Use Hyatt Points to Stay in MGM Hotels in Las Vegas!

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You could never really redeem your hotel points for good hotels on the strip in Las Vegas.  Well, that’s changing because Hyatt you can now redeem your Hyatt points at 12 MGM hotels including the Bellagio, Aria and more!

Here’s the official press release and here’s a comprehensive list of frequently asked questions.

You can also earn Hyatt points for staying in MGM hotels in Las Vegas and in August you will get matched to certain level’s in MGM’s loyalty program – M Life.

How Many Hyatt Points Do I Need for a Free Night in Las Vegas?

Here are the 12 MGM hotels in Las Vegas and the number of Hyatt points you’ll pay for each night.  I’ve included the cheapest cash rate per night for a randomly selected date of Saturday, August 10, 2013 so that you can compare the cash rate to using points.

In general, you are getting less than 1 cent per point (once you factor in the resort fees) so I would not personally use my Hyatt points for stays at these hotels.  Instead, I’d prefer using them at the more expensive Hyatt hotels.  But they are YOUR points, so use them however you want!

You can redeem Hyatt points for stays after June 20, 2013, but you will pay the resort fee (even for award nights) and there are blackout dates.

Category 6 – 22,000 Hyatt Points per Night

• Aria – $281 per night
• Bellagio – $329 per night
• Mandalay Bay – $197 per night
• THEhotel at Mandalay Bay – $225 per night

Category 5 – 18,000 Hyatt Points per Night

• MGM Grand – $174 per night
• The Signature at MGM Grand – $169 per night
• Vdara – $159 per night
• The Mirage – $216 per night

Category 4 – 15,000 Hyatt Points per Night

• Monte Carlo – $144 per night
• New York-New York – $150 per night

Category 3 – 12,000 Hyatt Points per Night

• Luxor – $133 per night

Category 2 – 8,000 Hyatt Points per Night

• Excalibur – $97 per night

How Do I Earn Hyatt Points at MGM Hotels?

You can earn Hyatt points when you book a stay at MGM hotels through the Hyatt or MGM website (bookings on sites like Expedia, etc. will not count). You have to be BOTH a Hyatt Gold Passport member and a M Life member and let the front desk know that you want to earn Hyatt points for the stay.

You earn 5 Hyatt points per $1 of eligible spending.  Eligible spending includes spending on your room and up to $5,000 in M life eligible spending.  It does not include casino spending which I suspect is to prevent folks from buying chips, cashing them out, and earning points.

That said, you may be able to get cheaper rates elsewhere, so it could be worth giving up the points for a really cheap rate.

Hyatt Platinum & Diamond Benefits

The terms say that your regular Platinum and Diamond elite benefits do not apply for stays at MGM hotels.  So you won’t get free internet if you’re a Hyatt Platinum elite member and you won’t get free breakfast if you’re a Hyatt Diamond member.

You also cannot use your Diamond suite upgrade certificates at the MGM hotels.  But you will get the Platinum (15%) and Diamond point bonus (30%) for paid stays

Reciprocal Status

Hyatt and MGM are also matching members to each other’s elite status starting in August 2013.  Hyatt has the much stronger elite status program.  I couldn’t figure out what the benefits of the MGM elite status program were besides access to shorter lines, the possibility of a room upgrade, and a few discounts.

Link:  MGM Elite Status Levels

Link:  Hyatt Elite Status Levels

Credit Cards

You can use the 2 free nights from the Chase Hyatt credit card for stays at any of the 12 hotels in Las Vegas.  You also get a free night each year for keeping the card which you can use at a Category 4 or lower Hyatt hotel.

Interestingly, you will not get EXTRA points (3 points per $1) for using the Hyatt card at MGM hotels resorts.  So you’re better off using a card which gets you extra points at hotels like the Chase Sapphire Preferred, the Chase Ink Bold, Chase Ink Plus.

Bottom Line

It is nice to finally be able to earn  and use Hyatt points for staying in Las Vegas.  But do the math to see if redeeming points makes sense for you!