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Chain partnerships and how to benefit from them

7 July 2018

Many major casino operators have partnered up with national hotel chains. These partnerships offer you another way to get that “comp” room that you may be after — without gambling at all. Rooms can be booked through the hotel partner chain for points instead of cash. These point redemptions are available up and down the Las Vegas strip and other casino-resort destinations.

MGM Resorts has partnered with Hyatt. Stays at MGM Resorts properties can be credited to either one’s M life Rewards account or one’s World of Hyatt account. Rooms can be booked using World of Hyatt points instead of cash. M life Rewards and World of Hyatt also offer a status match between the two loyalty programs (which can save you at the very least from the dreaded parking fees in Las Vegas).

Caesars Entertainment partners with Wyndham Hotels. Caesars Total Rewards and Wyndham Rewards also allow a status match from one loyalty program to the other. Every standard room at a Caesars property can be had for 15,000 Wyndham Reward points. The retail value of these points is roughly $150. Since the points needed to book a standard room are the same at every property and on any date, it’s possible to get a room at its flagship property, Caesars Palace, on New Year’s Eve for a cashless $150. Additionally, if your Total Rewards status is Diamond or higher, resort fees are still waived regardless of how the room was booked.

Venetian Las Vegas and Palazzo Las Vegas are considered to be InterContinental Alliance Resorts of IHG. Rooms can be booked through the IHG system using its native points. In addition, IHG free stay certificates can be redeemed at Venetian and Palazzo. Many savvy gamblers and travelers maintain and use an IHG credit card for the annual free stay certificate because the value of the room far exceeds the cost of maintaining the account.

Marriott partners with many casino properties. For instance, both the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas and the Cove at Atlantis in the Bahamas are part of Marriott’s Autograph Collection (its portfolio of higher-end hotels). Rooms and upgrades can be booked through Marriott Rewards using points instead of cash.

All of the hotel loyalty programs I’ve mentioned offer large point incentives to get you to sign up for their credit cards and use them. Most of the sign-up bonuses (and annual certificates) give cardholders the ability to earn a free room or rooms with no cash outlay. This becomes particularly valuable when comp rooms under the casino loyalty program are unavailable or extra rooms are needed for friends and family.

Getting rooms with hotel chain points is a great way to stay at a casino-resort while steering clear of the player rating software and protecting one’s rating when gambling isn’t the top priority for the trip. Additionally, the static pricing of the point redemption versus the dynamic pricing of rooms based on expected demand provides opportunities for players to find real value when comps are not offered or available.


Eric Rosenthal is a co-host on the Vegas Confessions podcast and is a featured speaker at ZorkFest.
Eric Rosenthal

Eric Rosenthal is a writer, podcaster, gambling and travel enthusiast. By combining his knowledge of travel and casino loyalty programs, he teaches people how to travel and maximize value for their gambling dollar. Eric is one of the featured speakers at the Casino and Travel Loyalty Conference ZorkFest, where he shares his passion for what he calls Comp Harvesting.
Eric Rosenthal
Eric Rosenthal is a writer, podcaster, gambling and travel enthusiast. By combining his knowledge of travel and casino loyalty programs, he teaches people how to travel and maximize value for their gambling dollar. Eric is one of the featured speakers at the Casino and Travel Loyalty Conference ZorkFest, where he shares his passion for what he calls Comp Harvesting.