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Travel Tuesday: How I Earned $50 with MGM’s Resort Hopping Offer for Las Vegas
Last week, I attended my fourth CES in Las Vegas. Ahead of the show’s actual start, I had a chance to check out some of what was new on the Strip — or at least new to me, since I haven’t been there in 18+ months. Incidentally, something new to me happened to fall into my lap before I even arrived as I got an email from MGM inviting me to earn bonus Tier Credit and MGM Rewards Point by Resort Hopping. Since resort hopping is basically my favorite thing to do while in Vegas, I jumped at the chance and activated my offer.
So what exactly was this MGM Resort Hopping offer and was it easy to earn? (Spoiler: it was.) Let’s take a closer look at the deal, how I managed to redeem it, and how I was able to use the points I received.
About the MGM Resort Hopping Offer and How to Redeem It
A day before my arrival at the MGM Grand this month, I got an email from MGM Rewards with the subject line: “MGM GRAND Trip: Get up to 2,250 Tier Credits + $50 in MGM Rewards Points.” Upon opening the email, I learned that I could earn these bonuses by spending at three additional (meaning three properties other than the MGM Grand) MGM Resorts. After diving into the FAQs, I was downright shocked to find that the amount of spending was never defined. Instead, the terms just stated, “Any spend at qualifying Las Vegas MGM Resorts properties in which a tier credit is earned which includes both gaming and non-gaming spend” was eligible.
Looking more closely at the details, the offer was really broken into two parts. First, I could earn 750 Tier Credits for each resort (for a total of 2,250 Tier Credits when visiting three) I visited and spent money at. Then, upon completing the trifecta, my 5,000 Rewards Points would be issued.
Upon activating the offer via the email, a tracker popped up in my MGM app under the Rewards tab. Here, I was able to ensure that my qualifying activities were registered.
Something to note is that, while most MGM properties on the Strip are eligible (with the exception of the Cosmopolitan), some brands are combined. For example, although NoMad and Park MGM have separate check-ins and such, for the purposes of this offer, they’re treated as a single property. The same is true for Signature at MGM Grand, Skylofts at MGM Grand, and the MGM Grand itself. Also, as mentioned, the property where you are staying during your trip is also excluded.
Unfortunately, it’s unclear how common this offer is. For context, I currently have MGM Gold status (but am about to lose it) and visited during the slow period of early January. Fine print in the email does specify that the offer is exclusively for MGM Rewards members, but doesn’t mention a certain status tier. Hopefully that means that this is a pretty widespread and recurring deal, but don’t be too disappointed if you weren’t “targeted” for it.
How I Earned My Resort Hopping Bonus
To start off my Resort Hopping adventure, my friend and I played blackjack at our favorite spot on the strip: NoMad at Park MGM. After our first shoe, I checked my MGM app to see if my play had triggered a check mark. It hadn’t. However, after wrapping up our session and waiting a few minutes, it did indeed update.
For the other, I decided to walk down to Mandalay Bay from MGM Grand. While there, I played two hands of video blackjack (somehow managing to win both) and cashed out. By the time I checked my phone, my second check mark had arrived. On the way back toward MGM, I stopped at Luxor and played another two hands of video blackjack — again winning both, for the record — and managed to complete my challenge right then and there.
As soon as it showed my three check marks, the promised Rewards Points were credited to my account. Meanwhile, the Tier Credits were applied along the way. Unfortunately for me, those Tier Credits won’t make a difference for my 2024 status — but the Rewards Point meant free food was in my future.
How to use MGM Rewards Points
Funny enough, after scoring my bonus, I realized that I needed to figure out how to actually use the $50 in points I’d just earned. As it turns out, it’s not really that hard.
While there are a couple of options, the easiest path seems to be charging dining expenses to your room. Then, you can head to the MGM Rewards desk and ask them to apply your points to said charges. Apparently, they prefer that you do this the night before you check out — but you can do it before that if you please (I did for specific and unimportant reasons).
Upon learning this, I decided to order takeout from Grand Wok at MGM Grand and charge it to the room. This was made simple by the fact that their online ordering interface includes a room charge option. Literally, right after picking up my food I hit up the MGM Rewards desk and had them remove the charges before I even went back to the room.
It’s important to note that, like with other types of comps, you cannot use your reward points to cover the gratuity on your bill. So, in my case, they were able to apply points for the $29.76 in food and $2.49 in tax on my bill, but the $5.95 tip remained.
The other way to redeem your MGM Rewards is to simply use them at the time of your purchase. This would seem easier, although it’s not exactly clear which locations are able to directly redeem rewards in this way. But, if you don’t mind asking, I suppose this may actually be the better option.
As it turned out, earning $50 in rewards was quite easy thanks to this MGM Resort Hopping offer. Similarly, once I actually learned how to use my Rewards, redeeming them proved simple as well. Given this experience, I hope to encounter this type of deal again in the future. And while I can’t say whether or not you’ll be targeted for a similar offer, I’d recommend signing up for a free MGM Rewards account before booking your trip just in case.
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Other Articles by Kyle Burbank
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