Entering the vast Excalibur Hotel Casino Las Vegas should be a trip through time. But instead of being sent to the kingdom of King Arthur, Guinevere and Merlin, I felt as though I had arrived in a discolored, scuffed and highly trafficked version of Las Vegas in the 1990s.
Built in a period before “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,” Excalibur was developed as a family-friendly travel destination for the city’s branding effort. Actually, I recall being there when a young child in the early 1990s.
The motif has been partially eliminated today; rooms have been touched up but not really modernized; the entire complex seems lost in time and worse for wear.
If you can see beyond all of that, and there is a lot to look past, it’s a clean hotel right on the Strip. The pricing is also always right. For this reason, I investigated Excalibur thoroughly.
Over my nineteen visits to Las Vegas, I have stayed in almost every kind of hotel. Along with an elegant stay at Encore, there was an inexpensive trip at the Circus Circus Manor House—next to the RV park. I’ve been to the new Resorts World, the Mirage, Caesars Palace, Mandalay Bay and the Luxor.
Though I knew the Excalibur would be far from opulent, could I suggest it to travelers on a limited budget in town?
Booking Excalibur Hotel Casino Las Vegas
Vegas rates for this trip were quite reasonable. Matching my World of Hyatt level, my gold membership in the M life Rewards casino loyalty program gave me some quite amazing prices.
I could have booked the MGM Grand for $38 a night (plus the $39 resort charge and VAT) for my Monday night stay. Rooms at the NoMad Las Vegas began at $68 plus tax and resort fee. And then there was the Excalibur.
Through M life, I could get a hotel for just $22 – okay, plus the $35 daily resort fee and tax on both the room rate and the resort fee. For a room right on the Strip, that is almost certainly one of the finest deals available.
For this narrative, though, I decided to go even less expensive as we do all we can to optimize loyalty programs and other savings. And this is when my travel extreme-couponing approach truly paid off.
I have been playing a free online game called MyVEGAS Slots for years. Run by Playstudios, a company that partners with many travel and entertainment firms for incentives like MGM Resorts, I have past redeemed free meal credits, free slot machine credits, show tickets and match plays for table games from the game for free nights at Las Vegas hotels.
Naturally, I then immediately used credits for a free night at Excalibur. (I should mention there were also lots of other, much nicer Strip hotels available, but for the sake of my tale, I chose the least expensive one.)
To be sure, nothing in life is really free. The resort fees from Las Vegas hotels are the worst part of them. As we noted before, the cost sometimes exceeds the accommodation charge itself. Under taxes, the $35 resort charge came out to be $39.68.
All things considered, that is most likely as affordable as you will find staying on the Strip. The hotel also tried to upsell me for a dog-friendly cost of $50, an extra $20 for a guaranteed early check-in, and a guaranteed late checkout ($30 more). I turned them down all around.
Members of World of Hyatt can also earn points and elite night stays for MGM casinos in Las Vegas. But it all depends on your booking. In the past, I have received both for my free nights from Playstudios.
So, I wanted to know how this stay would credit. Fascinatingly enough, I got points and my 30% Globalist bonus on the $35 resort fee but not an elite night credit for this trip.
Related Article: For those considering a family vacation in Vegas, explore our guide on family-friendly hotels in Las Vegas to see how Excalibur compares with other accommodations.
Arrival and Check-in
I would want to claim scores of trumpeters welcomed me into the castle. There was no royal fanfare here, though. Rather, I popped my trunk and brought my suitcase from the self-parking area inside the casino.
My M life gold level meant I skipped the $15 daily parking fee. I made the way to the front desk by strolling across the casino. Although I could have checked in via the hotel’s app, I wanted to be sure my World of Hyatt number matched the reservation.
At the main desk, there was a sizable line. Once more, I was glad to have M life status since it allowed me to use the priority check-in line. Too bad it was moving more slowly than usual.
I wasted fifteen minutes of my life since my World of Hyatt number was already linked and I was promptly issued my key when I arrived at the counter.
With my keys, I moved across the casino toward the Resort Tower elevators. And here I first felt let down.
On the 26th floor, I had been upgraded into a Strip-view room. My key didn’t function on the scanner to reach my floor when I entered the lift, though. Neither did anyone else’s. In fact, that one elevator key reader never seemed to operate during my whole eighteen-plus hours at the resort; hence, all the guests had to wait for one of the other four high-floor elevators.
Excalibur King Room
First of all, let us acknowledge that no royalty would ever occupy this king’s room. Once more, it ran less than forty bucks.
From the time I got off the elevator, though, I smelled something I couldn’t quite identify: a mix of lingering 1990s smokes (on a nonsmoking floor) combined with must.
