Tag: mgm

MGM Pearl Status for life for watching a 30 minute video

One of the lesser known paths to MGM status is via status match with Celebrity Cruises. Classic members (2-149 Club Points) get matched to MGM Pearl. You get points by sailing with Celebrity Cruises, typically 1 Club Point per night sailed. And unlike most loyalty programs, cruise loyalty programs count the number of nights during your lifetime, which means your status is permanent.

In addition to getting Club Points for sailing, you can get Club Points outside of the cruise. By signing up for the the Captain’s Club (free to join), you get invited to surveys or webinars to earn Power Up Points. Each 10 Power Up Points convert to 1 Club Point. Since Classic status only requires 2 Club Points, just one activity is enough to get you Classic status for life. Unfortunately, they only send these offers out once or twice a year.

For example, on 9/18/24, a webinar link was sent out that is worth 30 Power Up Points = 3 Club Points, or enough for Classic status for life. The webinar link seemed to be unique but is good for up to 5 viewers.

So the play here is:

  1. Sign up for Celebrity Cruises Captain’s Club.
  2. Wait until they send out a survey or webinar OR ask someone who received a link to add you as a viewer. Each link seems to be valid for up to 5 people.
  3. Get 30 Power Up Points, which are automatically converted to 3 Club Points, netting you Classic Status
  4. Match Classic Status to MGM Pearl (should work for a lifetime, as long as the match stays in place)

Of course, you can also get Pearl status for signing up for the MGM Rewards Mastercard (no annual fee). The credit card also gives you priority line access, which Pearl status doesn’t on it’s own.

myVegas: Prizes and 1099-misc

Last year, I won a myVegas sweepstakes for a 2 nights stay at NYNY with $100 in freeplay and $200 in resort credit. I had to submit a W9 form with playstudios because the winnings are considered as income. I expected to be taxed but I was definitely surprised at how much they valued the prize.

I received my 1099-misc for the winnings and the prize was valued at $1000. They seemed to just pick a random number for the value of the prize, without considering the actual value. At a 30% state + federal tax rate, I would owe an addition $300. The actual value of the prize, based on publicly available rates on the same day, was:

  • 2 weekday nights at NYNY: No resort fees. Had to go on weekdays due to schedule. Actual value: $220
  • $100 freeplay: Actual value: $100
  • $200 resort credit: Actual value: $120

The resort credit value is based on the premium they add for their room rates with a food and beverage credit. Typically, for $100 daily credit you only pay $50-$60 per night. So the actual value of the stay was only about $450, yet I had to pay $300 in taxes for it.

What’s even worse is that the REAL value for me is significantly lower. If I had to book this trip, I would have paid:

  • 2 weekdays nights at NYNY: free through myVegas, no resort fee through MGM Gold. Price: $0
  • $100 freeplay: Price: $100
  • $200 resort credit Price: $120

If I booked the trip myself, I would have only spent $220! Yet by winning the prize I would pay $300 in taxes.

Conclusion

The lesson here is 1) if you win a prize, ask about taxes 2) book weekend rates to maximize value 3) consider decline the prize if the taxes is more than you would pay for the trip.

In the above picture, if someone won the NCL cruise, they would owe taxes on $1800, in addition to the gratuities and port fees. They could have gotten the cruise for free and saved $540 if they purchased the NCL reward directly loyalty

myVegas: myVIP levels and myVIP points

What is the myVIP program?

Separate from loyalty points, you can get myVIP points through daily play and by purchasing on most apps. It is intended to give incentives and rewards to the most active and highest paying players.

What is myVIP Status good for?

Higher myVIP levels will get you marginally more chips, priority support and, access tournaments, and a personal host at tier 7. At tier 7, you can ask your host for some sold-out rewards or to convert your LP into freeplay. You may also receive some gifts from your host.

Without spending any money, the highest you can get is myVIP level 5, which nets you priority support and access to special tournaments. The tournaments may be worth participating in because the pool of players is smaller and your odds of winning is higher than a general tournament.

How do you earn myVIP points?

You can earn myVIP points by collecting hourly/daily bonuses. The ways to earn myVIP points are:

  1. Pop Slots (60/day)
  2. myVegas (30/day) and 5 every 2 hours.
  3. myVegas Classic (30/day)
  4. Konami Slots (30/day) and 5 every 2 hours.
  5. Bellagio Poker (15/day)

So you can earn 175/day by logging in once in each of these apps, up to 285 day if you collect every 2 hours.

