First time at Mandalay Bay. Loved the open feel. Room was standard and was adequate, bathroom was very nice. Elevators were crowded some but not always. If you experience a crowd at casino level, walk down the stairs to pool level and catch the elevator there. No waiting.

Room wasn't made up one day and we had to call for towels when we got in that night.

Overall a solid hotel and I would stay again. It has a completely different feel from other strip hotels.

I stayed at Mandalay Bay for 4 nights at the end of June 2009. The hotel was beautiful, kept clean, had great dining options, big casino area that didn't smell of smoke and a fabulous pool area. I'll break this up into a few areas.

The rooms: nice decor, flat screen TV, TV in bathroom, seperate shower/tub, phone in toilet area (not sure why), in-room safe. Shower clogged up after 2nd night. We never got around to calling anyone about it since we were so busy. There were also times when we would come back from being out during the day to a dirty room even though you always saw the carts in the hallway. One time the cart was at the room next to ours and we left for like 3 hours. When we came back our room was still not clean, so not sure what the maids are really doing. They may be having their own party in the rooms ha ha.

Amenities: fabulous. You need your room key to get into the pool area. There's a wave pool, lazy river, 2 pools off to the side and 2 private pools seperate from all the hustle. Drinks are about $10-$12. The spa was great. Actually the hotel is attached to TheHotel so you can use either spa. I chose the spa at The Hotel and it was worth the extra walk through the casino. It was the best spa I've been to. The prices were expensive but the experience was worth it. FYI...if you get the mud bath, you are in a regular bath but w/ brown water. I thought I would be in actual mud.

One last thing...the line for elevators for the top floors is awful. There are 2 different elevator areas for floors 2-16 & 17 & up. Apparently the staff said that everyone wants a top floor so there are more people that ride those elevators. The line got so bad that the management had to take us to a service elevator at the other end. I was surprised they let us do that but was happy they were doing something about the long lines. Sometimes you would have to hop on an elevator going up to get back down. For some reason it would get full at the top and not open at some floors. It's hard to explain but my advice would be to get a room on 2-16. We were on floor 26 and there was nothing to get excited about. We had a view of a pile of dirt and parking lot.

I have stayed here as well as The Hotel at MB many times. The staff is helpful and friendly, the rooms are spacious, well appointed and clean, and the casino is immaculate. I recommend it to both singles and families. You could stay at MB your entire trip and never leave the grounds. Try the MB Beach with the wave pool and lazy river and beach concerts in the summer.

This past stay was over July 4th, and our only complaints were the overpriced drinks - which is expected in Vegas at such a resort.

The hotel was PACKED (as expected) during our visit over the Fourth of July holiday. The Lazy River was body to body. If you are not an early riser (8 AM), plan on tipping the staff $5-$10 to find a chair for you. You may get lucky though as it seems there is a morning and afternoon shift. Bring your ID to the pool/beach if you would like a drink. Drinks are generally $10 each. A waitress will usually come around to you but on the Fourth we did not get any waitress service. The walkways are scorching hot to walk on. But then again, the heat is why we went to Vegas! :)

Plan on 10 mins for the elevators each way just in case during peak times.

If you need a taxi, know that Mandalay Bay is at the end of the strip. Ask the driver to avoid the strip and take the highway. Otherwise you will be stuck at a very, very long light in order to turn around.

Quality of rooms did not suffer. You could go to the room for rest and relaxation and not be bothered by the party going on in the hotel. Bed is very comfy though you can tell the pillow top is a bit rounded due to people sleeping on either side and not in the middle. Do wish they had robes and turn down services. The lighting in the bathroom is poor but works with the lighting in most venues in Vegas (FYI for make-up purposes).

Overall, upscale feel at the hotel pervades and we will be back.

I was also impressed that Mandalay Bay sorts the trash for recyclables.