Vegas...Baby....Best bet for Diamonds?
Oct 1, 2015, 9:10 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 87
Vegas...Baby....Best bet for Diamonds?
I just realized an US Air companion ticket expiring this weekend. Vegas came to mind and lots of properties to choose from.....
Seems that Diamond = Mlife Platinum.
Thinking of booking with Points only since no DSU
exist.
Which hotel will treat a Diamond member best???
Seems that Diamond = Mlife Platinum.
Thinking of booking with Points only since no DSU
exist.
Which hotel will treat a Diamond member best???
Oct 1, 2015, 9:29 pm
#2
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: ORD
Programs: AA EXP, Hyatt Diamond, Marriott Gold, Hilton Gold, Hertz PC
Posts: 449
Sadly your Diamond status won't get you much. The best perk of the "matched" status is the reduced room rates through mlife.
Depending on how full the properties are you might be able to get a suite for reasonable cost with your mlife status.
Depending on how full the properties are you might be able to get a suite for reasonable cost with your mlife status.
Oct 1, 2015, 9:31 pm
#3
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: SEA
Posts: 2,021
http://singleflyer.com/2015/10/01/st...yatt-to-mlife/
Honestly you won't get treated well with any of the Mlife properties as Platinum. Overall I like Mandalay Bay (or Delano), Aria or Mirage. If you want to go lower end, NYNY takes good care of all guests.
Oct 2, 2015, 10:06 am
#4
Join Date: Jul 2001
Programs: Marriott LT Tit; Hyatt Explorist; Hilton CC Gold; IHG CC Plt; Hertz (MR) 5 star
Posts: 5,536
As others have stated, make sure you get the MLife Plat match.
I book on the MLife website, mlife.com. If you've got Plat status and sign in there, the rates will be lower than on Hyatt.com. I just pay for rooms, as there are only a few instances where using points is a better value than paying cash. If you've got more points than you know what to do with, I suppose burning points is OK. MLife properties don't offer Points+Cash.
I've had some luck getting upgrades as an MLife Plat, although I don't gamble much. If one were to gamble a lot at MLife properties, they'd probably do fairly well.
I really like Mandalay Bay/Delano. My wife's favorite is Mirage. We both like MGM Grand quite a bit.
Avoid: Luxor, Excalibur ... cheap rooms, but not all that nice properties. Excalibur's better than Luxor IMHO. Unless you want to do Vegas on the cheap cheap cheap, don't book either of these properties. I occasionally book Excalibur for a cheap mattress run.
Other properties:
I've never stayed at Bellagio; they always seem to be higher priced. I haven't stayed at Aria either; will be staying there in the next month.
MGM Signature is nice; they're basically timeshares with kitchen(ette)s, but they're a couple of blocks off of the strip.
Vdara - I was unimpressed with my room there; I'll never book there again.
Monte Carlo and New York New York - we liked both of them; lower priced so not as nice as Mandalay Bay, Delano, Mirage, MGM Grand, Signature at MGM. But good overall value.
Some front desk clerks will upgrade you as a MLife Plat, others may offer you an upgrade for $x. Last time we stayed at Mandalay Bay, we were offered Delano for an extra $50 - I took the offer.
A HUGE bonus of being Plat is that there's a separate check in line for Plats and Noirs. That can save a lot of time.
Edit: for this weekend, MGM Grand @$131.25 +$32.48 resort fee for Fri&Sat night looks like the best deal. If you get registered as Plat, you can always call the hotel @ 702-891-1111 to reserve a room.
I book on the MLife website, mlife.com. If you've got Plat status and sign in there, the rates will be lower than on Hyatt.com. I just pay for rooms, as there are only a few instances where using points is a better value than paying cash. If you've got more points than you know what to do with, I suppose burning points is OK. MLife properties don't offer Points+Cash.
I've had some luck getting upgrades as an MLife Plat, although I don't gamble much. If one were to gamble a lot at MLife properties, they'd probably do fairly well.
I really like Mandalay Bay/Delano. My wife's favorite is Mirage. We both like MGM Grand quite a bit.
Avoid: Luxor, Excalibur ... cheap rooms, but not all that nice properties. Excalibur's better than Luxor IMHO. Unless you want to do Vegas on the cheap cheap cheap, don't book either of these properties. I occasionally book Excalibur for a cheap mattress run.
Other properties:
I've never stayed at Bellagio; they always seem to be higher priced. I haven't stayed at Aria either; will be staying there in the next month.
MGM Signature is nice; they're basically timeshares with kitchen(ette)s, but they're a couple of blocks off of the strip.
Vdara - I was unimpressed with my room there; I'll never book there again.
Monte Carlo and New York New York - we liked both of them; lower priced so not as nice as Mandalay Bay, Delano, Mirage, MGM Grand, Signature at MGM. But good overall value.
Some front desk clerks will upgrade you as a MLife Plat, others may offer you an upgrade for $x. Last time we stayed at Mandalay Bay, we were offered Delano for an extra $50 - I took the offer.
A HUGE bonus of being Plat is that there's a separate check in line for Plats and Noirs. That can save a lot of time.
Edit: for this weekend, MGM Grand @$131.25 +$32.48 resort fee for Fri&Sat night looks like the best deal. If you get registered as Plat, you can always call the hotel @ 702-891-1111 to reserve a room.
Last edited by iflyjetz; Oct 2, 2015 at 10:12 am
Oct 2, 2015, 10:52 am
#5
Join Date: Apr 2005
Programs: DL DM MM, Hyatt LT Globalist, SPG Gold, Marriott Gold, Hertz PC
Posts: 2,141
Book Aria (or Skysuites) via Virtuoso. Aria has always treated us extremely well- exceptional upgrades, attentive service, wonderful amenities. The new SkySuites Pool is great.