You can also earn myVIP points by making purchases in most games at the rate of 80 points per dollar spent. The only game that isn’t linked to the myVIP system is Tetris and all the other games seem to earn 80 points per dollar.

How do you earn myVIP status?

The chart showing earning requirements is a bit misleading. For example, you don’t need only 5500 points to get to tier 5. Once you get to a tier 4, you need an additional 5500 points to get to tier 5. So to get to tier 5 you need to earn 5500+1600+300+75=7475 points. Once you reach tier 5, you can maintain tier 5 by earning 7400 points (tier 4 + tier 5 requirement). Or you have 45 days to earn 22k points to get to tier 6.

At a rate of 285/day, you can get 12k+ points per 45 days so you can realistically keep tier 5 forever since it only requires 7400 points to maintain. To get to tier 6 from tier 5, you will need to spend about $125 on top of daily bonuses. To get to tier 7 from tier 6, you would need to spend at least $550 in addition to the daily bonuses.

Trip Report: 15 hours in Las Vegas

Drove to SNA airport and parked at main street parking. It is $14/day and is perfect for very short trips. They also have free level 1 car charging, which gets about 60-70 miles per 24 hours. You have to provide your own charger.

Took the Frontier flight to LAS, it was on time and was a smooth experience. I had Diamond status from a status match in 2023 and I gained Diamond organically for 2024 from 100 segments. The elite membership gives incredible value. I netted around 1600 miles from this flight.

I actually bought flight tickets for effectively $13 round trip from the vegas.com $100 promo. They offered a $100 promo code for any purchase, and it was possible to make a purchase for as low as $13. You can add your frequent flier number after booking to get most elite benefits.

After landing, I went to the lounge for a quick bite and took the shuttle from terminal 3 to the car rental center. I had Hertz Presidential status from the Venture X card and I grabbed a car from the Gold lot since I booked class B (class C or above would allow a choice from the Prez Circle lot). In the gold lot there were mostly sedans, a Mini, a mustang, and some SUVs.

Drove to downtown Las Vegas and grabbed some freeplay and dinner. I did a mobile check-in and headed to Excalibur/Luxor to get some more freeplay (through myVegas) and gambled a little. Overall I had $225 in freeplay but did poorly and only made $165 from it from video poker.

Returned the car around 6:00AM and was in the Amex lounge in about 30 minutes. Had breakfast and the mostly empty flight left at 7:50AM.

Total Cost:

  1. Airport Parking: $14
  2. Flight: $13
  3. Car Rental: $35
  4. Hotel: $22
  5. “Gambling” (gain): +$165

Total Cost: $-81

Paths to MGM Gold Status

Now that the Hyatt and MGM partnership has ended, getting MGM gold status is significantly harder and more expensive. So far, I’ve found the following ways to get MGM gold status:

  1. Earn MGM Gold Status via gambling. This requires 75k tier credits, or 2 days with 20k points per day with their accelerator. At an estimated 8 points per theoretical dollar, it would cost around $5000 to get status this way.
  2. Folio spend counts towards MGM status at a rate of 4 credits per dollar. This works with the tier accelerator and will require $5000 of spend for two days to get gold status.
  3. Bets on the betMGM sportsbook rewards TC, around 20 TC per $100 wagered on even bets. It will take $375k in bets and if the typical hold on an even bet is around 5%, this would cost roughly $20k.
  4. You can spend $37500 on the MGM rewards card at grocery stores or gas stations to earn 75k points. For most, this method requires manufactured spending. Since you’re sacrificing a higher earning rate at grocery stores, this costs around $1200.
  5. Loading the betMGM app through the MGM rewards card earns 1 TC per dollar. In some states, this isn’t coded as a cash advance. It may be possible to arbitrage with other betting sites to minimize risk. However, they are very strict and any suspicious activity (like repeatedly depositing and withdrawing) will get you shut down.
  6. You can status match from other casinos. For example, Caesar’s diamond elite will match to platinum for 3 months but it is once per lifetime.
  7. MGM has a partnership with Royal Caribbean Cruises and their Emerald status matches to MGM Gold. Emerald status requires 55 nights with Royal Caribbean. However, Emerald is a lifetime status and should net you MGM Gold as long as their partnership remains. Even comped cruises count towards the night requirements, but there are still taxes and gratuities. You can also get additional nights by paying the solo supplement or by booking a suite. At a bare minimum of $50 per night, this method requires at least $2750 spend and a lot of free time. addendum: myVegas sometimes offers free cruises, and your out of pocket would be around $35 per night for double occupancy.

myVegas: FAQ

When do rewards refresh?