Dragon shapes on the carpeting and cleaning trolleys obstructing the corridor stood out. Almost as though the hotel was pushing me to turn around and get back into my car.
Here, I will stop and mention that I felt safe since the room was clean and the locks operated. There was decent water pressure and strong air conditioning.
So, it was a $40 well spent if that is all you are seeking. However, a room at the much better MGM Grand, Park MGM, or New York, New York, is just a few bucks more.
That’s roughly when my niceties end. Let us now enter the room. The place was chipped, damaged, old, and basic in everything.
The furniture calls for a lot of words to adequately express. Nothing nearly matched. Though useable, it was all in terrible condition. Though shockingly small, the television was, at least, a flat-screen model.
It was as though someone had just sieved through past hotel bankruptcies in search of a lot of inexpensive furniture. There was not even any theming here; I might have wanted a set of thrones in the sitting area and a medieval-inspired bed.
But mp, the Excalibur’s theme essentially stopped in the hallway. This was only a jumble of arbitrary hotel furniture. There were few power outlets, not close to nightstands. As I mentioned, fortunately, the air conditioning was really strong.
And then there was the bathroom. Its sink operated, its toilet flushed, and its shower provided reasonable pressure. (I’m quite trying to be polite here, but that’s about all I can say.)
Except possibly the idea you might swiftly (quickly) wipe off some of the hotel’s filth. Nothing about the shower felt appealing. Had I packed flip-flops or shower shoes, I most likely would have worn them.
The shower has both individual bottles on the counter and bulk shampoo and soap dispensers.
At last, then, was my view. Most likely, this was the best feature of the room. It’s too bad the windows were so filthy that I could never appreciate them. From here, I could see much of the Strip; the view looked straight over the New York, New York roller coaster.
A few hours later, I regretted that proximity. The window had no actual soundproofing, hence I kept hearing people scream as they left the first drop while I was attempting to sleep.
Both the connecting room door and the corridor door were not thick either; thus, I heard lots of noise across both.
Pro Tip: Download a white noise app to your phone and always pack extra earplugs.
Resort Amenities
I decided to spend some time looking over what I was offered since I was paying the $35 (plus tax) resort fee.
The pool complex was the first stop. There are three almost identical pools, plus a little pool and hot tub in a corner. One of the primary pools, which included a little waterslide, was closed. The other two crowded rather tightly. Perhaps the hotel lacked the lifeguard count to open all three.
The pool seats were rudimentary, and shade was difficult to get by. Next to one of the pools was a castle-style building, although the surroundings were otherwise not particularly noteworthy.
The workout center has a lot of equipment and is spacious. That said, none of the newest machines—let alone Peloton bikes—should be expected. Still, there were tons of towels and free little water bottles.
You truly have no reason to remark on the dining here. When I visited, the buffet and the Camelot Steakhouse were closed. Mostly chains, my other dining choices were Dick’s Last Resort, Buca di Beppo, Johnny Rockets, Auntie Anne’s Pretzels, Cinnabon, Einstein Bros. Bagels, Krispy Kreme, Pizza Hut Express, Popeyes, Schlotzsky’s and Starbucks.
The fast-food company Hot Dog on a Stick piqued my curiosity, but I couldn’t bring myself to order anything. There are limits to how far I will go for a decent narrative.
At last, we have the arcade. It’s a quick way to spend money. Nearly as fast as the casino. (I did walk away with $40 from the $5 blackjack table I discovered during my Monday night stay.)
As a parent, I like that this area is kid-friendly. Though I might not stay at the hotel, it’s wonderful to know it exists if you want someplace where the kids can play with their own noisy machines with flashing lights.
Related Article: For a more upscale experience after exploring the medieval-themed charm of Excalibur, check out our detailed review of Aria Las Vegas to see how it measures up.
Bottom Line
Working in my room on my last day, I was looking forward to the regular 11 a.m. checkout. Even on my door, I hung the “do not disturb” sign.
But housekeeping was knocking on the door, asking me when I intended to depart at 9:10 a.m. At 9:45 a.m., I still got another knock. Although it was inconvenient, at least I was on work phone calls instead of still sleeping, which most visitors certainly still did. And most people’s plans most certainly do not include a royal wake-up call.
Travelers with Hyatt status would find Excalibur a suitable place since it is part of the M life Rewards program and has a terrific location. And, quite rightly, that’s about it.
You stay at the Excalibur because of the price and perhaps proximity to the airport, not because you adore the hotel. Having said that, you may book some more elegant local lodging for just an additional $10 a night. So, my advice is to spend the extra money.