Oct 2, 2015, 4:02 pm
#6
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 87
So far, so good. Hold time to book AA with the Companion Certificate was about 45 min which I used to put the itinerary on hold on line and just provided the record locator to the agent, booked in less than 10 minutes. Used my Amex Plat Annual Airline Credit to reserve Main Cabin extra seats and checked Mlife for room rates. Boy, does a Saturday night stay change the picture......A $ 99.00 Thursday night rate changes into a $ 270.00 Saturday night rate.
I still have my annual free room certificate, so I think I will use that and 30k points for NYNY.
I still have my annual free room certificate, so I think I will use that and 30k points for NYNY.
Oct 2, 2015, 4:42 pm
#7
Join Date: Aug 2011
Programs: Hyatt Globlist,MarriottPlat,Hilton Gold,Delta Silver,National EE,Avis President Club, Hertz PC
Posts: 200
So far, so good. Hold time to book AA with the Companion Certificate was about 45 min which I used to put the itinerary on hold on line and just provided the record locator to the agent, booked in less than 10 minutes. Used my Amex Plat Annual Airline Credit to reserve Main Cabin extra seats and checked Mlife for room rates. Boy, does a Saturday night stay change the picture......A $ 99.00 Thursday night rate changes into a $ 270.00 Saturday night rate.
I still have my annual free room certificate, so I think I will use that and 30k points for NYNY.
I still have my annual free room certificate, so I think I will use that and 30k points for NYNY.
Oct 2, 2015, 7:08 pm
#8
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 87
It's 15k per night. I got a slew of points back from the 20% back promo earlier this year with stays at Hyatt Singapore, Doha and Maldives, I kinda consider those free since I made those reservations before that promo was announced......
Oct 3, 2015, 10:38 am
#9
Join Date: Jul 2001
Programs: Marriott LT Tit; Hyatt Explorist; Hilton CC Gold; IHG CC Plt; Hertz (MR) 5 star
Posts: 5,536
I understand your desire to use points for this, as you're carrying excess points - might as well burn them, as they lose value over time.
Oct 4, 2015, 10:00 am
#10
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Charlotte NC USA
Programs: Hyatt Globalist, AA Exec Plat, Alaska 75k, IHG Diamond, Wyndham Diamond, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 863
I actually love the Vdara, especially if you can get a room upgrade. It was going to be a condo before the great recession, and the rooms are furnished accordingly. Real kitchens, laundry (in the above-base level rooms), lots of other features too.
Best of all, it's eligible for the Visa Signature hotels program at https://www.visasignaturehotels.com/ . Gets you room upgrade, generous food credit, etc. An especially good value for 1-night stays, as they're per-stay benefits.
Last time in Vegas I spent one night at Monte Carlo (cheap, unremarkable room), and the next at Vdara using Visa Signature. Gave me two Hyatt stay & night credits towards re-upping Diamond for 2016, and I was delighted with the package at Vdara in their "Vdara Suite" (1 category upgrade).
Best of all, it's eligible for the Visa Signature hotels program at https://www.visasignaturehotels.com/ . Gets you room upgrade, generous food credit, etc. An especially good value for 1-night stays, as they're per-stay benefits.
Last time in Vegas I spent one night at Monte Carlo (cheap, unremarkable room), and the next at Vdara using Visa Signature. Gave me two Hyatt stay & night credits towards re-upping Diamond for 2016, and I was delighted with the package at Vdara in their "Vdara Suite" (1 category upgrade).
Oct 4, 2015, 10:13 am
#11
Join Date: Jul 2001
Programs: Marriott LT Tit; Hyatt Explorist; Hilton CC Gold; IHG CC Plt; Hertz (MR) 5 star
Posts: 5,536
The base level room I got sucked. No kitchen. Don't think there was a laundry; can't remember. Room showed a LOT of wear and tear - I was surprised at how worn the room was. Very little sound insulation; noises traveled quite a distance on the floor.
Oct 4, 2015, 5:33 pm
#12
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: MSP
Programs: DL PM, MM, NR; HH Diamond, Bonvoy LT Gold, Hyatt Explorist, IHG Diamond, others
Posts: 12,159
So far, so good. Hold time to book AA with the Companion Certificate was about 45 min which I used to put the itinerary on hold on line and just provided the record locator to the agent, booked in less than 10 minutes. Used my Amex Plat Annual Airline Credit to reserve Main Cabin extra seats and checked Mlife for room rates. Boy, does a Saturday night stay change the picture......A $ 99.00 Thursday night rate changes into a $ 270.00 Saturday night rate.
I still have my annual free room certificate, so I think I will use that and 30k points for NYNY.
I still have my annual free room certificate, so I think I will use that and 30k points for NYNY.
Oct 4, 2015, 8:11 pm
#14
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Formerly of SacTown, Cali
Posts: 1,243
We really like MGM for their pool area. The Hyatt Diamond = Mlife Plat is a JOKE. The ONLY perk we got last trip was avoiding the long line at the cafe Sunday morning. As they have a line for MLife gold and higher. Was nice to walk right up to the front and avoid a 30-40 person line. Other than that not a single perk. They wouldn't give us early check in or late check out which both seemed like reasonable requests. ZERO! They only give perks for gamblers because gamblers can call their casino host directly.
Oct 5, 2015, 1:12 am
#15
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: xLAS
Posts: 1,362
Craftsteak inside the MGM is one of my favorite steakhouses in the area, and one of the few reasons I'll make that rare trip to the Strip (I'm a local).