Rio Las Vegas, the 2,520-room off-Strip hotel-casino, has eliminated its $50 resort fee for all group and convention bookings, effective immediately and with no end date. The move makes Rio the only Las Vegas property to offer a comprehensive resort fee waiver for group business, according to hotel officials.
The elimination of resort fees is part of a broader strategy by the 36-year-old property to capture a larger share of the Las Vegas convention market. “Planners have told us for years that resort fees are one of the most exhausting parts of contracting in Las Vegas,” Ashley Lowe, senior vice president of sales at Rio, said in a statement. “They complicate budgets and create doubt at exactly the wrong moment. We want Rio to be the easiest ‘yes’ in this market.”
Lowe said the property soft-launched the waiver for 2026 and 2027 group gatherings and the response was immediately positive, prompting the extension to all future years. The $50 resort fee remains in place for leisure travelers.
Resort fees have long been a source of frustration in the Las Vegas meetings industry. Typically adding $50 or more per room per night to a group’s overall costs, the fees complicate budgeting and have been cited by planners as one of the most irritating elements of hotel contracting on the Strip.
Beyond the fee waiver, Rio rolled out additional group incentives: complimentary internet in all meeting spaces, a 20 percent discount on audiovisual equipment through Encore, double Hyatt meeting planner loyalty points, a 10 percent discount on food and beverage, one suite upgrade for every 75 room nights, one complimentary room for every 40 rooms actualized, a $500 shipping and receiving credit, and one complimentary amenity for every 40 rooms.
The aggressive group strategy comes as Las Vegas faces some headwinds in the convention and tourism market. The American Hotel and Lodging Association reports that hotel bookings across many markets are below expectations, with economic pressures and geopolitical concerns weighing on travel demand.
For Rio, which operates under the Hyatt brand portfolio, the resort fee waiver represents a calculated gamble — trading per-room ancillary revenue for higher volume and longer-term group commitments. Industry analysts say the approach could pressure competing properties to reconsider their own fee structures if Rio’s bookings show meaningful gains.
The Las Vegas convention industry generated more than $11 billion in economic impact in 2024, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, making it the city’s economic backbone beyond gaming and entertainment.
