Hotel and casino in Paradise, Nevada
Excalibur Hotel and Casino is a casino hotel on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise,💲 Nevada, in the United States. It is owned by Vici Properties and operated by MGM Resorts International. The resort features💲 a medieval castle theme and is named after King Arthur's mythical Excalibur sword. Property features include a 92,389 sq ft💲 (8,583.2 m2) casino, a 28-story hotel with 3,981 rooms, and various restaurants.
TheR$290 million property was developed by Circus Circus Enterprises.💲 The castle theme was conceived by company founder William Bennett, and the resort was designed by Veldon Simpson. Bennett and💲 the design team traveled to castles throughout Europe for inspiration. Construction began in October 1988, and the resort opened on💲 June 19, 1990. It was the largest hotel in the world until the opening of the nearby MGM Grand in💲 1993.
The Excalibur has hosted numerous shows, including Thunder from Down Under, which opened in 2002 and is the longest-running male💲 revue in Las Vegas. Tournament of Kings, a medieval-themed show featuring sword fights and jousting, is the longest-running dinner show💲 on the Strip.
History [ edit ]
The Excalibur occupies approximately 50 acres (20 ha),[1] located along the Las Vegas Strip at💲 the southwest corner of the Tropicana – Las Vegas Boulevard intersection.[2] The property was once the proposed site of the💲 Xanadu, a 1,730-room resort announced in 1975. The Xanadu was never built, as its developers could not secure a deal💲 with the county on the sewer infrastructure such a large project would have required.[3]
Circus Circus Enterprises purchased the vacant site💲 in May 1988,[4][5] and announced plans a month later to build a castle-themed resort on the land.[6] The company held💲 an international contest to determine the name of the new resort. More than 180,000 entries were made, and the winning💲 name, "Excalibur", was selected from more than 33,000 names.[7][8][9][10] It is named after King Arthur's mythical Excalibur sword.[11][12]
Groundbreaking for the💲 Excalibur took place on October 7, 1988.[13][14] Marnell Corrao Associates served as the general contractor.[15] TheR$290 million resort opened on💲 June 19, 1990,[11][16][17] receiving 30,000 visitors on its first day.[18] The Excalibur was among new entertainment-oriented megaresorts to open on💲 the Strip, continuing a trend started by the Mirage in 1989.[12]
On March 21, 2003, Josh Ford of Los Angeles hit💲 the largest Megabucks Jackpot to date of US$39.7 million at Excalibur.[19]
Circus Circus Enterprises became Mandalay Resort Group in 1999,[20] and💲 ownership of the Excalibur was passed to MGM Mirage in 2005, after it acquired the company.[21] The resort's new owner💲 was subsequently renamed MGM Resorts International in 2010.[22] Ownership of the Excalibur, along with many other MGM properties, was transferred💲 to MGM Growth Properties in 2024, while MGM Resorts continued to operate it under a lease agreement.[23] Vici Properties acquired💲 MGM Growth, including the Excalibur, in 2024.[24]
Design [ edit ]
Decorative interior work
The medieval castle theme was conceived by Circus Circus💲 founder William Bennett,[13] and the resort was designed by Veldon Simpson.[25] Bennett studied old castle renderings, and he and Simpson💲 visited castle sites in England and Germany for design inspiration.[16][26] Simpson's Excalibur design was inspired particularly by Neuschwanstein Castle in💲 Germany.[27][26] Trademark experts were hired to avoid replicating the castle designs at Disneyland and Disney World.[16] The Excalibur's medieval architecture💲 includes stone turrets, and a moat and drawbridge.[28]
Yates-Silverman handled the interior design.[29][30] The firm conducted library research into castles and💲 also visited such buildings in Europe, in addition to film studios. According to Michael Erickson, design director at Yates-Silverman: "We💲 were basically looking for the same level of design that you would find in film. If you designed rooms as💲 they literally looked during the traditional period, they would be dark, dingy and dirty. You have to romanticize it a💲 little bit and take more of a theatrical approach."[31]
