The Best Way to Book Las Vegas Hotels: Direct, Booking.com or a Package?

The best way to book Las Vegas hotels is direct with the hotel if you collect MGM Rewards, Caesars Rewards or Venetian Rewards points or your tier waives the resort fee, since third-party stays earn little or nothing. Otherwise, compare the identical room’s total on the hotel’s site and on Booking.com and book the cheaper refundable rate.

• Book direct if you collect casino or hotel points, your tier waives the resort fee, or the hotel’s own site has a lower member rate or a fee-free offer.
• Use Booking.com if you hold no casino status and want free cancellation, a pay-at-the-property rate or one search across many hotels.
• Consider a package if it bundles the resort fee, meals or a show you’d buy anyway, knowing that MGM’s Gold fee waiver excludes all-inclusive packages.

The terms below are as of October 2026, read on each program’s own pages; how we check facts explains the method. We earn a commission when you book through our Booking.com links; it doesn’t change this advice.

The best way to book Las Vegas hotels at a glance

“Not stated” means the published terms don’t say, so check the offer itself.

Factor	Direct	Booking.com	Other OTAs	Packages
All-in price	Must include the resort fee; taxes can be separate. Member rates	Includes mandatory fees for U.S. travelers, per Booking.com; Genius discounts	Must include mandatory fees (FTC rule)	Varies by package
Cancellation	Hotel’s terms: 72 hours at MGM and Fontainebleau; varies at Caesars	The hotel’s policy for that rate	The site’s policy (Caesars hotels)	Can differ from room-only rates (Caesars)
Resort fee: shown and collected	In the total; paid at the property at Caesars and The Venetian	In the total; Booking.com flags fees the hotel collects	In the total; collection not stated	Can be bundled in
Points and tier credits	Yes at MGM, Caesars, Venetian, Fontainebleau, Hilton; Hyatt only via Hyatt	MGM: resort fee and add-ons only; Venetian, Hilton: none; Caesars: direct only	Same as Booking.com	From a travel site: same as Booking.com
Tier fee waivers	MGM Gold+, Venetian Ruby and Diamond, Fontainebleau Gold+, Caesars Diamond+	Not at MGM, Venetian or Fontainebleau; Caesars not stated	Same as Booking.com	MGM’s excludes all-inclusive packages
Upgrades	Hilton and Hyatt perks need their own channels; others not stated	Genius Levels 2–3: free upgrades on select stays	Not stated	Not stated
Who fixes problems	The hotel’s reservations team	Booking.com, under the hotel’s policy	The booking site, for cancellations (Caesars)	Not stated

Casino offers, the other way in, are covered under packages and casino offers below: their terms vary by hotel and are rarely published in full.

Resort fees are charged however you book

The resort fee comes with the room, whoever sells it. MGM’s terms for Bellagio say its daily fee of $55 plus tax “will be applied to all reservations” (as of October 2026), Caesars’ FAQs call its fee mandatory per room, per night, and Resorts World adds its fee to all reservations. On direct bookings, Caesars and The Venetian collect it at the property.

Since May 12, 2025, the FTC’s Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees (16 CFR Part 464) has required hotels, booking sites and travel agents to include mandatory fees such as resort fees in any total price they show. Taxes can be listed separately if they’re disclosed before you pay, and the rule doesn’t ban or cap resort fees. Booking.com’s documentation for partner sites says U.S. travelers see totals that include mandatory fees; its terms add that when the hotel collects part of the total, it tells you at checkout. Open the price breakdown before you pay.

On the Strip, the 13.38% room tax applies to the room rate and the resort fee, so a $55 fee costs $62.36 a night with tax. Our Las Vegas resort fee guide lists every hotel’s fee, and the hotels without resort fees skip it entirely.

When to book direct

Book with the hotel or its brand in these cases. This is where we’d steer you away from Booking.com.

