By Kent Ninomiya
MGM Grand Las Vegas
The MGM Grand
Las Vegas is a casino-hotel on the south side of the Las Vegas Strip, on the corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Tropicana Avenue. This is one of the busiest intersections in Las Vegas. Other casino-hotels at this intersection include the Tropicana
resort and Casino,
New York-New York hotel and casino, and Excalibur hotel and casino. The MGM Grand is second only to the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino in size. Its 6,852 rooms make it the second-largest hotel in the world. It also has the largest casino in Las Vegas, a sports arena and five pools. The MGM Grand Las Vegas has a movie theme. MGM was one of the major movie studios during Hollywood's Golden Age and is still churning out movies today.
Insider Tips
The MGM Grand Las Vegas is enormous. At busy times, when most other Las Vegas hotels are sold out, the MGM Grand often still has rooms available. It is a good idea to check with the MGM Grand when there are a lot of conventions in town. The MGM Grand Las Vegas holds back some rooms for loyal customers. If you join the MGM Grand Mirage Players Club, you will get discount room offers and can accumulate points toward complimentary perks, including cash, rooms and show tickets. It is also more likely that the hotel will find a room for you during busy times if you belong to the Players Club.
Pros and Cons
The MGM Grand Las Vegas is clean, luxurious and modern. Its amenities are extraordinarily comfortable, but since it is so big there can be quite a hike to get to your room. Prices for rooms tend to be reasonable even by Las Vegas standards. The casino is spacious, with an excellent ventilation system. Even if you are sitting next to a smoker, the smoke is sucked upward and away from other players. It is easy to get lost in the casino if you don't know the layout. This is by design, to keep players in the casino as long as possible. The location of the MGM is in the middle of the action on the southern part of the Las Vegas Strip. However, if you wish to visit casinos on the northern end of the Strip, you are in for a long walk or a taxi ride. The lobby is huge, with a large efficient staff, but because of the number of rooms in the hotel there can be long waits during peak check-in and checkout times.
Bottom Line
The MGM Grand Las Vegas is an excellent place to stay and play. The property is remarkably well-maintained despite its large size. The availability of rooms keeps prices relatively low except during peak times when every hotel in Las Vegas is full. The large casino means there are more seats available at gaming tables and slot machines. It is not the place to stay if you are looking for an intimate hotel experience. Visitors get little individual attention unless they are high rollers gambling millions of dollars.
Resources
About the Author:
Kent Ninomiya is a veteran journalist with over 23 years experience as a television news anchor, reporter and managing editor. He traveled to more than 100 countries on all seven continents, including Antarctica. Ninomiya holds a Bachelor of Arts in social sciences with emphasis in history, political science and mass communications from the University of California at Berkeley.
Photo Credits:
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