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Question on room upgrades in Las Vegas

Hello: I am planning on going to LV during June and will stay at Treasure Island. A few persons told me (and a travel agent confirmed) that it is possible to get room upgrades if you slip a "gratuity" to the check-in clerk... Has anyone here tried anything simmilar? Does it work? Thanks in advance.

I was wondering the same thing - not just for Las Vegas, but in general. Does slipping the clerk some money really work? How much should it be - some percentage of the nightly rate?

Depending on the hotel 20-50 bucks should do it. Start with the bellman and tell him you want to get upgraded. Tip everyone in sight. If it doesn't work at least you didn't lose it at the tables.

No, no, no....don't waste money on the bellman, that'll get you absolutely nowhere. These decisions can be made by the check-in clerks at their discretion. Yes, it works...AT TIMES. If the hotel is sold out, they may have very limited flexibility at the front desk. Ask first "do you anticipate selling out tonight?". Even if the answer is "Yes", then discreetly slide $20-$50 across the counter and say "If at all possible I'd really like the best room you can arrange...my wife and I have been planning this weekend getaway for months" or something similar as appropriate. Always smile, talk softly, be very friendly and NOT pushy. The clerks (I know from experience) want to be respected for what they do, and really what they want is for you to appreciate that they have the power to alter your stay. So be nice, butter them up in a non-smarmy way and keep your fingers crossed. Sometimes works wonders!

JJ is correct, tipping the bellman will get you a nice smile but no room upgrade. They have zero authority to do it. I was in Las Vegas this past weekend and got upgraded to a suite at check-in by discreetly holding a $20 bill in my hand so that the clerk could see it and asking what type of room my reservation was for. When she said a standard room, I politely asked if she had something a little nicer. She looked at the $20 and asked if I would like a suite. I thanked her very much and gave her my credit card with the $20 tucked underneath it. She slipped the $20 into her pocket.

the last response is the correct one. I do it ALL the time in Vegas and it works.

Do you think this will work at the Bellagio? Or are they too snooty to do this there? First time to Vegas in two weeks.

I have gotten an upgrade, of sorts, (upper floor, dead center panoramic view of Bellagio fountains) by placing my credit card discretely next to a $20 bill on the counter while checking-in. Then, indicate you would appreciate a room upgrade, if available. While I had booked and paid for a fountain view room, I received one of the best available, albeit not a suite.

OK...WOULD YOU LIKE TO HEAR IT FROM A FRONT DESK CLERK AT MAJOR HOTEL HONESTLY? First of all, the bellman can not do anything about your room assignment. That is not there responsiblies. To make a long story short, kindness and just being nice and friendly can be a big plus. First of all you have to be understand, if the hotel is sold out a clerk can only do so much. Don't expect upgrades on holiday weekends, or busy convention seasons. Getting upgraded to a suite for no charge is very rare. A hotel monitors their suites more than anything else, rates, who is staying, ect, ect. The bottom line is if your nice to me, I'll be nice to you. A front desk clerk has more power than you would think. If your ugly to me, I can put you on a lower floor at the end of the hall, if your nice to me I can give you a view and nice room. Plus a tip is ALWAYS appreciated. We get beat up by lots of nasty people all day. When we do something nice for a guest it is nice to be acknowledged in some way. Thank you. I work for one of the Mirage Resorts properties and I can tell you this Bellagio is just like any other hotel, you have nice guest and rude guest. A tip will go much further at any property. If your checking into the hotel and ask the clerk nicly if there is anyway to upgrade or get a nice room because it might be a special occasion and offer the clerk a tip they will be more helpful than walking in and telling the clerk that you expect certain things, don't tell me what you WANT, ask me nicely what you are REQUESTING. Please don't lie to me, what comes around goes around, hint, hint. Issue #2 Tips Personally, one of the biggest insults to a front desk clerk is afer I have spent a great deal of time giving you nice rooms that connect with each other, a veiw of the strip, ect, ect and before you walk away ask me for change to tip the bellman who is only bringing your bags to the room I have assigned you. A simple thank you and tip is greatly appreciated. Don't get me wrong the bellman do a wonderful job but PLEASE don't forget the people who give you your room assingment and control your reservation in more ways than you think. Your on vaction people, smile and have a great time.