• You collect casino points or tier credits. MGM Rewards credits third-party stays only on the resort fee and add-ons such as early check-in, not the nightly room rate. Caesars Rewards earns hotel credits “when reserved directly with us,” and Venetian Rewards excludes third-party bookings.
• Your tier waives the resort fee. MGM (Gold and up), Venetian Rewards (Ruby and Diamond) and Fontainebleau (Gold and Royal) waive it only on direct bookings with your member number attached. Caesars’ waiver for Diamond and up doesn’t say whether third-party bookings qualify, and The LINQ’s FAQ says its fee applies regardless of tier, so book direct and confirm with the hotel.
• You’re a Hilton Honors or World of Hyatt member. Hilton gives no points, stay credit or on-property benefits for third-party website bookings, and its terms don’t say whether Resorts World‘s own site counts as direct, so use Hilton’s site or app. World of Hyatt at The Venetian requires booking through Hyatt, not The Venetian.
• You’re a Marriott Bonvoy elite at an MGM hotel. On MGM Collection stays booked through Marriott, Ambassador Elite members get the resort fee waived on up to two rooms plus free self-parking, so Marriott’s own channels are the ones to use.
• The member rate is lower, or you want a price guarantee. Caesars matches a lower published rate found within 4 hours of booking and takes another 10% off (claims must be made at least 72 hours before arrival), and Hilton matches one claimed within 24 hours, plus 25% off the room rate.
• The deal lives on the hotel’s site. Resorts World’s “All Resort, No Fees” offer waives its $55 daily resort fee for stays through December 28, 2026, blackout dates aside (at last check in October 2026).

The points add up slowly. At MGM, each $100 of room rate booked direct earns 100 points and 400 Tier Credits, while a third-party booking earns only on the resort fee and extras. Gold, the tier that waives the fee, starts at 75,000 Tier Credits, so this matters most for regulars.

What a third-party booking means, program by program

Program	Third-party booking	Resort-fee waiver	Direct member rate
MGM Rewards (Bellagio, ARIA, MGM Grand, The Cosmopolitan and more)	Earns on resort fee and add-ons only	Gold and up, direct only	Up to 15% off the Flexible Rate
Caesars Rewards (Caesars Palace, Paris, Flamingo, The LINQ and more)	Hotel earning is for direct reservations	Diamond and up; channel not stated	10% off (Gold, Platinum), 15% (Diamond and up); blackouts may apply
Venetian Rewards (The Venetian, The Palazzo)	Excluded	Ruby and Diamond, direct only	Up to 5% off
World of Hyatt (The Venetian)	Not eligible; Hyatt channels only	Award nights only	Not stated
Hilton Honors (Resorts World’s Hilton hotels, Waldorf Astoria, Virgin Hotels)	No points or stay credit	Reward stays booked with all points	From 2% off eligible rates
Fontainebleau Rewards	Not stated	Gold and Royal, direct only	Up to 35% for members, stays Dec. 30, 2026–Aug. 31, 2027
Wynn Rewards (Wynn, Encore)	Not stated; tier credits come from gaming only	None listed	Up to 30% off rooms

Not sure which program a hotel belongs to? Our guide to which hotels belong to MGM and Caesars lists every Strip resort by operator.

Two promises lack a claim process. MGM’s tier page advertises “Guaranteed Lowest Room Rates,” though MGM discontinued its Best Rate Guarantee on August 5, 2022, and Venetian Rewards says members “are always guaranteed the best rates.” We couldn’t find published terms for either.

When Booking.com is the better choice

If you don’t hold casino status and the member rate isn’t lower, Booking.com’s tools earn their keep:

• Free cancellation and paying later. Its Las Vegas search has “Free cancellation,” “No prepayment” and “Book without credit card” filters. Cancellation terms are still the hotel’s: some rates can’t be canceled for free, others only before a deadline.
• Comparing totals. One search lines up prices across the city, which helps when you’re weighing our picks of the best hotels in Las Vegas or cheap hotels on the Strip.
• Genius discounts. The free program gives 10% off select stays from sign-up, 10% to 15% after 5 bookings in two years and 10% to 20% after 15, plus free breakfasts and upgrades on select stays at those levels. Discounts apply before taxes and fees, so the resort fee isn’t reduced.
• Price Match. If you find the same room, dates, occupancy, meal plan and cancellation terms for less on another site after booking, Booking.com refunds the difference. Member, login and coupon prices don’t count.

