I had the opportunity to compare the Skylofts 2 BR with the Bellagio 2 BR Penthouse Suite. Skylofts win. Hands down actually. Skylofts really is a superior experience, different than other hotels offer. That is my summary.
My long winded version follows:
I booked the trip through American Express Platinum Travel, which I became a member of just to use the travel benefits on this very trip. I highly recommend the Platinum service. With it I had expected to get an upgrade from a 1 BR to 2 BR. Unfortunately even though the website showed availability for two 2 BR lofts and two 3 BR lofts on the day of my arrival I was told that none were available for the 3 days of my stay and that a @ BR loft was only available for the first night. Needless to say a was steaming mad. My wife and I traveled with our friends and really needed a 2 BR room. They were very apologetic but not too helpful in getting the situation resolved. I would have hoped that they would have offered a second room/loft at a deep discount but they had no 1 BR lofts available and didn't offer anything at the MGM. They did offer a room at The Signature, no discount. They were really pleasant, apologetic for the website showing availability they didn't have, but not great at making me happy about the solution. I contacted Platinum Travel and got my final 2 nights in a 2 BR Penthouse Suite, they were great and helpful as always. I will post a review the about the Bellagio as well but do my best to compare the two here.
Other than the major disappointment about only getting one night there, the Skyloft experience was entirely positive. The 2 BR is huge, over the top huge. It would be outstanding to throw a party in. It is very modern and hip, very tasteful. The condition of the space is great, but I suppose you could look at a painted surface here and there and see a small chip. Only the most obsessive people won't be happy with the condition of the space. Layout was great. We had a foosball table we used until late into the morning (drunk foosball has to be better than drunk pool). The master bedroom is fantastic the master bathroom is simply out-of-this-world. The tub is amazing. The steam shower is quite seriously large enough for 10 people. It must be about 12 by 12 feet. Bigger than my college dorm room. The rain head, wall spray and steam combo is uber-relaxing, I found no need for the spa. My wife loved the spa at MGM by the way, smaller than Bellagio by about 50% but very excellent services/staff.
The sound system is awesome as is but is soon to be upgraded to have internet capable multi-function remotes. They give you free movies and internet which is sweet. My buddy played the first 15 seconds of just about every movie including the porn, just to mess with whoever would look at our movie record! It was great listening to my iPhone/iPod throughout the loft. The free non-alcoholic drinks are a huge plus and not to be underappreciated, especially if you are drinking heavily and need to hydrate! Las Vegas tap water stinks BTW, it is undrinkable.
The staff at Skylofts are great, anything to please. They really go the extra mile,
Now to compare, the Bellagio is definitely the best hotel I have ever stayed at. I say that because the Skylofts isn't like any hotel I ever stayed at prior it is like a new experience. The Bellagio room is very traditional, very old-school. 2 bedrooms at either end of a very large space that includes a small bar, living room and dining area. The central space is about 35-40 feet end to end. Big. The bedrooms on wither end are nice and big. There is a master one one end ad the other bedroom is actually an adjoining 1 bedroom hotel room. The adjoining room doesn't have a steam shower, and the bathroom is not quite as deluxe. This is also similar to the Skylofts in that the non-master bathroom had no steam shower and the shower was smaller.
The Bellagio is all marble all the time. Very sweet. Very prim and proper. We had a fountain view and that was essential in my opinion to fully enjoying this room. If you are going to put up this kind of money you deserve to see that awesome fountain show 6-8 times during your stay. We ate at Olives, great meal and wine cellar. The only time I tried the concierge at Bellagio they did drop the ball a bit. I tried to get my complimentary limo back to the airport and the person I talked to didn't seem to think it was included with the suite. They connected me to player services, who weren't all that nice at all. I told them I was looking for my free limo, they said I needed more points ( I had none as we didn;t really gamble there). While waiting on hold with player services, the concierge called back on the other line and said yes we did get a limo to the airport and hooked us up, but the 10--12 minutes with the not-so-nice lady on the other end of the phone was a bit disappointing and unnecessary.
I think the Skylofts really hits the spot for 20-40ish crowds who like their space hip/modern/high tech and fun. Bellagio seems to be going for the more reserved crowd of any age, but seems more pitched at the 40-60 year old base.
The only way the rooms are similarly priced is to get the Skyloft 2 BR as an upgrade (Hooray Platinum travel) but beware the trap I had with internet availability and real world availability being different.
So In my mind Skylofts wins every head to head comparison. Better room, stereo, shower, tub, bar (free stuff always beats expensive minibar), concierge.
Bellagio has a better casino but high minumum bets. The pool is nicer but very reserved/quiet. The MGM pool is much more of a party...we saw guys in costumes, a guy in the Borat suspender/thong bathing suit and lots more 76 ounce beers and frozen drinks 3 feet long. If you want a quiet read by the pool the Bellagio is perfect.
The Bellago fountain is spectacular, wherever you stay in Vegas go watch a show or two, especially at night.
I look forward to another trip to the Skylofts...I may just suck it up and book the 2 BR to make sure I can get it. The upgrade to a 3 BR would be unnecessary but cool.
Hope this makes choosing your hotel easier!
