Mike FriedmanPart of the fun of Las Vegas, especially for first-time visitors, are the crazy hotels. In no other city can you stay in a New York hotel and then walk a few minutes to the Eiffel Tower. Not happy there? Don’t worry, Venice is only a few blocks away.
Best hotel program in Las Vegas
And then there’s those of us who just want a place to rest their heads and are looking for other benefits. If you’re more interested in hotel points, for instance, every major chain has brands in the city. This post will take a look at the best brands (and best hotel program in Las Vegas) to use if you plan on going to Las Vegas and want to earn, or burn, points.
And don’t forget the added bonus: Given partnerships in the city, there are several “Vegas-y” hotels that you can stay at to get both the experience and the points.
Determining the “Best” Hotel Brand in Las Vegas for Points
Okay, here are the rules of the road:
- It is impossible to do every company, so I picked the biggest ones with the widest range of brands: Hilton, Hyatt, InterContinental (IHG) and Marriott.
- There’s no way to define Las Vegas so, where possible, I chose hotels within 10 miles of whatever arbitrary landmark the websites use. With the exception of Marriott, it made very little difference.
- For the most part, I’m not going to address the casino programs themselves, although certain combinations allow you to double-dip (e.g., Hyatt and MGM’s M life).
So here we go! I’m going in alphabetical order, but the top choice also happens to be the first option below.
Hilton in Las Vegas (27 Choices)
Among the biggest programs, Hilton has the best options in Las Vegas, with 27 hotels within 10 miles of City Center and 20 within five. Your options range from the Homewood Suites in Henderson on the low end to the luxury Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas. Four properties are right on the Strip, and include the Tropicana, Flamingo, Elara, in addition to the Waldorf. If you don’t mind staying on Sinatra drive, you’ll have more space at the Homewood Suites or Hilton Garden Inn City Center. Remember, you only need a place to rest your head. You can still see the Bellagio fountains without staying at the hotel.
What To Know:
You’ll be able to earn and redeem Hilton Honors points at all of the properties, but a couple of them, like the Grand Vacations time share properties, don’t offer all of the elite benefits that the traditional Hilton brands and sub-brands do. The Tropicana, which is co-branded as a Doubletree, is the only “traditional” Las Vegas hotel. All the rest are Hilton sub-brands or Grand Vacations properties.
Hyatt Hotels
Las Vegas might be the best city in the world for Hyatt properties, despite the chain’s smaller size. And it’s definitely the best option for those who want points and the “flair” that comes with a Las Vegas Strip hotel. Why? Because the company has a partnership with MGM. You can earn both Hyatt World of Hyatt (WoH) points and M life tier credits at MGM properties, at the rate of five WoH points per dollar spent. Fun fact: You can also earn M life tier credits at Hyatt properties anywhere, but you only get one or the other, not both.
This alliance gives you the best of both worlds, allowing you to earn Hyatt points and still stay at one of the more “interesting” hotels. There are a few MGM properties that are not participating in the point-sharing arrangement, so be sure to check the list to make sure that your preferred property is there.
One of the best aspects of the agreement is the ability to match elite status between the two. You won’t get top-tier levels through a status match, but you can still move pretty high up the chart. If you don’t have status with one of the two, check out this thread on status matching, and help yourself to Caesars status at the same time.
InterContinental (IHG) Hotels
There are only nine IHG brands hotels in Las Vegas, but a partnership with the Venetian and The Palazzo at the Venetian Resort Las Vegas allow you either to earn or redeem points at two of the nicest properties in Las Vegas. While InterContinental, parent of IHG, doesn’t actually own the properties, its marketing alliance means that you can pick up points at the two luxury properties, while giving those hotels access to IHG’s reservation system and marketing reach.
Don’t need to stay on The Strip? No problem, they’ve got you covered with a range of other brands, such as Holiday Inn and Staybridge Suites. Added bonus: You’ll have an opportunity to make a “I’m not a doctor but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express” joke.
Marriott Bonvoy
Marriott Bonvoy, the largest loyalty program in the industry, wraps up the discussion with 24 properties (Bonvoy brands) in the ten mile zone, although if we extend it a couple of more miles, we’ll pull in Henderson (remember, arbitrary points of origin, depending on the hotel company) and come up with 29.
With a good mix of Courtyards, Residence Inns and Spring Hill Suites, it’s not the most exciting group of properties, but they absolutely get the job done. Of course, there are plenty of luxury properties thrown in, with a JW Marriott and a pair of Westins (although we can question whether the Westin on Flamingo should be categorized as such).
Want a Strip hotel? Check out the The Cosmopolitan Las Vegas, part of Marriott’s Autograph collection. These hotels are not Marriott owned but have a structure similar to the IHG properties mentioned above. It is an independently owned hotel that affiliates with Marriott in order to use its reservation network. You can earn and redeem points there, and while the elite benefits (MARRIOTT BONVOY AT THE COSMOPOLITAN) aren’t exactly the same as the ones you’d earn at a traditional Marriott property, you’ll still get something.
The Bottom Line
Best hotel program in Las Vegas
In Las Vegas, some people like getting points and some like the atmosphere. There are hotels for both types. But if you want both, there’s a good chance that you’ll be able to find something.
- GUIDE TO POINTS AND MILES: Just the BASICS
- BEGINNERS GUIDE TO POINTS AND MILES: FOUR STEPS TO AIRLINE POINTS
- AIRLINE FREQUENT-FLIER PROGRAMS – MAJOR US CARRIERS
- HOTEL REWARDS PROGRAMS – THE BIG FOUR
