Cryptophanes, cage molecules for which xenon exhibits a high affinity, are good candidates for xenon biosensing. Cryptophane-1.1.1 (1) exhibits the highest binding constant for xenon encapsulation in organic solution determined to date. This property suggests that the cryptophane-1.1.1 core (1) is optimal for sensing applications. A high-yielding scalable synthesis of compound 1 is reported as well as an easy way to functionalize it.