Know how the platform makes money. Booking.com says your contract is with the hotel, which pays it a commission after your stay, and that commission can influence its default ranking; a thumbs-up badge marks properties paying a higher one. Treat the default order as a starting point.

How third-party bookings work

A travel site sits between you and the hotel, which changes who handles what:

• Cancellations go through the seller. Caesars’ FAQs say bookings made on Expedia, Booking.com or other sites follow that site’s cancellation policy, and Venetian stays booked through Hyatt must be changed or canceled through Hyatt.
• Overbooking. If the hotel can’t honor your booking, Booking.com says you can cancel free, and it can help find a similar hotel, refunding the difference if that one costs a bit more.
• Loyalty numbers. Add yours at MGM’s front desk to earn on the resort fee and add-ons. Caesars Palace, Flamingo and Horseshoe allow app Express Check-In for third-party bookings only if your Caesars Rewards number was added at booking; Paris doesn’t allow it. A World of Hyatt number can’t be added to a non-Hyatt booking at all.
• Partner offers. Rates Booking.com labels as partner offers must be paid at booking, can’t be modified and are excluded from its Price Match.
• House rules still apply. Booking.com shows each hotel’s minimum check-in age in the listing’s house rules, and it’s 21 at most resorts; see our guide to the minimum check-in age.

Can you pay at the hotel when you book online?

Yes, on some Booking.com rates. Booking.com lists three setups: the hotel charges you at the property, the hotel charges you in advance, or Booking.com organizes payment in advance. In an October 2026 search, some Las Vegas listings read “No prepayment needed – pay at the property,” including a Flamingo rate sold as “Room Type Assigned on Arrival.” If a rate needs payment up front, it may be taken when you book and may be non-refundable.

Booking direct with MGM, Caesars, Fontainebleau or The Venetian means a deposit at booking. MGM takes the first night, refundable with at least 72 hours’ notice unless the offer says otherwise; Fontainebleau takes the first night plus tax on the same 72-hour terms; Caesars charges one night on room-only bookings; and The Venetian bills the first night or the whole stay, depending on the offer.

Paying at the property doesn’t rule out a hold at check-in. Bellagio’s fine print on Booking.com sets an incidental deposit of $150 per night, per room (at last check in October 2026), and our Las Vegas hotel deposits guide covers the holds hotel by hotel.

Packages and casino offers

Packages. In the LVCVA’s 2025 visitor survey, 11% of visitors paid a package or tour rate, against 62% on a regular room rate. A hotel package can bundle the resort fee: in April 2026, the Review-Journal reported an MGM two-night all-inclusive package at Luxor and Excalibur covering the fee, meals, a show and parking. But MGM’s Gold-tier fee waiver excludes all-inclusive room packages, Caesars leaves packages out of its one-night deposit and its Best Rate Guarantee, and a package bought from a travel site is still a third-party booking for loyalty purposes.

Casino offers. These run through each casino’s loyalty program. Venetian Rewards calls itself “the best way to earn gaming benefits like comps and free play,” and Wynn’s tier credits come only from rated slot, video poker and table play. Offer terms vary by hotel. Treasure Island makes its resort fee optional on qualified Treasury Players Club reservations (you then pay separately for Wi-Fi and the fitness center), while Hilton Honors gives no points on packages sold only to casino player card holders. Check an offer’s deposit, cancellation and resort-fee terms before you accept it.

Is it cheaper to book Las Vegas hotels direct?

