The Best Las Vegas Hotels Without Resort Fees

Any trip to Las Vegas comes with some built-in risks: Your number may never hit at the roulette table. The show you wanted to see may not live up to the hype. Your food and drink indulgence may turn out to be, well ... too much.

But if there’s one thing more painful than a blackjack dealer drawing to a 21, it’s getting hit with resort fees you weren’t ready for.

Here’s a rundown of the best Las Vegas hotels without resort fees. We'll also cover strategies for avoiding Las Vegas resort fees if you want to stay at places that charge them:

What is a resort fee? Resort fees are charges added to your hotel bill, usually on a nightly basis, on top of the regular room rate and tax. Based on a NerdWallet analysis, resort fees for hotel on the Las Vegas Strip average $40 per night, plus tax.

What do resort fees cover? Usually, it's benefits like use of the pool and gym, Wi-Fi, boarding pass printing and unlimited local and toll-free telephone calls.

But critics claim these fees are bogus. After all, the pools and gyms were built long before resort fees were in the lexicon. These days, Wi-Fi is a standard in any hotel. Boarding passes are mostly mobile these days (or can be printed for free at airports). And who is making so many phone calls from their hotel room telephone that they still consider this a perk?

The reality is this: Resort fees are a workaround for hotels to publish lower rates on hotel booking sites. They tack these fees on later to jack up the price.

For example, you can book a night at the Excalibur, part of the MGM Rewards loyalty program, for as low as just $31 per night on some nights. Yet the $39.68 nightly resort fee more than doubles your cost.

These fees aren’t limited to low-end hotels, either. You may splurge for a stay at the Cosmopolitan, but budget more than $50 nightly in resort fees.

» Learn more: Doubling down on rewards with MGM’s MyVegas games

So how do you avoid resort fees? For starters, only book a stay at Las Vegas hotels without resort fees.

Alas, options are limited for hotels near the Strip without resort fees. The two major hotel groups, MGM and Caesars, both charge resort fees up and down the Strip.

That said, the following hotels near or on the Las Vegas Strip without resort fees include:

Best Western Plus Casino Royale-Center Strip

If being on the Strip is a must-have on your no-resort fee hotel wish list, meet the Casino Royale, which is a member of the Best Western Rewards program. Let’s be clear about something: You’re getting a hotel room and a great location — but not much else.

The hotel is next to Harrah’s Las Vegas. The on-site casino is small, and the food options are basic (e.g., Subway, Pizza Hut and White Castle). The real draw here is the great location in the middle of the Strip, providing easy access to shows, casinos, restaurants, bars and nightclubs.

But if you’re looking for something that qualifies as a nice or upscale hotel, this is not the place for you.

How to book the Best Western Plus Casino Royale-Center Strip

Best Western doesn’t have a set award chart, and prices for award nights can vary greatly. When searching for nights in the summer and fall, we found them as low as 16,000 points for weeknights and as high as 28,000 points on weekends. Cash prices fluctuate similarly. We found rooms as cheap as $80 per night, all the way up to nearly $300 per night.

One of the best ways to score enough points to book a stay here is via the Best Western Rewards® Premium Visa Signature® Card. It has an $89 annual fee. That card is currently offering the following sign-up bonus: Bonus points offer of 20,000 to 80,000 points with qualifying spend. You’ll see your bonus points offer before you apply.

If annual fees aren't your thing, there's also the $0 annual fee Best Western Rewards® Visa Signature® Card . That card's current sign-up bonus is: Bonus points offer of 10,000 to 40,000 points with qualifying spend. You’ll see your bonus points offer before you apply.

Marriott's Grand Chateau

For a nice hotel near the Strip without resort fees, your best choice is Marriott's Grand Chateau.

Technically, the Grand Chateau is not on the Strip, but it’s only 0.2 of a mile away. The hotel is just one crosswalk over Harmon Avenue to both the Miracle Mile Shops and Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino. This easy access to food, shows, gambling and shopping makes it a prime almost-on-the-Strip location.

You won’t find a casino or any slot machines at the Grand Chateau. That gives it more of a Marriott-resort feel as opposed to a Las Vegas-casino feel. The hotel is part of Marriott Vacation Club, but is open for booking by anyone — members or not. Here, you’ll find not only standard hotel guest rooms, but also two- and three-bedroom villas with kitchens and sitting areas. Other amenities include free Wi-Fi, two pools, a fitness center and a couple of dining options. And most importantly, no resort fee added to your reservation charge.

How to book Marriott's Grand Chateau

Standard rooms at Marriott's Grand Chateau can usually be booked for between $200 and $300 per night. Marriott's Grand Chateau is part of the Marriott Bonvoy program, and award nights range from 40,000 Marriott Bonvoy® points to 53,000 points per night. You can quickly earn those points by meeting the sign-up bonus requirements on one of the Marriott-branded credit cards, which include:

Club Wyndham Grand Desert

The Wyndham Vacation Club Grand Desert sits just east of the Strip on Harmon Avenue, offering a condo-style experience as opposed to a traditional hotel room. One- and two-bedroom suites entail a full kitchen plus washer, dryer and dining room.

There are two fitness centers, a nice pool and an activities center. Much like the Grand Chateau and Desert Rose Resort (below), you won’t find a casino here. A free shuttle service takes you to the Strip.

How to book the Wyndham Vacation Club Grand Desert

Cash rates in the summer hover around $150. If you have Wyndham points, you’ll likely find rates at 15,000 points per night for a Go Free award.

