A $55 resort fee is not $55. It’s $62.36. Clark County taxes the resort fee at the same 13.38% it taxes your room rate, so every headline number you’ve ever seen quoted is roughly seven bucks light. Nobody tells you this part. The hotel quotes you the pre-tax figure, the tax shows up as its own line, and by the time you’re squinting at your folio on checkout morning you’ve stopped doing arithmetic and started doing acceptance.
So that’s where we’re starting. Every number below is listed twice: what the hotel says, and what actually leaves your account.
The thing everyone gets wrong about 2026 Resort Fees
Here’s the part that annoys me, because half the internet is still writing about this like it’s 2023.
The FTC’s Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees took effect on May 12, 2025. It’s real, it’s in force, and it covers short-term lodging and live-event tickets. It requires the total price, including all mandatory fees, to be displayed clearly and prominently from the very first listing. No more advertising a $39 room and springing $55 on you at the checkout screen.
I keep seeing 2026-dated articles claiming the rule “has been proposed but not enacted.” It’s enacted. It’s been enacted for over a year.
But read what it actually does, because this is the whole trick: the rule governs disclosure, not price. The FTC explicitly does not ban resort fees. It doesn’t cap them. It doesn’t say a word about whether $62.36 for Wi-Fi and a gym you’ll never enter is reasonable. It says only that they have to tell you upfront.
And they did tell you. And then they raised the fees anyway.
The fees came out of the shadows and got bigger. Average Strip fee in 2015 was somewhere around $25 to $30. It’s roughly $52 now. One running tally of about 90 Las Vegas hotels put the 2026 average at $42.36 before tax, up from $39.90 the year before, a 6% jump in twelve months. Inflation was not 6%.
Transparency was never the thing stopping them. Turns out we’ll pay it if you write it on the wall.
There’s also the Hotel Fees Transparency Act of 2025, which passed the House and went to the Senate to set a single nationwide definition of “total service price,” and a Junk Fee Prevention Act introduced in Congress in December 2025 that has not become law. Don’t hold your breath on either one. The FTC set a floor and the industry cleared it without breaking stride.
How to read these charts
Three tax rates apply depending on where the building physically sits:
- 13.38% for the Strip and unincorporated Clark County (which is most of what you think of as Las Vegas)
- 13% for the City of Las Vegas, so everything downtown on Fremont, plus North Las Vegas
- Henderson properties land at 13% or slightly above depending on the district
Resort fees are per room, per night. Not per person. Four people in a room pay the same fee as one. This is the single most common question and the answer never changes.
You pay it to the hotel directly, at check-in or checkout, even if you booked and prepaid through Expedia or Booking.com. The OTA doesn’t collect it. That’s partly the point of the whole structure: fees that route around the commission the hotel would owe the booking site.
The Strip
Sorted high to low. “You pay” includes the 13.38% Clark County lodging tax.
$55 a night ($62.36 with tax)
| Hotel | Operator |
|---|---|
| Aria | MGM Resorts |
| Bellagio | MGM Resorts |
| The Cosmopolitan | MGM Resorts |
| Vdara | MGM Resorts |
| Caesars Palace | Caesars |
| Nobu Hotel | Caesars |
| Paris | Caesars |
| Planet Hollywood | Caesars |
| The Vanderpump Hotel | Caesars |
| Wynn | Wynn Resorts |
| Encore | Wynn Resorts |
| The Venetian | Venetian/Apollo |
| The Palazzo | Venetian/Apollo |
| Fontainebleau | Fontainebleau |
| Resorts World (Hilton, Conrad, Crockfords) | Resorts World |
All three Resorts World hotel brands charge the same fee. So does the Waldorf Astoria at $55, though it’s non-gaming and gets left off most casino lists.
$54.95 a night ($62.30 with tax)
Sahara. Five cents under the pack, which is a choice somebody in a meeting made on purpose.
$50 a night ($56.69 with tax)
| Hotel | Operator |
|---|---|
| MGM Grand | MGM Resorts |
| Mandalay Bay | MGM Resorts |
| Park MGM | MGM Resorts |
| The Reserve at Park MGM | MGM Resorts |
| The Signature at MGM Grand | MGM Resorts |
| W Las Vegas | MGM Resorts |
| Flamingo | Caesars |
| Harrah’s | Caesars |
| Horseshoe | Caesars |
| The LINQ | Caesars |
$49.95 a night ($56.63 with tax)
Treasure Island and The Strat. Again with the nickel.
$45 a night ($51.02 with tax)
| Hotel | Operator |
|---|---|
| Excalibur | MGM Resorts |
| Luxor | MGM Resorts |
| New York-New York | MGM Resorts |
| Circus Circus | Phil Ruffin |
Circus Circus climbed into this tier recently. It used to be the cheap seat.