Hi Ms.Front Desk, I'll be coming into the Bellagio in about a week and a half. If that is where you work, can I come see you or if not, can you refer me to a freind there that shares your same ideology? I promise I will be very nice and appreciative. I know its tough to work with the public. Therefore, I try my best to be patient and respectful to people who have to deal with the public and have nothing to do with the fact that I am having a bad day.

I am a former front office manager of a hotel - I can tell you if there are upgrades available slip the cash discretly to the front office clerk, and you will get an upgrade - 20 bucks should do it!

just got back this week and it does help alot. we wasted about 2 hrs waiting for a room over looking the pool on the 21st floor to be cleaned, when finally i asked the lady at hte check-in if a better room was available [with a 50.00 in my hand on the room keys] i was told "yes" and we were put in a room overlooking the strip on the 31st floor. go for it![monte carlo]

Just returned from the Bellagio and took JJ's advice. Unfortunatly, it didn't work. I slipped the front desk clerk a $20 along with my ID and visa and she snubbed her nose at it, then proceeded to give me the upgrade rates. I guess it wasn't enough.

A little belated advice for Ms Front Desk: Use your tip money to go to school. The number of grammatical, spelling and other errors made in your posting is appalling!

Just realized that I never posted a follow-up on this... Here's what happened: We didn't stay at TI, but at Paris (TI was completely full). We arrived at the hotel on a thursday around 6pm. The Paris has individual check-in lines, as opposed to "next available agent", and we looked around to find someone that looked nice. Found one. When checking in (very fast, BTW), I asked first for a room with a view. The VERY NICE lady at the desk told me that those rooms were more expensive, $20 bucks more per night. Then she said "But I can give you a suite for $100 extra per night". I said, "Thanks, but no thanks. We'll take the view for $20". Right after that, she mentioned: "What would you say if I give you the view for $20, and then you come back here on saturday morning (we were leaving on sunday), and I give you a suite for your last night here?". I thought this was a very nice gesture, so I take out my wallet and take a $20 bill out. I guess that she saw the bill, because she started typing furiously on her computer. Then, she comes closer to me and says "You are all paid for. You have a suite for the three nights. No view, but hey, it's a suite!". It was an incredibly nice room! Thanks for your tips!

Good work, Jean VJ! It's a team effort. Requires tact and ability to 'read' people on your part, and a little luck that the desk agent is receptive (and that the hotel's not truly sold out!). But it feels great to get free upgrades when they work out. Really enhances the quality of your visit. Like they value your patronage.

I'm glad this topic is discussed here, because it's often talked about but not confirmed whether or not it works. To the above poster who says it didn't work for him/her, you just DID go to school, you paid the price of "tipping education." I've never done it personally (and i know it's easier to say than to do), but i think it is IMPORTANT to make the $20 visible, but don't give it and ask if anything is available. I have no problem "playing the game," but i will tip for service, and if i'm simply getting the "typical room" that i paid for, i don't think i'm getting any "extra" service. However, you must do research before you go on your trip (at message boards such as this) to learn what different rooms are available and KNOW when you're getting an upgrade and when you're getting nothing extra. I read on another board where some guy gave $20 and thought it worked great, only to see he got the same room/view as his friend who didn't tip anything. Another showed the $20 on the counter and didn't get any upgrade, and after the check-in the clerk said, "Oh, is this for me?" (with no upgrade!!) If the check-in clerk is that "agressive", i would have no problem asking her "Why would it be for you? Did i get anything extra?" (to the above hotel clerk, please don't jump on me for this, i feel the comment is warranted because of the "agressiveness" of the check-in clerk). The bottom line is you want to KNOW what kind of room is standard and what a realistic upgrade is... AND BE NICE, KIND, and POLITE.