casinos properties can be booked using I Prefer points. 

How Major Hotel-Casino Partnerships Work 

Caesars and MGM Resorts operate nearly 20 Strip hotels with international hotel brand partners. That accounts for roughly 80% of the hotels where most Las Vegas visitors stay. 

The two partnerships work differently but share some similarities. Here’s a quick overview of each. 

Wyndham + Caesars  

This partnership begins with tier status matching between the two rewards programs. Caesars Rewards members can match to Wyndham Rewards, and Wyndham Rewards members can match to Caesars Rewards. 

This option is limited to upper-tier members. More importantly, members must have earned their status organically with their current loyalty program. Status earned through previous matches does not qualify. 

Once matched, members can earn and redeem points with both companies and receive the perks associated with their new tier status. 

MGM Collection with Marriott Bonvoy 

This partnership does not offer reciprocal status matching like Wyndham and Caesars. MGM Rewards members can match to Marriott Bonvoy, but Marriott Bonvoy members cannot match into MGM Rewards. 

Benefits include late checkout, room upgrades, Marriott bonus points and more for upper-tier members 

This partnership doesn’t have the same reciprocal status match as. MGM Rewards members can tier match into the Marriott Bonvoy program, but not the other way around. You can see the Bonvoy perks for different MGM Rewards tiers here. 

Members of both programs can transfer points between accounts, though the exchange is not one-to-one. Ten MGM Rewards points equal eight Marriott Bonvoy points. 

While this gives travelers another way to book with points, it is not always the best value. In some cases, rates are lower when booking directly through MGM than when redeeming Bonvoy points.