$0
Best Western Plus Casino Royale. That’s it. That’s the list. One hotel on the entire Las Vegas Strip does not charge a resort fee, and it’s a Best Western wedged between the Venetian and Harrah’s.
The Jockey Club, sitting between Bellagio and the Cosmopolitan, also charges nothing, though it’s a timeshare-style condo property rather than a resort in the normal sense.
Strip-adjacent and non-casino
Fees here are all over the place and generally lower.
| Property | Fee | With tax |
|---|---|---|
| OYO Hotel & Casino | $44.95 | $50.97 |
| Tuscany Suites | $42 | $47.62 |
| Elara (Hilton Grand Vacations) | $40 | $45.35 |
| Trump International | $39 | $44.22 |
| Tahiti Village | $39 | $44.22 |
| The Lexi | $35 | $39.68 |
| Westin Las Vegas | $35 | $39.68 |
| The Platinum | $32 | $36.28 |
| Renaissance Las Vegas | $30 | $34.01 |
| Hilton Grand Vacations (Flamingo, Paradise) | $25 | $28.35 |
| Marriott’s Grand Chateau | none | — |
Downtown / Fremont Street
Downtown sits inside Las Vegas city limits, so the tax is 13%, not 13.38%. Slightly cheaper to be gouged.
| Hotel | Fee | With 13% tax |
|---|---|---|
| Circa | $50.00 | $56.50 |
| Golden Nugget | $46.00 | $51.98 |
| The D | $39.95 | $45.14 |
| Golden Gate | $39.95 | $45.14 |
| Plaza | $39.55 | $44.69 |
| Downtown Grand | $39.00 | $44.07 |
| Fremont | $33.99 | $38.41 |
| California | $32.99 | $37.28 |
| Main Street Station | $32.99 | $37.28 |
| El Cortez | $30.00 | $33.90 |
| Oasis at Gold Spike | $20.00 | $22.60 |
| Binion’s (Hotel Apache) | $0 | $0 |
| Four Queens | $0 | $0 |
Out of roughly a dozen casino hotels on or near Fremont, exactly two charge nothing: Hotel Apache at Binion’s and Four Queens. Same ownership. They are the last honest room rates in a tourist corridor and they’ve been that way for years while everyone around them crept up.
El Cortez was $26 in early 2025 and is $30 now. That’s a 15% bump in about a year on the cheapest real casino hotel downtown, which tells you the pressure is coming from every direction, not just the corporate towers.
Circa at $50 is charging Mandalay Bay money on Fremont Street. Whether Stadium Swim justifies that is a personal question, but note that your Circa fee also covers Stadium Swim access if you’re staying at Golden Gate, which is the same company using one amenity to justify three properties’ fees.
Locals casinos
This is where it gets interesting, because the locals joints have a completely different relationship with fees. Almost all of them include parking, which the Strip does not.
Station Casinos
Station publishes its numbers tax-inclusive, which is more honest than anyone on the Strip does, so I’m giving you their figures as they state them.
| Property | Fee (tax included) | Pre-tax |
|---|---|---|
| Green Valley Ranch | $51.30 | ~$45 |
| Red Rock Resort | $50.85 | ~$45 |
| Durango | $50.85 | ~$45 |
| Sunset Station | $45.59 | ~$39.99 |
| Palace Station | $45.34 | ~$39.99 |
| Boulder Station | $33.89 | ~$29.99 |
| Santa Fe Station | $33.89 | ~$29.99 |
Red Rock and Durango are charging within a couple of dollars of MGM Grand. Read that again. A Summerlin locals casino has caught the mid-tier Strip.
Station calls the ones at Palace, Sunset, Boulder and Santa Fe a “Hotel Services Fee” rather than a resort fee, presumably because calling Boulder Station a resort would strain the word past breaking.
Boyd Gaming
| Property | Fee | With tax |
|---|---|---|
| The Orleans | $40.99 | $46.47 |
| Gold Coast | $39.99 | $45.34 |
| Suncoast | $36.99 | $41.94 |
| Aliante | $35.99 | $40.65 |
| Sam’s Town | $29.99 | $34.00 |
| Cannery | $29.99 | $33.90 |
Boyd’s downtown properties (California, Fremont, Main Street Station) are in the Fremont chart above. Worth knowing: Boyd has historically not charged the resort fee on comped rooms at its properties, which is not true of Caesars, where a comped room still costs you $50-plus a night unless your card says Diamond.
