First the bad news: MGM Resorts International announced that they will be the first Las Vegas hotel operator to charge for parking.
Now the good news: Most of you will never pay for parking.
MGM Resorts International has announced that they will begin charging visitors and hotel guests for parking beginning April. Exact fees haven’t been set but overnight fees will be a “modest fee” somewhere just under $10 per day. Visits to an MGM Resorts hotel for dinner, a show or any other reason will cost less.
You may be able to earn free parking status through the Mlife loyalty program. An MGM Resorts representative says specifics on obtaining free parking through Mlife won’t be released until the 2nd quarter when the program begins. You can sign up for Mlife here.
You’ll have to pay a parking fee at the following MGM Resorts hotels:
- Aria
- Bellagio
- Delano
- Excalibur
- Luxor
- Mandalay Bay
- MGM Grand
- The Mirage
- Monte Carlo
- New York-New York
- Vdara
You will not pay a parking fee at the following MGM Resorts hotels and shopping centers:
- Crystals mall (next to Aria)
- Circus Circus
- Mandalay Bay Place (mall located between Luxor and Mandalay Bay)
- Signature at MGM Grand
- **Mandarin Oriental and Veer are not a part of MGM Resorts although they’re a part of CityCenter
The new MGM Resorts parking fees are tied to a $90 million upgrade of all of their parking facilities. The largest parking facilities upgrade will be a newly constructed parking garage behind Excalibur. MGM Resorts will construct a $54-million, 3,000-space parking structure near the northwest corner of the Excalibur Hotel campus that will serve T-Mobile Arena (behind New York-New York), The Park (in between New York-New York and Monte Carlo) and the Theater at Monte Carlo that will open in the winter of 2016. Construction of the new parking facility is scheduled to begin in the second quarter of 2016, with completion scheduled in the second quarter of 2017.
Current parking facilities will receive the following improvements:
- Redesigned parking facility layouts to improve accessibility
- Parking guidance systems that will guide guests to available spaces
- Mobile technology allowing visitors to check space availability prior to arrival
- Upgraded lighting, LED signage, paint and striping
- Elevator and escalator upgrades and enhancements
Additionally, you’ll be able to check real-time availability of parking spaces on your mobile phone. You will be able to quickly find a space by following the new signage and lights above each space.
According to the 2014 visitor profile study from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, 42% of visitors to Las Vegas arrive via airplane. Only 12% of all visitors to Las Vegas rented a car. If you’re reading TravelZork there’s a good chance that you fall into this (arrive via air and not rent a car) category and will never have to worry about the parking fees. On a personal note, I never got behind the wheel in Las Vegas before living here. The introduction of ride-sharing services such as Uber has also opened up additional transportation options around Las Vegas.
The introduction of parking fees by MGM Resorts may have a ripple effect on the Vegas Strip but it’s too soon to say. Some even predict this might be the next Las Vegas marketing “feud.” Nobody likes paying additional fees but the majority of TravelZorkers won’t have to pay anything. So, there’s that.
Rendering: MGM Resorts
