All in all, our stay at The Hotel was great. Beautiful rooms, great view, lots of space, very relaxing. It was way nicer than the price we paid.

Two Negatives:
(1) Location (all the way at one end of the strip. we took the tram to the excalibur most times to avoid 3/4 of a mile in walking)
(2) WAYYYYY overpriced internet (14.99 for 24 hours!)

I would definately recommend. Ate at the Burger Bar and the Buffet (if you love burgers, check out burger bar!)

Not sure how these reviews compute to a final ranking, but as a frequent visitor to Vegas since 1996, who has stayed at many of the higher end properties multiple times (as well as some dumps), THEhotel is easily very close to the Top 10....especially given budget-choiced places like Orleans and Hampton Inn somehow scored higher.
All of the 700+ four and five star reviews are spot-on. I did three nites here and can only dink it for three minor demerits....digital TV channel selection and overall reception could have been better, the automated checkout was down, and wi-fi surcharge was tacky. Of the notable plusses, check-in was lightning quick, room service for breakast was excellent and very reasonably priced, and housekeeping/room condition was exemplary. For those who chide about the south strip location, I personally like being away from the center of the "Griswold Vacation" crowd doing their thing as it adds to a more refined vibe in and around the hotel, casino, restaurants and bars. Otherwise I did hit Encore, Wynn, Pallazzo, Planet Hollywood, and MGM, all after taking the free train to Excalibur. Did not do the pool this time but had many times before....if you like a giant waves pool and sandy beach scene, you will need deal with the masses for that pleasure...otherwise pay the extra freight for the Moorea Club and your wife/girlfriend can work on those obtrusive lines with some topless tanning.

TIP: Get/Use MGM Mirage Club Card and watch for heavy discounts on their website. I am embarrassed to say my THREE NITES TOTAL COST LESS THAN HALF of what I have paid for one niight at Venetian and Bellagio.

TIP2: RM Seafood in Mandalay is one of the best fish places in town.

A friend and I stayed at The Hotel last May for a girly week away. The hotel itself is stunning, check in was a breeze and the staff were very helpful. We had a room with a great view of the Strip - even more fantastic at night! The suite itself had everything - and having two bathrooms was a huge plus.

Make sure to have a drink at Mix and take in the strip view at night. And the Mexican restaurant by the pool area was really good. We had a spa day too - at the Mandalay spa not the Bathhouse and I can highly recomend - great facilities and much quieter and relaxing than the trendy Bathhouse.

The only thing that disappointed me was the Mandalay Pool - it was a long hike from The Hotel as you use a shared pool with normal Manadalay, plus there were way too many kids running around to be relaxing. The 'beach' is lounge chairs stacked nearly on top of each other so you can't even get a toe in the sand! That being said, the lazy river was fantastic fun. Other slight drawback is location - the Luxor and Excalibur weren't really our 'scene' so the tram wasn't really useful. New York New York and MGM were okay, but you really needed a taxi to get to anywhere Mid-strip - which was fine as it only ever took a nanosecond for staff to get you one outside.

Recommend!

I asked for all food to be taken from my room on check-in. I was told the mini-bar would be locked. It wasnt and the snack tray was still on display. I asked for the snack tray to be removed and it was. The next day the snack tray was restocked and it took three hours and three phone calls to have it removed.

I have eaten at the buffet here and it was ordinary and the bread was stale. This hotel would suit someone who likes the wave pool and the beach areas and likes to drink.

There are better hotels on the strip for this kind of money