Everyone else off-Strip
| Property | Fee | With tax |
|---|---|---|
| Rio | $50.00 | $56.69 |
| Virgin Hotels | $50.00 | $56.69 |
| Westgate | $49.99 | $56.68 |
| Silver Sevens | $46.00 | $52.15 |
| JW Marriott / Rampart | $45.00 | $51.02 |
| Palms & Palms Place | $43.99 | $49.87 |
| M Resort | $39.99 | $45.34 |
| Silverton | $35.99 | $40.80 |
| Ellis Island | $34.99 | $39.67 |
| Arizona Charlie’s Decatur | $33.99 | $38.54 |
| South Point | $33.00 | $37.42 |
| Arizona Charlie’s Boulder | $29.99 | $34.00 |
| Hilton Lake Las Vegas | $29.00 | $32.88 |
South Point at $33 with free parking and a free airport shuttle is, on pure math, one of the better deals in the valley. Michael Gaughan owns it outright and it shows.
Now the parking, because this is where some of them get you twice
Resort fees were sold as a bundle covering the stuff you use. Then MGM started charging for parking in 2016 and the bundle quietly stopped covering the thing you use most.
So at Bellagio you pay $62.36 a night for the fee, and then $20 a night to park your own car, and the fee does not cover it. Two separate mandatory-ish charges for the privilege of existing on the property.
MGM Resorts
Same across Aria, Bellagio, Cosmopolitan, Excalibur, Luxor, Mandalay Bay, MGM Grand, New York-New York, Park MGM, Vdara, W and the Signature.
- Self-park, Monday to Thursday: $20 per 24 hours
- Self-park, Friday to Sunday: $25 per 24 hours
- Registered hotel guests: flat $20 per 24 hours, in-and-out privileges across every MGM garage in the valley
- Valet: $40 per 24 hours, every day, guest or not
- Nevada residents: 3 hours free by scanning your license at the exit, except during stadium events and holidays
- Free self-park for MGM Rewards Pearl and up, plus MGM Rewards Mastercard holders. Free valet at Gold and up.
Caesars Entertainment
Same across Caesars Palace, Nobu, Flamingo, Harrah’s, Horseshoe, Paris, Planet Hollywood, The LINQ and The Vanderpump.
- Visitors: first hour free, $18 for 1 to 3 hours, $23 for 3 to 24 hours, no in-and-out
- Nevada residents: first 3 hours free
- Hotel guests: first 3 hours free, then $20 per 24 hours with in-and-out across all Caesars properties
- Valet: $40 per 24 hours
- Free self-park and valet for Platinum, Diamond and Seven Stars
Free self-parking for hotel guests
This is the underrated column. These properties fold parking into the fee or just don’t charge:
- Fontainebleau (free for guests with room key; $20 flat for the public after the first free hour; valet $35 weekdays, $40 weekends)
- Resorts World ($21 for the public, free for guests, free for anyone with Nevada plates)
- Venetian / Palazzo (free for guests; $20 weekdays and $23 weekends for the public; 3 hours free for Nevada IDs)
- Wynn / Encore (first 4 hours free for everyone, $20 for 24 hours, valet $40)
- Rio (free self-park and valet, plus free RV, bus and truck parking for guests)
- Virgin (free self-park and valet for everyone)
Free for absolutely everybody, no room needed
Three properties left on the Strip give away self-parking to all comers:
- Sahara (also free valet 24/7 at the main entrance, one of only two on the Strip)
- Treasure Island (free garage plus free 24-hour valet)
- Circus Circus (free garage, no valet offered; but when there’s an event next door at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds they flip to a $30 to $50 flat rate)
The Strat
Cheapest paid parking on the Strip by a mile. $12 up to 4 hours, $16 for 4 to 24. Valet $18 and $22.
Downtown parking
Downtown parking is its own separate scam ecosystem and unlike the Strip, most garages charge locals and tourists exactly the same.
| Property | Guests | Everyone else |
|---|---|---|
| Circa | Free for top-tier Club One | $4/hr, $25/day max; valet $15 |
| Golden Nugget | Free | $10 for 0-2 hrs, $25 for 2-24 hrs; valet $20/day |
| Plaza | Free | $10 Mon-Thu, $25 Fri-Sun |
| El Cortez | Free (in the fee), self and valet | $5-$10 in the Ogden garage |
| Downtown Grand | Free self or valet | $10-$18 Mon-Thu, $20/day Fri-Sun |
| The D | Free self-park | $5/hr, $20 max; valet free |
| Golden Gate | Free self and valet | Adjacent lot $4/hr, $20 max |
| Binion’s | $5/day | $4 first hour up to $20 for 24 hrs; validated with play or food |
| Four Queens | $5/day | Same tiers as Binion’s; validation available |
| California | Charged | $10 Mon-Thu, $25 Fri-Sun; first 30 min free |
| Main Street Station | Not free, standard rates | $10 Mon-Thu, $20 Fri-Sun |
| Fremont | Valet only, free | Valet only, free |
Main Street Station charges its own hotel guests for parking. Take that in.