Features [ edit ]
Exterior of the hotel Casino floor
The Excalibur has 3,981💲 rooms,[32][33] spread across four 28-story towers built out in a square footprint.[11][16] The resort originally opened with 4,032 rooms, making💲 it the largest hotel in the world.[11][16] This record was surpassed by the 1993 opening of the MGM Grand, located💲 diagonally across from the Excalibur.[34] A hotel remodeling project began in 2006, and was scheduled to conclude four years later.💲 In accordance with guest feedback, the multi-phase project removed castle-themed elements from the rooms in favor of an understated design.[35]
The💲 Excalibur's casino measures 92,389 sq ft (8,583.2 m2).[36] It opened with 2,630 slot machines,[11] and more than 100 table games.[37]💲 In 2008, the Excalibur removed its live poker dealers and replaced them with automated tables manufactured by Pokertek, through a💲 deal that lasted 10 months. The new tables appealed primarily to a lower-paying clientele and beginners, prompting the resort to💲 bring back live poker, which was preferred by experienced players and those willing to spend more.[38]
Upon its opening, Bennett described💲 the Excalibur as an upgrade from the Circus Circus resort in Las Vegas, while still targeting the same family demographic.[16]💲 Family friendly attractions included an arcade, an indoor medieval-themed midway, and motion simulator rides taking place in two theaters, each💲 seating 48 people.[16][37]
South of the Excalibur are two other MGM properties, the Luxor and Mandalay Bay. The three resorts are💲 connected via the Mandalay Bay Tram.[39] Of the three, Excalibur is considered the low-budget property.[40][41]
Restaurants [ edit ]
The Excalibur included💲 17 restaurants upon opening.[11] In 1997, the resort added the Steakhouse at Camelot, which would go on to become a💲 Zagat award winner.[42] At that time, it also included the second-largest buffet in Las Vegas, seating more than 1,300.[43] In💲 1998, the Excalibur announced a partnership with World Championship Wrestling to open a wrestling-themed restaurant at the resort.[44][45] TheR$2 million💲 WCW Nitro Grill opened in May 1999, and operated for 16 months, featuring regular appearances from professional wrestlers during that💲 time.[46][47]
In 2007, Dick's Last Resort opened an 11,000 sq ft (1,000 m2) location at the Excalibur.[48] The band Lynyrd Skynyrd💲 would also license its name to a new restaurant at the resort.[49] Lynyrd Skynyrd BBQ & Beer opened in December💲 2011, along with American Burger Works, both managed by the same company. The two restaurants operated for nine months, eventually💲 closing due to financial problems.[50]
Buca di Beppo opened at the Excalibur in 2011.[51][52] A year later, the resort debuted its💲 Castle Walk food court, which introduced several eateries not already on the Strip. At 20,000 sq ft (1,900 m2), it💲 was among the largest food courts on the Strip.[53][54] Because the Excalibur had an exclusive deal with Pepsi, the food💲 court housed one of the few McDonald's in the world to vend the soft drink rather than its competitor, Coca-Cola.💲 The McDonald's eventually closed in 2024.[55][56]
Johnny Rockets opened in 2014, taking the space formerly occupied by American Burger Works.[57] Later💲 that year, the resort completed aR$6 million renovation of its buffet, which seats 610.[58][59][60] Fatburger opened its first Strip location💲 in 2024, at the Excalibur.[61]
Live entertainment [ edit ]
Medieval shows [ edit ]
Tournament of Kings
The Excalibur has featured two medieval-themed💲 shows since its opening, both taking place in a 900-seat dinner theater. Jousting has been a signature aspect of both💲 shows.[11][62] Performances take place in a dirt arena,[63][64] and meals are served medieval-style, without utensils.[65][66][67]