Desert Rose Resort

Part of Shell Hospitality, the Desert Rose Resort is another condo-style, resort-fee-free Las Vegas hotel option just 1 1/2 blocks off the Strip behind Tropicana.

Amenity-wise, it offers pretty much the same experience as Wyndham Vacation CLub Grand Desert: condo-style suites with multiple bedrooms, a kitchen, living spaces, a nice pool, fitness center, free Wi-Fi and more. There’s no casino, but it’s next door to OYO Las Vegas Hotel and Casino, so you can easily walk there to get your gambling fix.

How to book the Desert Rose Resort

Shell Hospitality doesn’t have a loyalty program, and cash rates vary. Midweek, you can often find one-bedroom rates between $120-$160, but weekends can easily be double that amount.

Other Vegas hotels off the Strip without resort fees

If you’re fine staying off the Strip at a run-of-the-mill hotel like a Fairfield Inn or Embassy Suites, you typically won't encounter resort fees. Just expect it to feel like any generic hotel as opposed to one with a flashy, Las Vegas vibe. Plus, you might end up paying more in driving and parking on the Strip versus just staying on the Strip sans car.

Then again, these hotels can offer perks like free breakfast, which may be a big money-saver. If you're planning a Las Vegas trip that entails more time off-Strip versus on-Strip (say you're planning to explore the myriad outdoor activities near Las Vegas), then these hotels can often be your best bet to save money and avoid Las Vegas resort fees.

Holding elite status with certain hotel programs — or booking award stays at certain hotels — might also result in waived Las Vegas resort fees. Here are the best ways to avoid resort fees in Vegas:

Hold hotel elite status

Certain hotel loyalty programs waive resort fees for members with certain levels of elite status. Some standout programs in Vegas include:

Caesars Rewards: With Diamond status or higher in the Caesars Rewards programs, resort fees are waived. The best Caesars hotels in Vegas include Caesars Palace, Planet Hollywood and The Cromwell. One of the best ways to reach Caesars Rewards Diamond status is via the Wyndham/Caesars status match option. You’ll need Diamond Wyndham status to match to Diamond in the Caesars program, which qualifies you for waived resort fees on any stay.

» Learn more: Caesars vs. MGM Rewards: Which rewards program is better?

World of Hyatt: Hyatt doesn’t charge resort fees to members with Globalist status, which is the highest elite status level in the World of Hyatt program. Hyatt owns the Rio Hotel & Casino, which is located one block off the famed Las Vegas Strip on Flamingo Road. Thus, holding Globalist status is your ticket to avoiding the Rio's $40 daily resort fee.

Book award nights

Certain hotel loyalty programs waive resort fees for nights booked using points or other free night certificates. Given how high resort fees are in Vegas relative to most other cities, Las Vegas resorts can make for an especially-great redemption when using points. Some standout programs in Vegas include:

Hilton Honors: The Hilton Honors waives resort fees for stays booked on points. Hilton also waives resort fees for stays booked using a Hilton free night certificate.

Hilton operates dozens of hotels on or near the Las Vegas Strip, including Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas, Conrad Las Vegas at Resorts World, Crockfords Las Vegas, Las Vegas Hilton at Resorts World and Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, Curio Collection by Hilton.

Not only do those properties charge resort fees, but they can often command rates at or near $500 per night on peak nights, such as weekends. Given that, they can make for an excellent way to redeem Hilton free night certificates — as you'll pay neither a resort fee nor the actual room rate when you redeem them for a stay. You typically earn Hilton free night certificates through holding certain Hilton-branded credit cards.

For example, the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card, which has an annual fee of $550, offers one Free Night Reward with your card and every year after renewal. The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card has a lower annual fee of $150. It offers a free night certificate after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases on your card in a calendar year.

Terms apply.

World of Hyatt: Hyatt doesn’t charge resort fees for rooms booked on points or with Hyatt free night awards. There are a few ways to earn a free night reward, but among the most common is by holding the World of Hyatt Credit Card. In exchange for its annual fee of $95, among the card's top perks is a certificate for a free night at a Category 1-4 hotel each calendar year.

Since the Hyatt-owned Rio is a Category 3 hotel, that can make for a smart redemption (especially on weekends when cash rates are high) given the Rio's $40 daily resort fee.

Use travel card statement credits

Some travel cards offer statement credits that cover a broad definition of travel. Charge a covered expense to the card, which typically includes hotel resort fees, and you can get a reimbursement.

Do the math before blindly avoiding resort fees.

If your choices are the Grand Chateau at $150 a night with no resort fee or Park MGM for $75 per night plus a $39 resort fee (totaling $114), you can spend less staying on the Strip at Park MGM.

Factor in the opportunity cost of staying at a no-resort-fee hotel too. The location probably won’t be as good, and you might miss out on the full Las Vegas casino experience and amenities on your stay.

For example, most Las Vegas Strip hotels have over-the-top pools where you could easily spend most of your day — no need to spend money on daytime entertainment. And many offer free admission to their onsite nightclubs. Meanwhile, staying at the generic, budget hotel a mile away won't get you much in the way of free entertainment at all, potentially forcing you to shell out for admission to pool parties and clubs. In that case, the resort fee might end up being worth it, after all.

When planning a trip to Vegas, comparison shop hotels and keep your eye out for resort fees, which are usually displayed before you input credit card information near the end of booking. There’s no shame in paying a resort fee as long as you factor it into your budget.

But if you're dead set on avoiding these fees, stay slightly off-Strip at Marriott's Grand Chateau for the best experience of a nice hotel and no resort fee.

In reality, what happens in Vegas doesn’t always stay in Vegas — like those sneaky resort fees that hit your credit card bill when you get home.