Excalibur Hotel and Casino
 |
|
| Excalibur 3850 Las Vegas Boulevard South Las Vegas, Nevada 89109 |
|
|---|---|
| Number of rooms | 3,991 |
| Theme | Medieval / Camelot |
| Gaming space | 100,000 ft? (9,290 m?) |
| Permanent show(s) | Tournament of Kings Thunder Down Under Anthony Cools |
| Signature attraction(s) | Merlin vs. Dragon battle |
| Notable restaurant(s) | The Steakhouse at Camelot Sir Galahad's Prime Rib House Regale Italian Eatery |
| Owner | MGM Mirage |
| Date opened | June 19, 1990 |
| Casino type | Land |
| Major renovation(s) | N/A |
| Previous name(s) | Xanadu project (never built) |
| Casino website | excalibur.com |
The Excalibur Hotel/Casino is a hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip at 3850 Las Vegas Boulevard South, Las Vegas, Nevada. It is one of the large casinos owned by the Mandalay Resort Group. As of June 2004, the Mandalay Resort Group was purchased by MGM Mirage adding this hotel to its vast array of properties on the Strip.
Excalibur, named for the mythical sword of King Arthur, uses the Arthurian theme in several ways. Its facade is a stylized image of a castle, with a wizardlike figure representing Merlin looking out from a high turret.
The Tropicana - Las Vegas Boulevard intersection, where the property sits, is very busy, so pedestrians are not allowed to cross at street level. Instead, Excalibur is linked by overhead pedestrian bridges to its neighboring casinos to the north (the New York-New York Hotel & Casino, across Tropicana Avenue) and to the east (the Tropicana Resort & Casino, across the Strip). There is also a free tram that connects Excalibur to its sister Mandalay Resort Group hotel-casinos to the south, the Luxor and Mandalay Bay.
History
The Excalibur opened on June 19, 1990. It was one of many new, modern Las Vegas hotels that featured children's attractions, such as an arcade and a small medieval style roller coaster. Another feature of the Excalibur that is prominent in many of today's Las Vegas hotels is a large family swimming pool.
In February 2003, the Las Vegas area received over 3 inches of rain. In turn the 18th floor of the Excalibur Hotel was evacuated. The fire alarms were triggered when rain entered the rooms. This is a design flaw of the building. To date this has not been repaired.
On March 21, 2003 the largest Megabucks Jackpot, as of that time, was hit at the Excalibur. The jackpot was for $39,713,982.25.
In recent years the Medieval roller coaster was taken out. It started with the coaster breaking down quite often, and with low ridership. There is speculation that the Excalibur hotel may be demolished when the current Union Contact expires, which maybe as soon as late 2006.
Attractions
Restaurants and other areas have Arthurian names, such as the Roundtable Buffet, or reflect a broader "ancient Britain" theme, such as the Sherwood Forest Cafe. A long-running show, the "Tournament of Kings," features simulated medieval jousting.
The Excalibur has never been a big boxing events venue. Since the middle to late 1990s, the Mandalay Resort Group has staged its major boxing events at Mandalay Bay.
The Excalibur hotel also features a wedding chapel.