EXCALIBUR
Bill's Review
Last update: Feb 2007
Last hotel stay: Jan 2006
Back to Vegas Strip
TRAINSTATION
LOCATION
++++
South Strip neighbors at this corner of the strip include MGM Grand, New York New York, Luxor, and Tropicana. Hooters, Mandalay Bay and the Monte Carlo are close by.
RATES
$$$
Check the Excalibur website specials for good rates.  www.excalibur.com/promotions
Room furnishings are not Excalibur's strong point, but they're clean and comfortable enough. They haven't been updated since it opened. The intent is medieval, but it's much like Early American particleboard.
ROOMS
++ - +++
Really big casino. Not everybody likes it, but I really do. It has a feeling of spaciousness without being cavernous. The crowd is not too low-brow, and certeainly not too high-brow. Slot club has been converted to MGM Players club, so your comps from here are good at other MGM properties.
CASINO
++++
Pool area is  being completely renovated. Supposedly their will be several smaller pools so that kids will have their pool, and adults can escape their youthul exuberance. So it will most likely be nicer than before, but still not as nice as most of its neighbors (MGM, Mandalay Bay and the Trop all have super pools.) Until it reopens, guests may use the pool at Luxor.
POOL
?????
Adequate free parking in the garage or on ground. The walk to the casino is very awkward though. You feel like you're walking through to a service entrance. If you're getting off the freeway at Tropicana, there's a place to turn right into the lot before you get to S Las Vegas Blvd, which saves time. You can't use the same trick on the way out, though. Fortunately the Tropicana intersection handles traffic very well.
PARKING
++++
The Medieval Knight theme is actually short on attractions. The "Tournament of Kings" show is a fighting knights  kind of show, with chicken dinner included. The idea is that there are no knives and forks...you pull the food apart with your teeth and eat it with your hands, like  medieval times. Can't explain the Pepsi and Wet-naps, though.
ATTRACTIONS AND SHOWS
++
Decent food court has Pizza Hut, Quiznos, Krispy Kreme  and McDonalds, among others. Buffet is far from critically acclaimed.
FOOD
++
WALKING DISTANCE
++++
MGM Grand, NYNY, Mandalay Bay, Luxor, Tropicana, Hooters, Monte Carlo, UA Movie Theaters. However, you'll be somewhat distant from the best shopping opportunities at Caesars, Venetian, and Aladdin.
The room air conditioners. There[s no central air, just A/C units inserted though the walls directly beneath the windows. When you turn the A/C on, it blows the curtains around.
PEEVES
-
Excalibur has neither Rat Pack Era charm or new Vegas megaresort luxury.  But Excalibur is a great location, and an easy walk to more glamorous properties like Luxor and NYNY which are right next to it. It's in a really good midrange. If you spend more, you're stepping up to rooms with fancier soaps and newer wallpaper. But if you spend less, you're stepping down to the also-rans. Beats Trop and the IP, slightly trails Harrah's and the Flamingo.
Compare to SIMILAR PROPERTIES
+++++
Best hotel on the strip that has everything without getting too fancy. But if you have aspirations of an elegant hotel room, you'll spend a lot more for that egyptian cotton pillowtop bed, but this location is just so damn good.
ATTRIBUTES
+++++
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