Sometimes. We found no neutral, dated price study showing that hotel websites or Booking.com are usually cheaper for Las Vegas, so check your own dates:

1. Fix the room: same hotel, room type, bed type, dates, guests and cancellation terms, the details price-match programs compare.
2. Price it on the hotel’s site, at the public rate and the member rate.
3. Price it on Booking.com, signed in if you have Genius, with the “Free cancellation” filter on.
4. Compare totals. Both should include the resort fee; if taxes are listed separately, add 13.38% on the room rate and the fee at a Strip hotel.
5. Count what you’d give up: a direct-only fee waiver, and points on the room rate.
6. Book refundable, then recheck. If the same room drops before your cancellation deadline, rebook and cancel the original. Our guide to the cheapest time to visit Las Vegas covers when prices move.
7. Claim a match with Booking.com, or with Caesars or Hilton if you booked direct, when a lower public price turns up after you book.

The room is only part of the bill. The Las Vegas trip cost guide adds fees, food and transport, the deals page shows how to spot a real bargain, and first-timers should start with our first time in Las Vegas tips.

FAQ

What is the best site to book Las Vegas hotels?

For points, tier credits or a status fee waiver, the best place to book is the hotel’s own site or app, because third-party stays earn little or nothing in the casino programs. For free cancellation, pay-later rates or comparing many hotels, it’s Booking.com. Most visitors book online: 81% did so through a website or app in 2025, per the LVCVA.

Is it better to book directly with the hotel or Expedia?

Direct is better if you collect loyalty points; otherwise, compare the identical room’s total and terms. MGM credits third-party bookings like Expedia’s only on the resort fee and add-ons, Venetian Rewards and Hilton Honors exclude them, and Caesars ties hotel earning to direct reservations. Caesars hotels also apply the travel site’s cancellation policy, not their own.

Do you get a better room if you book direct with the hotel?

Not by any published rule we found at the big casino resorts. The exceptions are chain programs: Hilton Honors limits on-property benefits such as upgrades to bookings made through Hilton, and World of Hyatt elite benefits at The Venetian, including a suite upgrade based on availability, apply only to Hyatt bookings. On Booking.com, Genius Levels 2 and 3 list free upgrades on select stays.

Can you get free cancellation at Las Vegas Strip hotels?

Yes, on refundable rates, whichever way you book. Direct, MGM and Fontainebleau use a 72-hour deadline. Caesars’ varies by hotel and rate: most of its property FAQs say 48 hours, Flamingo’s says 72 and caesars.com advertises 24, so read your rate’s terms. On Booking.com, the “Free cancellation” filter finds rates whose free window the hotel sets.

What is the cheapest way to book Las Vegas hotels?

Book a refundable rate wherever the identical room has the lowest total, then recheck before the cancellation deadline. Compare totals with the resort fee and tax, check the member rate on the hotel’s own site, and count any points or fee waiver you’d give up by booking elsewhere.

More planning help for your hotel stay

• Las Vegas Hotel Cancellation Policies: Refundable Rates and Date Changes
• Las Vegas Hotel Room Types: Standard Rooms, Suites and Bed Guarantees
• Las Vegas Hotel Room Blocks: Booking a Group Without Costly Assumptions

Detailed room, location and booking guides

• Paying for Someone Else’s Las Vegas Hotel Room
• Las Vegas Hotel Name Changes: Guests and Transfers
• Las Vegas Hotel Mobile Check-In: Apps and Digital Keys
• Las Vegas Hotel Price Drops: When to Rebook
• Las Vegas Hotel Best Rate Guarantees: How to Compare

More lodging comparisons and practical guides

• Las Vegas Hotel-Managed Suites vs Private Rentals: What to Check
• Las Vegas Hotel Rewards Rates: Compare Member Offers and Benefits

More hotel reviews and trip-planning details

• Las Vegas Hotel AAA and Military Discounts: Compare Eligible Rates
• Las Vegas Hotel Room Upgrades: What Is Worth Paying For?