See my post about spending rewards.

When are room calendars updated?

Room calendars have historically been released less than a month before the current room calendars expire.

Can you post the current room calendars?

See this link.

Can two people get rooms and go for a longer stay?

Yes, as long as there is availability. You can ask to stay in the same room at check-in. You may have to go to the check-in desk twice.

How many myVegas freeplays can you redeem per paid stay?

Just one. It used to be multiple but they changed it in 2023. You can still redeem mykonami freeplays, even without staying.

What counts as a paid room for the $100 myVegas freeplay?

Any stay where you checked-in and have 3 or more paid nights in the stay. You can have comped days but there must be 3 or more paid nights. Third party bookings are eligible. Rates that are only resort fees or room upgrades are not.

An award I wanted disappeared, what happened?

Either the partnership ended, the reward is no longer being offered, or the reward is being refreshed. Every couple months, many rewards (rooms, freeplay, etc) disappear and a new batch reappears after a couple days.

Should I spend money on the game?

Spending money opens up a 4th, 5th or 6th reward slot. The 4th slot opens around $100, 5th slot around $300, 6th slot around $700. Spending money on some games may allow you to earn LP faster, or temporarily remove some loyalty caps. It also raises your myVIP level, which makes you eligible for some tournaments and, if you’re high enough, better customer service and a host.

myVegas: Room Availability Calendar Jan 2024 – Jun 2024

Here is the current room availability calendar as of 1/23/24. Availability will change as people book rooms. One day and two day comp room availability is usually the same. There is no weekend availability, but some of the free rooms are valued at $300+ per night.

Bellagio

Aria

Mandalay Bay

MGM Grand

Park MGM

NYNY

Luxor

Excalibur

myVegas: Booking NCL Cruises

myVegas is currently offering an reward for $1000 off cruises. Two people can buy a certificate each and get $2000 off their cruise fare. Or a single certificate can take $1000 off. You can stack this with CruiseFirst on cruises 7 days or longer, the free at sea offers, Amex offers, and some personalized cruise offers.

They don’t pull any tricks with the base price of the fare. The price is the same price that you can quote on their website. It is also valid on any type of stateroom.

Sample Itinerary

Sample itinerary found directly on their website. The $1000 per person discount applies off just the Stateroom portion of the fare (in this case, $1998), so your total fare would be $512.64. Not included are gratuities at $20 per person per day.

The $1000 off per person only covers the cost of the stateroom and does not cover taxes, gratuities, or excursions. The total out of pocket cost, not including airfare to the port, would be $512 + gratuities ($20/day per person) for a total of $952.

You can also stack this with a Cruisefirst certificate ($250 for $500 credit), making it $702 for two people. This also stacks with amex offers if it is available at the time.

This also stacks with some personal offers that may be on your NCL account. For example, a 25% discount due to changed itinerary would be stacklable but the dollar off from the myVegas applies first and you get a discount on the remaining fare.

How to purchase the reward

The $1000 off reward currently costs 300,000 loyalty points on myVegas. If you’re starting off today, it is possible to get this number of loyalty points in as few as 4 days, depending on how much time you want to invest in the apps.

If the reward is sold out, there is a good chance it will be available at the standard reset time.

myVegas: Earning Loyalty Points fast

Here are (in my opinion) the fastest ways to earn loyalty points in myVegas, sorted by easiest to hardest. You can do any or all of these to maximize your earning rate. Each method of earning LP requires different levels of attention and time.