The original show, King Arthur's Tournament,[68]💲 included 45 actors and 15 horses upon its opening.[37] The show closed in January 1999, after approximately 5,600 performances. It💲 was replaced a month later by a revamped version known as Tournament of Kings.[63][65] More thanR$2 million was spent to💲 update the show and remodel the arena.[66] Both shows were created by the French-born producer Peter Jackson, who died shortly💲 before Tournament of Kings was launched. His son, Patrick Jackson, took over as producer.[63][65][69]
Tournament of Kings incorporates pyrotechnics and various💲 stunt work, including sword fights.[64][70] As of 2008, the cast included up to 38 humans and 11 horses. The show💲 had a total of 30 horses, kept in an air-conditioned facility behind the resort.[71] As of 2010, it was the💲 only show in Las Vegas to feature horses.[72] King Arthur's Tournament had featured female horse riders, although it would not💲 be until 2014 that Tournament of Kings introduced its first female rider.[73][74][75]
Tournament of Kings is popular among families.[71][76] It is💲 the Strip's longest-running dinner show,[76] and also one of its longest-running shows in general.[64] The Excalibur is the world's top💲 buyer of Cornish game hens,[69] having served 6.7 million of them through the show from its original opening in 1990💲 through 2024.[64]
Dragon show [ edit ]
In 1993, the resort debuted a three-story animatronic dragon, part of a show in which💲 it faced off against a mechanical statue of Merlin. The show took place at the moat entrance, and was performed💲 hourly each night.[77][78][79] The fire-breathing dragon was created by Alvaro Villa's company, AVG Inc,[80] and took nine months to build.[77][78]💲 A six-story dragon had previously been considered.[81] The dragon and Merlin effects were generally considered underwhelming. In 2002 and 2003,💲 readers of the Las Vegas Review-Journal named the show as the city's worst attraction.[78][79] The show ended around 2003,[82] although💲 the dragon remains intact, hidden beneath the drawbridge.[83]
Other shows [ edit ]
Thunder from Down Under opened at the resort in💲 July 2002, and is the longest-running male revue in Las Vegas.[84][85][86] Since 2011, the Thunder from Down Under venue has💲 also been host to The Australian Bee Gees Show, a tribute to the original Bee Gees musical group.[87][88][89] The venue💲 originally seated 375 people. It was renovated in 2024 and named the Thunderland Showroom, with seating expanded to 425. Magician💲 Hans Klok began performing in the space later that year, sharing it with Thunder from Down Under and the Bee💲 Gees show.[85][90] Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Klok departed the property in 2024, as he felt that pandemic-related restrictions would hinder💲 revenue.[91] Magician Mac King took his place in 2024, starring in a comedy magic show.[92][93]
Other shows at the resort have💲 included the Royal Lipizzaner Stallions, a group of Lipizzaner horses which performed various maneuvers for spectators during the 1990s.[94][95][96] Catch💲 a Rising Star, a chain of comedy clubs, opened a location at the Excalibur in 2001, operating there for nearly💲 three years. The club was added in response to guest feedback.[97][98][99] Louie Anderson also performed comedy acts in the resort's💲 showroom, starting in 2006.[100][101] He entertained there until 2010.[102][103]
Fuerza Bruta, a show featuring acrobats, opened in March 2024. It was💲 performed in a 3,800 sq ft (350 m2) on-site tent,[104][105] with a standing-only capacity of 950 people.[105] The show was💲 signed for a six-month run, but ended a month after its debut,[106][107] due to poor ticket sales; each performance had💲 an average of only 50 guests.[105]
In popular culture [ edit ]
In 2003 and 2004, the Excalibur was used as a💲 filming location for the television program Fear Factor.[108][109] The 2004 video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas features fictional resorts💲 based on those located along the Strip, including a castle-themed property modeled after the Excalibur.[110]
Gallery [ edit ]
The Excalibur's main💲 entrance
Overlooking the main entrance from New York-New York
View from a hotel room, looking southwest
Same view at night
Roadside sign along the💲 Strip
References [ edit ]
