‘It worked!’: Woman says she slipped a Las Vegas hotel clerk $100. Then she got upgraded to a wraparound suite

Brobible says that a TikTok creator who posts as Evie Ann (@lovely_evieann) said she tried handing a $100 bill to a front desk clerk at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas and then received a wraparound suite. The TikTok video had 907,200 views and 68,700 likes. She wrote that she finally tried the move during her birthday weekend. In her caption, she wrote, “Finally tried it at the cosmopolitan and thank god it worked! Had the best birthday weekend!”

The clip opens with a close-up of a hundred-dollar bill folded on a hotel check-in counter. On-screen text in the video reads, “Seeing if tipping a Hundred dollar actually works in Vegas.” She then shows a daytime view of the Las Vegas skyline from a high-rise balcony, with on-screen text that reads, “Got upgraded to the Wrap around suite.”

Evie Ann walks through the suite in the video, passing a modern art piece and a bathroom with a mural of a woman’s face. She smiles at the camera, takes a mirror selfie with another woman, opens a mini-fridge, and points to a wet bar with art that reads, “Any Man Will Do.” She also shows a bedroom with a blue headboard, an en-suite bathroom, and a glass-paneled balcony. Later clips show a night view of the Strip and a sunset with the High Roller and an Eiffel Tower replica. On-screen text at the end reads, “I LOVE VEGAS BYLEEE.” 

Travel blogs and commenters have described cash tips at Las Vegas hotel check-in

MileValue described a practice sometimes called the Twenty Dollar Trick. The site said a guest slips a $20 bill to a front desk clerk with a credit card and asks whether any complimentary upgrades are available. 

The site said the general rule of thumb is that the clerk will check for upgrades and return the $20 if nothing is available. Such practices can sometimes lead to disputes, as when a Nevada hotel guest claimed he did not receive basic first aid after an on-site injury. 

The MileValue writer said a friend tried the $20 approach at The Cosmopolitan and was moved from a standard room to a suite with a bathroom that had windows onto the Strip and a bar for the weekend. The writer later tried a similar stack of cards and a folded $20 at Hilton Hawaiian Village in Hawaii and said the clerk took the bill and assigned an oceanfront room in the Ali’i Tower with free breakfast.

VEGAS.com also published a staff survey on tipping in the city. The site said 80% of those surveyed suggested tipping a valet $5 or less, and it listed a suggested tip of $5 total unless there is a special request. For housekeepers, VEGAS.com said 82% of staff left some tip, with a suggested range of $2 to $5 per day. For a bellman, the site suggested $1 to $5 per bag. The survey did not list a standard amount for a front-desk upgrade request.

Viewers discussed the Cosmopolitan video in the comments. One person who said they work as a front desk agent in Vegas wrote that the tactic does not always work and that it depends on the day and how many nights a guest is staying. They wrote, “As a front desk agent in Vegas, I can tell you it doesn’t always work. Just depends on the day and how many days you’re staying.”

Another commenter offered advice about open-bar service rather than rooms. They wrote, “Pro tip. If you get open bar/bottomless drinks, always tip first and tip big. Ur drinks will be super strong for the entire time.” Front desk interactions can have unpredictable outcomes, such as when a Michigan woman discovered her hotel possessions missing after a work conference. 

A third commenter said they stay at The Cosmopolitan and tip the front desk $50 when they arrive early. They wrote, “I fly in to Vegas by 8am every trip. I stay at Cosmo and always tip front desk 50. They throw me a couple comps and get me in a higher floor room immediately. I’m not waiting til 4pm to check in lmao.”

Someone else said a smaller amount had worked for them in the past. They wrote, “I only tipped 20 and got upgraded to the presidential suite this was last year but it sounds like the price done went up.” A further commenter framed tipping as a basic courtesy. They wrote, “Just tip good because your decent human beings.”