Your phone continues to be an excellent resource for scoring free meals, rooms, and other goodies as you prepare for your summer trip to Las Vegas for the World Series of Poker, even if some of the free slot apps mentioned last year have nerfed their rewards to a degree.
You’ve still got four months to build up currency on the apps – whether it be gems, loyalty points, hats, or crowns – to redeem for freebies this summer. And this year, you might need the extra time, because the Las Vegas virtual economy, like the real thing, appears to be a little less giving.
Wynn Freebies Get More Expensive?
This app added a new feature called VIP Levels that may have you feeling like a least valuable person as it provides a roadblock to the sweet free rooms the Wynn offers. To get a free place to stay now, you not only must earn enough gems, but also must have a VIP level of 2 to be eligible to redeem them for a room.
You earn VIP points by doing daily activities like completing challenges and spinning the twice-daily bonus wheel, but it’s practically impossible to earn enough points to move up in levels without buying a package that includes coins (which you use to spin the slots) and VIP points.
You’ll also have to spend more gems for each room. Last summer, some rooms could be had for as low as 1,500 per night, but this year, the rates start at 2,000 per night. On the other hand, you can now score buffets for 1,200 gems, and can redeem them at VIP level 1.
While free rooms are now out of the question, you can still earn them by spending a small amount of money as long as you are dedicated to using the app multiple times per day to earn as many free gems and VIP points as you can.
MyVegas Lets You Do Vegas MGM’s Way
This app hasn’t seen many changes in the past year, even as MGM Resorts International has announced plans to sell MGM Grand and Mandalay Bay to a joint venture of Blackstone Group and MGM Growth Properties LLC.
You can still redeem the loyalty points you earn on this app for rooms, show tickets, food, slot play, and more at Aria, Bellagio, MGM Grand, Mandalay Bay, Mirage, Park MGM, New York-New York, Luxor, Excalibur, and Vdara, as well as at partners such as Wolfgang Puck restaurants and Madame Tussauds.
MyVegas continues to have its limitations, as you are usually restricted to just one free night at each hotel every 30 days, and must pay the daily resort fee, which can really make “free” less fun. You often have to be staying at an MGM property to use many of the food rewards or slot plays, too.
You can build up loyalty points more quickly by linking four apps together: myVegas slots, myVegas blackjack, and myKonami apps on your phone, as well as a myVegas Facebook app for desktops.
Fremont Street Free Play
The Binion’s slot app has seen few changes, other than the addition of the ability to get free stays at the newly opened Hotel Apache within the property. Also unchanged is how slowly you earn hats for redemption without buying coins, so free rooms take an eternity to earn.
An app for sister property Four Queens, released in the past year, allows users to earn free rooms, food and trinkets such as shirts and mugs by earning crowns. The earn rate is virtually identical to the Binion’s app.
