Inside MGM’s First Tiki Bar at Excalibur on the Las Vegas Strip

^{The Tiki Bar at Excalibur features a three-sided bar, tropical decor, and all the tiki spirit you’d hope for in Las Vegas. (Photo: courtesy of MGM Resorts)} 

LAS VEGAS — A good Tiki bar concept isn’t foreign to Las Vegas, but it has been surprisingly rare on the Strip. 

That changed recently when Excalibur Hotel & Casino unveiled The Tiki Bar, MGM Resorts' first venture into the world of tiki bars and tropical cocktails. Located right off the casino floor next to the MGM Rewards desk, the venue is easy to find. The name is quite literal, but a simple name can work if the experience delivers.  

According to The Tiki Bar’s opening announcement, the bar is meant to be a "tropical escape" inspired by Murphy the Dragon said to sleep under Excalibur’s castle drawbridge. Murphy was a popular attraction at Excalibur when it first opened in the 1990s, but during my visit, I didn’t spot any obvious nods to the dragonitself. The bar calls itself a "den of drinking, discovery, and revelry," but the real question is: does it actually deliver? 

The Strip Finally Gets Its’ Tiki Moment 

Like most bars in this genre, the focus here is heavily on tropical cocktails. For context, my usual tiki bar in Las Vegas is The Golden Tiki in Chinatown, just 10 to 15 minutes off the Strip. My goal of seeing this place was to see how it compares to those already nearby while also recognizing its’ value as being the only tiki bar currently on the Strip. 

One immediate surprise upon walking in is how massive the place is compared to most bars. The photos I saw didn’t do it justice! It feels less like a cramped themed bar and more like a full-scale lounge, with 150 seats in the entire venue. There’s also a stage for live bands and variety acts on Friday and Saturday nights, which would be the best time to see the venue’s full potential. 

Whether you're sitting at the bar or in the lounge, you can get a good look at the movies on the screen, like To Kill a Mockingbird. (Photo: Vanessa Alves-Johnson / Casinos.com)

If you’ve never been to a tiki bar, expect tropical patterns, tiki statues everywhere, black and white movies on the screens, and curtains that look like lava flowing out of a volcano. 

I visited at a quieter time—a Wednesday afternoon during CES week—so the crowd was thinner than normal. Service was limited to the bar: you can order your drink and sit in the lounge. On a slower day, the lounge almost feels a little too large. Most people opt to sit at the bar when they visit rather than sitting in the lounge, especially since it technically doesn't open for service until 5 p.m.

Prices are what you would expect for the Strip, with most regular cocktails sitting in the $17 to $18 range. They also offer flights, which are a great way to share value if you’re with a group. 

The only real disappointment was the lack of food options, so in that regard, Golden Tiki still takes the cake. 

One thing to note here is that the drinks may not come in the decorative cups. It was a tiny bit of a letdown, but you can still purchase them at the bar separately for $25 each. (Photo: Vanessa Alves-Johnson / Casinos.com)

The bar’s menu has one distinct advantage for the indecisive folks: photos. For visual learners like me, it helps to see what the drinks actually look like. The menu features clear photos of their signature cocktails, which helps when you're deciding between a Buzzed Tiki Torch or a Tropical Tai. I tried the Tropical Tai this time around, but the Buzzed Tiki Torch is on my list for next time I visit.  

The real draw, however, is the daily Happy Hour from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. daily. It’s pretty robust with its’ offerings: $8 tiki cocktails and frozen daiquiris, $5 domestic beers, and $6 import beers. 

"Since we opened in December, we're usually busiest during our happy hour," said a food and beverage manager at The Tiki Bar. "We're located near the resort tower, so it's going to be a really fun spot for people to start their night with a cocktail here and enjoy some of our variety acts."

It was refreshing to hear that their happy hour is one of the best times to visit. A discounted signature cocktail should ALWAYS be taken advantage of when in Vegas.

Bringing Back Value to Excalibur 

The arrival of a value-driven and popular bar concept venue like this seems to be part of a larger strategy at MGM Resorts. It follows recent comments by CEO Bill Hornbuckle, who admitted the company may have gone too far with overpricing guests in 2024. 

"When we think about pricing, whether it's the infamous bottle of water or a Starbucks coffee at Excalibur that cost $12, shame on us," Hornbuckle said. "We should have been more sensitive to the overall experience at a place like Excalibur. To those customers, you can't have a $29 room or maybe a $12 coffee." 

The Tiki Bar seems to be a direct response to that realization, attempting to bring reasonable pricing back to the resort. On my walk over, I discovered that Excalibur offers $3 margaritas at many of its casino bars, including this one. Station Casinos offers a comparable $1.99 deal, but those are located all off the Strip. I wonder, is 2026 the year of the cheap margarita across Vegas? 

While the name could be more creative, The Tiki Bar is a solid effort to add a nightlife hotspot back to the Excalibur. It offers a great space to kick off a night on the Strip or grab a quick drink after a long conference day. Though the prices during normal hours are in line with bars in casino bars nearby, the theme and atmosphere is what makes it worth a visit if the happy hour doesn’t pull you in already. It feels different than the standard casino bar, and there’s no cover to stop you from making a visit the next time you’re on the Strip.