Public garages: the Fremont Street Experience garage is $4 the first hour, $20 daily max, and jumps to a $20 flat rate during big events. Neonopolis is the local’s answer at $3 the first hour and a $9 daily max, and you can get two hours free with a validation from Nacho Daddy or Toy Shack. The City Hall garage gives two free hours with validation on weekdays, $10 daily max, $3 flat after 8pm.
Off-Strip
Every locals casino gives you free self-parking. Aliante, both Arizona Charlie’s, Boulder Station, Cannery, Gold Coast, Green Valley Ranch, JW Marriott, M Resort, Palace Station, Palms, Red Rock, Rio, Sam’s Town, Santa Fe Station, Silverton, South Point, Suncoast, The Orleans, Virgin. Most throw in free valet too.
The gap is stark. Locals casinos figured out that charging your regulars to park is how you stop having regulars. The Strip figured out that tourists come anyway.
What this actually costs you
Three nights at Bellagio with a car, at a $220 room rate:
- Room: $660
- Resort fee: $165, plus $22.08 tax = $187.08
- Parking: $20 × 3 = $60
That’s $247.08 on top of your room. Your $220 room is a $302 room. The advertised rate was 73% of what you paid.
Same three nights at Four Queens, downtown, with a car:
- Resort fee: $0
- Parking: $15
Fifteen dollars. That’s the whole surcharge.
How to actually not pay
Ranked by how well it works.
Get status. This is the only reliable method. MGM Rewards Gold and up waives the resort fee at every MGM property. Caesars Rewards Diamond and up waives it at every Caesars property. Diamond takes 15,000 tier credits a year. Both programs status-match from other hotel and airline programs, which is the loophole worth ten minutes of your time. World of Hyatt Globalists get fees waived on award stays at the Venetian, which joined Hyatt’s portfolio in January 2025.
Book the promo rate. More properties than you’d think run standing no-fee offers, they just don’t advertise them where you’re looking:
- Treasure Island has run its “TV Ad Special” for years. Book it on TI’s own site, forfeit the fitness center and Wi-Fi, keep the money. You won’t miss either.
- Sahara has an “All In Rate” bookable through the end of 2026 that skips the fee for everyone, plus a separate no-fee deal for Nevada residents.
- The Strat’s “All-In Package” runs $49 midweek and $99 weekends through October 31, 2026, with the fee waived, tower admission for two and a $25 daily dining credit.
- Golden Nugget is waiving fees on rooms booked by July 31 for stays through May 31, 2027.
- Resorts World’s “All Resort, No Fees” runs on select nights through the end of 2026, though most of the calendar is blacked out.
- Westgate’s “Break Away From Fees” kills the $49.99 fee and adds a $75 daily dining credit, cabaret tickets, spa passes and free valet. If you’re at a convention this is the play.
- Plaza’s all-inclusive package waives the fee from June 1 to August 31, 2026, but costs $104 a night on top of the room, so do the math before you get excited.
Be a Nevada resident. Locals get a lot here. Every Station property (Red Rock, Green Valley Ranch, Durango, Sunset, Palace, Boulder, Santa Fe) waives the fee on the “Local StaCation” rate with a Nevada ID. So does Downtown Grand, M Resort (with up to 30% off the room), Virgin, and Fontainebleau on its locals deal.
Stay somewhere that never charges. Casino Royale and the Jockey Club on the Strip. Four Queens and Binion’s Hotel Apache downtown. Grand Chateau near the Strip. And basically every non-casino chain hotel off-Strip, where a Hampton Inn or Homewood Suites will give you free breakfast and free parking and charge you nothing extra, which used to be called “a hotel.”
Complain at checkout. Works occasionally, mostly if an amenity you paid for was broken. If the pool was closed or the Wi-Fi never worked, you have an actual argument that they didn’t deliver what the fee covers. Ask politely, ask for a manager, ask at a slow time.
Dispute the charge with your card. Almost never works. The fee is disclosed at booking, and since May 2025 it’s disclosed prominently, which means the hotel can show you agreed. The FTC rule accidentally made chargebacks harder by making the fees impossible to miss.
One more thing on the horizon
Fertitta Entertainment agreed to buy Caesars Entertainment on May 28, 2026 in an all-cash deal worth about $17.6 billion, including roughly $11.9 billion of assumed debt. Caesars shareholders get $31 a share. It’s the largest casino acquisition in US history. The Nevada Gaming Control Board unanimously recommended Fertitta’s suitability on July 8, and the deal is expected to close in late 2026 or early 2027, pending a shareholder vote and the rest of the regulatory gauntlet.
Why it matters for a fee article: Tilman Fertitta owns Golden Nugget, which charges $46 downtown and is currently running a no-fee promotion through May 2027. He’d be inheriting nine Strip properties charging $50 to $55. Two very different pricing instincts about to end up under one roof. Nobody’s said a word about fees and nobody will, but it’s the one thing in this whole space that could actually move.
