The Xanadu Hotel and Casino: A Vision of Grandeur That Never Came to Life

The Xanadu Hotel and Casino: A Vision of Grandeur That Never Came to Life

In the history of Las Vegas’ iconic development, few projects are as captivating as the Xanadu Hotel and Casino. Despite being one of the most ambitious plans for a new resort in the mid-1970s, Xanadu never made it off the drawing board, yet its proposed design and legacy have continued to shape the city’s evolution. The Xanadu was to rise at 3850 Las Vegas Boulevard South, the exact location where the Excalibur Hotel and Casino stands today. This proposed 1,755-room hotel and casino was designed to revolutionize the southern part of the Las Vegas Strip, offering a futuristic aesthetic with an impressive pyramid and atrium design.

While Xanadu itself was never built, it remains an important part of Las Vegas’ architectural history. In this article, we will explore the vision behind Xanadu, its designers, and the architectural elements that influenced future resort developments on the Strip.

The Vision for Xanadu

The Xanadu Hotel and Casino was conceived as a large-scale, $150-million development that would cater to both high rollers and families, combining lavish accommodations with world-class entertainment. This proposed resort would have been a hallmark of the rapidly changing landscape of Las Vegas in the 1970s. At the time, Las Vegas was expanding beyond its roots as a haven for gambling and adult entertainment into a more family-friendly and glamorous destination for a wide range of tourists. This transformation was part of a broader effort by developers to diversify the city’s offerings and attract a new type of visitor.

The Xanadu Hotel was designed to stand out with a striking visual aesthetic. Its location on Las Vegas Boulevard, in the southern part of the Strip, made it a prime piece of real estate for ambitious development. The area was still considered underdeveloped when the project was proposed, making it the perfect opportunity to capitalize on the Strip’s potential for growth. The Xanadu would have been positioned to fill this void with cutting-edge architecture and large-scale amenities, offering a blend of luxury and futuristic design that would have made it one of the most recognizable hotels on the Strip.

The Architects: Berton Charles Severson and Brian Walter Webb

The conceptual rendering of the Xanadu’s exterior, drawn on parchment, is one of the key artifacts associated with the proposed resort. The architects behind the vision of Xanadu were Berton Charles Severson and Brian Walter Webb, both of whom were well-regarded figures in the field of architectural design. They brought their expertise and a shared vision for something truly innovative to the project. The design they created was bold and modern, with elements that had never been seen before in Las Vegas, such as the expansive atrium and the eye-catching pyramid structure.

Severson and Webb’s design for Xanadu combined traditional luxury with an avant-garde flair, drawing inspiration from contemporary trends in architecture while also pushing boundaries. The pyramid, a major element of the design, was meant to symbolize the grandeur of the resort and would have housed the hotel’s rooms and other facilities, making it both a visual and practical centerpiece. The atrium concept was another groundbreaking feature, serving as the resort’s central space, where guests could experience the hotel and casino in an open, expansive environment.

The two architects sought to create a space that was not only functional but also visually spectacular, one that would resonate with the modern spirit of the 1970s while setting new standards for the resort and casino industry. Their efforts reflected an understanding of Las Vegas’ future direction: a city that needed to evolve from a gambling mecca into an entertainment capital capable of attracting a broader audience.

Why Xanadu Was Never Built

Despite the grandeur of the Xanadu design and the excitement surrounding its proposal, construction never began. There were multiple factors that contributed to the failure of the Xanadu project, with the economic environment of the 1970s playing a significant role. During the 1970s, Las Vegas was going through a period of economic fluctuations, which included an oil crisis and a slowing of tourism growth. Financing for large-scale development projects became more difficult to secure, and investors were often reluctant to commit to untested or risky ventures.

The Xanadu project also faced stiff competition from other developments on the Strip. Developers were scrambling to build large, flashy resorts that would capture the attention of both tourists and media outlets. The hotel and casino industry was maturing, and the market was becoming saturated with new resorts that were being constructed at a rapid pace. These factors likely made it difficult for Xanadu’s backers to secure the necessary financial support to move forward with construction.

In the end, the land on which Xanadu was to be built remained vacant for many years, and in 1990, the Excalibur Hotel and Casino was constructed on the same site. The Excalibur, which opened to great fanfare, borrowed elements of the Xanadu design, albeit in a much more commercially viable form. The theme of a grand, larger-than-life resort remained central to the development, but the design changed drastically from what was originally envisioned for Xanadu. The Excalibur, with its medieval castle theme, symbolized a shift in Las Vegas resort design, which continued to evolve in the years following the failed Xanadu project.

The Influence of Xanadu on Future Las Vegas Designs

While Xanadu was never built, its conceptual design had a lasting impact on Las Vegas resort architecture. Many of the ideas that Severson and Webb proposed for Xanadu can be seen in the designs of later developments on the Strip, most notably the Luxor Hotel and Casino, which opened in 1993. The Luxor, designed by architect Veldon Simpson, features the same iconic pyramid shape that was central to Xanadu’s vision. The Luxor’s design, with its massive pyramid and dramatic interior spaces, echoes the original grandeur of Xanadu’s proposed look.

Additionally, the concept of large, open atriums would also find a home in subsequent resorts. The Mirage, which opened in 1989, featured a grand atrium as part of its design, and the notion of expansive public spaces became a signature element of many future developments in Las Vegas. While these projects diverged in theme and execution, the foundational ideas that Severson and Webb explored in the Xanadu project—such as bold, eye-catching architectural forms and large, open interior spaces—shaped the development of the modern Las Vegas resort.

The Xanadu Hotel and Casino may never have been built, but its legacy endures as an important part of Las Vegas’ architectural history. The vision for the Xanadu, with its bold pyramid design and expansive atrium, set the stage for future developments that would reshape the city’s skyline. Although economic conditions and market factors prevented the Xanadu project from becoming a reality, the ideas it introduced can still be seen in many of the iconic resorts that followed. As a result, the Xanadu remains a tantalizing “what might have been” in the ongoing story of Las Vegas’ rise as a global resort and entertainment destination.

For anyone interested in delving deeper into the history of Xanadu and its place in Las Vegas’ architectural evolution, the conceptual renderings and archives are available through collections such as those at UNLV Special Collections【9†source】【11†source】.