MGM Resorts International recently confirmed the rumors that have circulated for months and announced that it would likely re-theme Monte Carlo and, judging by even favorable customer comments, it can’t come a day too soon. However, most of the gripes are that the hotel is showing its age, isn’t well cleaned, and has a staff with patchy customer-service skills (we've read both rave reviews and otherwise with regard to the latter, perhaps stemming from the general air of neglect that's crept over the place). Annoyance with sounds from the nearby construction is mentioned once or twice, but noise pollution from adjoining rooms rates much more highly on the irritation scale. To quote a typical review on Yelp.com from Rebekkah C., posted in April of this year:
"Say it with me...THIN WALLS!!! I really wanted to like The Monte Carlo. The concierge was nice and helpful and gave us the best customer service, housekeeping was friendly and yeah, the hotel was outdated with the gold fixtures and old furniture and etc, but it actually quite charming for me ^_^.
I just couldn't get over how thin the walls were.1st NIGHT was horrible. Woke up at 3am from the sound of shattered and people laughing and screaming out loud. I ain't mad at them. It's VEGAS. But couldn't believe what I was hearing. 2nd and 3rd NIGHT was just as bad. Right when we were about to sleep at 1am, we heard a baby crying very loud on and off and things being moved around for a good hour. Poor baby was probably sick. In the morning, we heard the shower being turned on every time and people walking and talking outside our room. We've stayed at several hotels on the strip (Trump, MGM, Mandalay Bay, Signature) and we never had this kind of problem.
Spotty access to WiFi – or none at all – is another major customer beef. The most substantive gripe concerning construction came from "Jason M." on Orbitz, who wrote, "The only issue I had was that there was construction at the entrance on the strip [sic], so there was noise and temporary pathways through the work areas."
But one need not worry too greatly about the Strip entrance: MGM is keeping it open, all the better to tempt you into Diablo’s Cantina, Yusho, BLVD Creamery, Sambalatte, Dragon Noodle Co. & Sushi Bar, and Double Barrel Roadhouse, all of which are located right on or very near the Strip façade. The Park also is highly unlikely to impact the casino, because it will be separated from Monte Carlo by an access road (the former Rue de Monte Carlo, now Park Avenue) to the hotel’s porte-cochère .
Alas, if you’re staying in a room on the construction-affected side of the hotel, you can’t hope for a price break. "We are currently not pricing those rooms differently," says MGM spokeswoman Yvette Monet. "In fact, we are not experiencing any noise complaints regarding the arena or Park," she insists. "Most guests now are just asking questions about what is being built, etc. The skin is going onto the [arena] now so noise is pretty minimal." (You can watch the progress via the live construction cam -- you'll find a link on our Vegas Webcams page.)
In sum, if you’re willing to stay at a 20-year-old hotel that looks it, and which is mildly disrupted by construction noise (provided that you are bunking on the south side), you can probably stay at Monte Carlo without fear and you will find some great deals on rooms there. We just wouldn't currently recommend it for the very light sleepers among you, based on the numerous trip reports we've read, but that's nothing to do with the ongoing construction projects.