  1. Pop Slots and MGM Slots: You can earn 8k points per day in each game just by logging on and keeping them open. It takes about 1 minute to open the game and 1 hour of idle time. This refreshes twice a day. Total: 16k/day
  2. MyVegas Blackjack on iOS: You earn roughly 4k a day by playing 20 hands of blackjack. Bet enough that you get LP every hand and it should only take 2 minutes. Total: 4k/day
  3. MyVegas Slots on iOS or Browser: You earn 10k per day and your LP rate is correlated to how much you bet. Alternatively, you can use the android version and just stay online for 1 hour. The cap resets at midnight PST, but it also resets 23 hours after you hit the cap. Total time: 5 minutes for 5k a day. Total: 10k/day
  4. myVegas Blackjack on Android: Autospin the slots at min bet for 1 hour for 4k LP/day. Total: 4k/day
  5. myKonami on Android: Same as #6, Autospin the slots at min bet for 1 hour for 4k LP/day. Total: 4k/day
  6. Tetris. Buy the no-ads in game for 30 days for $2.99 and forfeit 16 hard games per day. You will earn 4k points per day for roughly 20 minutes of work. Note: They limited Tetris earnings to 4k/day total
  7. myVegas Classic: This caps out at 1k LP/day, plus whatever you get from leveling and collecting from the strip. I’ll estimate this at 2k LP/day for 3 minutes of active and 30 minutes of idle time. I always run out of chips, though. Total: 2k LP/day
  8. myKonami iOS/Browser. This caps at 4k LP/day but I always run out of chips. LP is directly correlated to the amount bet. Total: 4k LP/day

Total is 40k+ LP per day, not counting any hourly and daily bonuses.

myVegas: Earning Loyalty Points

You earn loyalty points by playing the games in the myVegas portfolio. Some games only require you to login while others require clicking or active spinning. There are 11 different loyalty point caps.

GamePlatformLoyalty CapCap ResetEarn Method1Notes
Pop SlotsiOS/Android40005AM and 5PMSpins/Time2
MGM SlotsiOS/Android40005AM and 5PMSpins/Time2
BlackjackAndroid400024 hoursClicks
BlackjackIOS400024 hoursBet
Konami SlotsAndroid40009AMClicks
Konami SlotsBrowser/iOS40009AMBet/Bet
BingoiOS/Android30005PMTime/Time
myVegas ClassicBrowser100024 hoursBet3
myVegas.com, myVegas appBrowser/iOS/Android500012AM and 23 hrsBet/Bet/Clicks2
TetrisiOS/Android40005PMWin/Forfeit4
Bellagio PokeriOS/Android??Bet5
List of all the loyalty point caps. Note that sometimes the iOS and Android version of a game has separate caps.
1. Earn method: Spins means you have to be actively spinning a slot machine at any bet. Time means the app must be open in the foreground. Clicks mean you have to be actively clicking. Bet means your LP earned is tied to the amount bet. Win/Forfeit means you have to win or forfeit a game of Tetris. When there are multiple earn methods listed, it is for each respective platform.
2. Pop Slots, MGM slots, and myVegas cap resets twice a day.
3. The cap on myVegas classic doesn’t include LP from leveling up or from collecting.
4. You earn 150 LP every time you start and forfeit a regular level. You earn 250 LP every time you start and forfeit a hard level (usually every 10th level starting from level 5). You have to watch an ad each time you forfeit, unless you pay for the ad free version. Tasks and hourly bonuses also provide a significant amount of LP.
5. Bellagio poker may not be enabled for all players. The LP earning is minimal.

The above table shows the apps and how many LP you can earn per cap. Daily bonuses are not included. Some caps are temporarily lifted after making an in-game purchase. Also, some caps may be higher if you haven’t logged in for awhile.

Combined, it’s possible to earn 50k or more LP per day.

Tetris for Quick Loyalty Points

Unfortunately, they added a 4k/day cap on Tetris sometime at the end of January 2024 so this no longer applies.

For a shortcut to earn LP, Tetris may be a good option. You earn 150 LP each time you forfeit a regular level of Tetris, and 250 LP each time you forfeit a hard level of Tetris, up to 100 times each. You’re forced to watch an ad every time, unless you purchase the no-ads option. The no-ads option is $3 for 30 days, so you can potentially earn over 1.2M LP during that time frame. There are sometimes promotions where the no-ad option is cheaper. For example, around Black Friday 2023 it was $9.99 for 180 days, Jan 19th 2024 it was $4.99 for a year of no ads. Hard levels appear every 10 levels but seems to stop at level 755.