November 4, 2023

While in Las Vegas I ended up staying in 3 different hotel rooms over the week. Really not by choice, this trip was extended twice. I ended up staying in 2 different rooms at the MGM grand. The second room was the Studio King. I hadn’t done much research before this trip and didn’t realize the the MGM Studio Tower is pretty different than the Grand Tower rooms(Review Here).

While the Studio King is in the older Studio Tower, it wasn’t a bad room at all. The Studio tower had been renovated recently and is actually pretty nice. The room is a little bit small, but with only two people, I didn’t feel cramped. The biggest downside is the distance from the lobby. The MGM Grand is a huge hotel and the Studio Tower is the farthest from the lobby but is the closest to the Strip. It can be a solid 5 minutes of walking to get to the hotel room from the casino floor or the lobby entrance.

Bottom Line: I would stay here at the MGM again, I think if the price was similar, I’d choose the Grand Room first, but if that’s not available, the Studio Rooms are good enough. While staying here we did deal with some issues related to the MGM Hacking Event, but that’s a different show.

MGM Grand Las Vegas Studio King Review

Table of Contents

MGM Grand Studio Tower Location
MGM Studio Tower King Room
MGM Grand Pool
MGM Grand Features
Follow My Las Vegas Trip

MGM Grand Studio Tower Location

The MGM Grand is located on the south end of the Las Vegas Strip. Located on the corner of Las Vegas Blvd and Tropicana Ave, the MGM is very close to the airport. This is great as it’s in the closest band of fixed rate taxi service to and from the airport.

The MGM Studio Tower is located on the far west side of the building. This is as far from the lobby as is possible in the MGM. You’re definitely going to want to follow the signs to get to the correct place.

MGM Studio Tower King Room

Val was the one who actually checked us into this room. I was working and she got our new keys and moved our stuff down here from our original Grand Room. Our room was on the first floor and that’s really not my preference, but it was the only room that wouldn’t require us to sit around for a few hours.

While not huge, the Studio King room was very clean and a somewhat modern retro look. These rooms were all renovated within the last few years.

The single king bed does take up the majority of the room. Both sides of the bed have a lamp with their own controls. There’s also side tables with power on each side of the bed.

Next to the window there is a small sitting area with a table. This room doesn’t have a desk so don’t expect to be able to get any work done.

Looking back the other direction there is a small closet area and then the mini bar area.

The lamp controls next to the bed and the power options above the bed side tables.

I love a good alarm clock. The MGM Studio rooms have this alarm clocks with built in wireless chargers. Unlike the ones at the Resorts World, these don’t make an absolutely unbearable high pitch noise.

MGM Studio Mini Bar

There is a mini-bar in the room with pressure sensitive billing. Don’t take anything unless you want to pay for it. Also, don’t store anything in the fridge, there’s a charge for it too.

I did laugh a little bit at the “love kit” that’s available in the mini-bar. For nearly $40 it seems pricey.

MGM Studio Bathroom

The bathroom in the studio room nice and clean but isn’t very big.

The sliding doors to the bathroom are pretty cool, if you close one, the other will close too so that they meet in the middle. Just note they are not super private so if you’re staying here with someone, they’ll know what you’re doing in the bathroom.

MGM Studio Room View

We’re on the first floor. There’s no hiding that the room view sucks. We’re looking at a staff parking lot. It’s quiet, but not a good view.

MGM Grand Pool

Near the back of the MGM, you can find the entrance to the pool. As always, follow the overhead signs. The MGM is a bit of a maze, if you follow the signs, you’ll get there. Note: Wet Republic is different from the MGM Pool. They are both here at the MGM and this is the entrance to both. Wet Republic is like a pool night club. They have a DJ and party every day. It’s a club with an entrance fee, but it’s not hard to get a free entrance.

The MGM Pool is for Hotel guests only, you’ll need to show your room key. While there’s plenty of first come first serve seating, you can reserve cabanas or lounge chairs on the MGM website.

The pool area at the MGM is huge. It’s one of the biggest ones in Las Vegas. There are 4 pools, a lazy river, cabanas, 2 bars, and pool side service.

Walking across one of the bridges that connects the pools over the lazy river.

The pool does get crowded during the day but it’s still possible to get a good seat by the pool. There’s not a ton of shade here, but there are a few chairs under some trees.

Some of the pools have a pretty cool view of the hotel. The monorail also passes over the far edge of the pool area.

Floating around the laxy river is fun, but there are not free tubes to lounge in. You can buy one but they are $30. Instead, Val went to the ABC store that’s down the street and bought one for $4.

There are several bars in the MGM Pool area. The deals aren’t amazing, but not terrible. There’s also poolside food and drink service by waiters/waitresses. They’ll come around and take orders.

MGM Grand Features

Because we stayed at two different rooms here at the MGM, I covered the Casino Floor, Monorail(Review Here), and Shopping/Food options in my review of the Grand Two Queen Room. Check it out if you’re interested in more detail. But the short is, the Monorail is great for exploring the East Side of the Strip. The Casino is pretty much what you’d expect, but smoking is allowed. The Shopping isn’t my thing but there are plenty of options for those who like to shop. There are some food options, but nothing that really caught my eye. There are 2 different Starbucks so that’s nice.

MGM Studio King Final Thoughts

I liked the MGM Studio but the room is just so damn far from the rest of the hotel. The walk from the lobby is long and somewhat confusing. I just cannot help but feel the whole MGM is just too big. It also is a little smoky on the casino floor. You’ll notice it out there, but not in the rooms so that’s good.

The MGM Studio King was not a huge room, but it was updated and very clean. I think I liked the style and decor better than the Grand room. The pool at the MGM is great, really a great way to spend the daytime. I loved the easy access to the monorail for getting to and from the convention center. We also really liked being so close to the the Strip. The Studio rooms are very close to the strip entrance to the MGM.

I’d stay here again, but I don’t think it would be my first preference.