The premise: a medieval feast with a tournament attached
Tournament of Kings is a dinner show built around a jousting tournament. King Arthur invites the kings of Europe to a feast and games in his honour; each visiting king rides into a dirt-floor arena with his banner, competes in horseback games, jousting and sword fights, and the evening builds to a villain, a battle and a great deal of fireworks. The plot is thin on purpose. What matters is that the arena is divided into sections named for the competing countries, and you are seated in one of them, so you spend the night cheering for your king, booing his rivals and hammering the table with your fists.
It has run at Excalibur since 1990, which makes it one of the longest-running shows in Las Vegas, and it has changed remarkably little. The horses are real, the riders are stunt performers, the pyro is generous, and the food is eaten with your hands. It is deeply unfashionable and children adore it.
The arena at Excalibur
The show plays in a purpose-built arena beneath Excalibur's casino floor on the south Strip. It is a long oval of packed dirt ringed by tiered rows of benches and narrow tables, holding roughly 900 people, with a gallery for the king and a stage at one end for the musicians and the villain's entrances. Every seat faces the action and the tiers are steep enough that children can see over the row in front. The room smells faintly of horse and gunpowder, which is part of the charm.
Excalibur is at the Tropicana Avenue intersection, linked by free tram and a covered walkway to Luxor and Mandalay Bay, and by a pedestrian bridge to New York-New York and MGM Grand. The arena entrance is on the lower level: follow the signs from the casino floor, or take the escalator near the food court. Allow 15 minutes from the Strip because the resort is large. Our Mandalay Bay, Luxor and Excalibur guide covers the whole south-Strip cluster and its trams.
Timing, seatings and who can come
The show runs about 90 minutes including the meal, and there are typically two seatings a night, an early one around 6 pm and a later one around 8:30 pm, with some dark nights each week that move through the year. It has run as of 2026 for more than three decades, but check Excalibur's site for the current calendar. The early seating suits families; it finishes by about 7:30 pm and the food arrives fast because the kitchen is clearing a room.
All ages are admitted, and this is the rare Strip show where toddlers are not merely tolerated but expected. Lap children under a certain age have generally been free; confirm the current policy at the box office. There is no content anyone needs to worry about — the violence is pantomime, the villain is a boo-hiss stereotype, and the loudest moments are the pyro and the crowd. Our best shows for families page puts it in context with the other options.
The meal, the noise and the participation
Dinner is served as the show starts and is the same for everyone: a bowl of tomato soup you drink from the bowl, a whole roasted Cornish game hen, a potato, a roll, vegetables and a dessert pastry, with soft drinks included and beer or wine extra. There is no cutlery. Wet wipes are provided; bring more. Vegetarian and other dietary alternatives exist but must be requested when you book, and they are simple. Nobody comes for the food, but it is hot, plentiful and a genuine novelty for kids.
Participation is unavoidable and that is the point. A serving wench or squire assigned to your section will teach you the cheers for your king, and you are expected to shout, stamp and pound the table. The noise level is high throughout — pyro, hooves, a rock-tinged score and a room full of screaming children. It is not a show for anyone who wants to sit quietly. Dust from the arena is minor but real; the front row gets the most of it.
Choosing a section
You do not choose a seat so much as a country. Sections are laid out around the oval, and every section has a full view of the arena. The ends of the oval, near the stage and the king's gallery, see the entrances and the finale best; the long sides see more of the jousting runs head-on. There is no bad country, and the cheering makes each section its own party.
Row matters more than section. The first two rows are closest to the horses and the pyro and get the most attention from performers, which small children love, but they are also the dustiest and loudest. Rows three to six are the comfortable middle. The top rows are perfectly fine for viewing and are the value choice. General admission seating within your assigned section is filled on a first-come basis, so arrive 30–45 minutes before the seating time if you want the lower rows.
Tickets and price
As of 2026, tickets run roughly $70–$110 per person including the meal, before fees and drinks; check the Excalibur box office or the official site for current prices. Children pay a lower rate at some tiers. Because dinner is included, the price is closer to a night out than a show ticket, and for a family of four it is competitive with a mid-range restaurant plus a separate show.
Discounts do appear: the same-day booths carry it fairly often, Excalibur runs its own promotions for resort guests, and midweek seatings are sometimes cheaper than weekends. The discount show tickets guide explains where to look. Booking direct also lets you request a dietary alternative, which resellers frequently fail to pass on. Gratuity for your section's server is customary and not included.
Who should go, who should not, and what else to try
Tournament of Kings is for families with children under about twelve, groups who want something silly, and anyone nostalgic for the medieval-castle era of the Strip. It is the single best show in Las Vegas for a six-year-old. It is not for couples on a romantic night, anyone who values quiet or good food, or a group of adults expecting production values from a Cirque show.
Families who want spectacle rather than noise should look at Mystère, the friendliest Cirque production, or Blue Man Group at Luxor next door, which is equally messy and loud but far more sophisticated. Jabbawockeez is the all-ages pick for older kids and teens. For a full family itinerary around the south Strip, start with Las Vegas with kids.
Our verdict
Nobody has ever called Tournament of Kings sophisticated, and nobody who took a child has ever regretted going. It is a dinner theatre from another age, doing exactly what it has done for thirty-five years, with real horses, real fire and a chicken you eat with your hands. Bring wet wipes, cheer for your king, and accept that this is the one Strip show where the children are in charge.
