The $250-million Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa, which opened on December 10, 2004, is one of the largest tribal gaming facilities in the nation. Casino Morongo closed for gaming in 2004, and reopened in 2018 as a separate casino due to an expansion project at the larger casino, displacing 300 slot machines.
- How Many Slot Machines Does Morongo Have A Year
- Morongo Slot Machine List
- Best Slots At Morongo
- How Many Slot Machines Does Morongo Have A Million
In California, you can enjoy most types of gambling to some extent, even though most forms of gambling are illegal within its borders. Currently, slot games are illegal in California but can be found at tribal casinos, which operate on reservation land and are not beholden to CA law.
Below we present a breakdown of what types of slot games you can find in California and how they differ from Las Vegas’ slot game offerings.
Vegas-Style Slots Versus California Slots
You can find tons of slot games to play in California, even for real money. But while playing slot machines and wagering real money is totally legal in Vegas, the same isn’t true for the Golden State.
Gambling for money is largely illegal in California, except for horse racing and daily fantasy sports. Indian casinos get around this legal restriction since they operate on sovereign Indian ground. Therefore, you can play slots in California so long as they are within a legally operating tribal casino establishment.
Similarities And Differences
Virtually all forms of gambling are legal in Las Vegas, whether for money, digital sweeps coins, or other types of currency. In Las Vegas, you can find all types of slot machines and games in the variety of casinos there. In California, slot games are limited to Indian casinos.
However, this isn’t to say that you won’t find plenty of variety at those Indian casinos. Indeed, many of the largest tribal casinos have thousands of slot machines and tons of variety for slot game enthusiasts to enjoy. For instance, Pechanga Resort Casino is the largest in the entire state and features 4,500 slot machines in total across 188,000 ft.² of gaming space.
There is a shared similarity between California and Las Vegas slots. In most cases, you need to be 21-years-old to play slots. Although the legal gambling age in California is 18-years-old, tribal casinos can set their own legal gambling age. Most of them err on the side of caution and set this to 21-years-old instead of 18-years-old since they serve alcohol on their open gambling floors.
They do this so they don’t accidentally serve alcohol to any underage gamblers. There are only a few tribal casinos in California that allow 18-years-olds to enter.
Largest Northern California Slots Casinos In California
These are the two largest and most slot-intensive casinos in Northern California:
Cache Creek Casino
This newly-reopened tribal casino has a fantastic hotel coming in late 2021. At this time, it’s open 24 hours a day and features almost a 75,000 ft.² space with 2,400 slot machines. Over 300 of these machines are in a non-smoking area. There’s also 122 table games and a high-stakes table area that includes blackjack and baccarat.
You’ll be able to find most of the slots on the main casino floor, separated by a central area featuring table games. There’s also a high limit slots area on the north end of the casino. This is a perfect place if you enjoy slots with more on the line.
Regardless of the titles you choose, you’ll be able to join the casino’s club and benefit from tons of bonuses and high payback limits. The more you play, the more rewards you’ll earn as you spend time at this casino. It’s a great staple gaming establishment if you like to head to the slots every weekend as a hobby.
Thunder Valley Casino Resort
This Northern California tribal casino is located just outside Sacramento. The casino currently features nearly 145,000 ft.² of gaming space and is open 24 hours a day, with 2,800 slot machines and over 130 live poker and gaming tables. There’s also a 500-seat bingo area if you’re interested.
The slots you can find range from classic reel favorites, like Quick Hits, to newer slot games like Willy Wonka’s Munchkinland. The variety of slot machines is truly staggering and slot game enthusiasts will find a lot to like as they tour the expansive space. New and exciting slot machines are usually added to a dedicated spot in Thunder Valley’s Pano Hall. This way, you don’t have to hunt for new games if you check out this casino frequently.
Slot game bets range from one cent up to $100 depending on your preference. There’s also a smoke-free slots room, plus a bonus strike jackpot system that all players can partake in. Players can enjoy extra rewards like chances for bonus jackpots if they sign up for a Thunder Rewards Card.
Here are all the tribal slots casinos operating currently in Northern California:
- Bear River Casino
- Black Oak Casino
- Cache Creek Casino
- Cer-Ae Heights Bingo and Casino
- Chicken Ranch Casino
- Chuckchansi Gold Resort & Casino
- Colusa Casino Resort
- Coyote Valley Casino
- Desert Rose Casino
- Diamond Mountain Casino
- Eagle Mountain Casino
- Elk Valley Casino
- Feather Falls Casino and Lodge
- Garcia River Casino
- Gold Country Casino
- Graton Resort & Casino
- Hard Rock Fire Mountain Casino
- Harrah’s Northern California Casino
- Hidden Oaks Casino
- Hopland So-Ka-Wah Casino & Bingo
- Jackson Rancheria Casino Resort
- Konocti Vista Casino Resort, Marina & RV Park
- Lucky 7 Casino
- Lucky Bear Casino
- Mechoopda Casino Project
- Mono Wind Casino
- North Fork Rancheria Resort Hotel & Casino
- Paiute Palace Casino
- Pit River Casino
- Playstation 777
- Rain Rock Casino
- Red Fox Casino & Bingo
- Red Hawk Casino
- Redwood Hotel Casino
- River Rock Casino
- Robinson Rancheria Resort & Casino
- Rolling Hills Casino
- Running Creek Casino
- San Pablo Lytton Casino
- Sherwood Valley Casino
- Table Mountain Casino
- Tachi Palace Casino Resort
- Thunder Valley Casino
- Twin Pine Casino
- Win-River Casino
- Winnedumah Winn’s Casino
Largest Southern California Slots Casinos In California
Here are the two largest Southern California slots casinos:
Pechanga Resort Casino
This is the largest of all California casinos, totaling 188,000 ft.² of gaming space and 4,500 slot machines, along with tons of table games and other entertainment activities and venues. It’s located in Riverside County, so it’s also very close to wine country. It’s a phenomenal casino since it’s open 24 hours a day and features an expansive slot floor.
Even better, the slot floor has been reworked since the COVID-19 pandemic. Games are now spaced about a machine’s width away to ensure appropriate physical distancing. Classic favorites and newer slot games alike can be found pretty easily, including state-of-the-art reel games, keno games, video poker games, video reels, and more.
The casino makes use of a ticketing system so you can enjoy all the games you like before turning in your total winnings. Slot machine enthusiasts will also really appreciate that this casino constantly updates their game selection, bringing in new titles every few months and filtering out old, lesser played games in order to make space.
Ultimately, it’s a slot player’s dream location, with something new almost every time you pay a visit.
San Manuel Casino
This casino has also recently reopened after its COVID-19 closure. Originally a bingo-only casino, San Manuel Casino now hosts 4,800 slot machines and 120,000 ft.². It’s open 24 hours a day and features many additional table games and a poker room.
Like Pechanga, the casino has redesigned its gaming floor to ensure appropriate social distancing. There are two stories across which you can find slot games, including video reels, video keno, progressive jackpots, mystery jackpots, and more. 120 video poker machines are also scattered throughout the space. You’ll be able to find slot games that range from penny slots to high limit slots depending on how risky you are feeling on a given day.
New slot machines are added pretty frequently, so the floor is almost always shifting and changing from season to season. You can find classics and new and noteworthy slot machines at this time, with new and innovative titles on the way.
Here is our round-up of slots casinos in Southern California:
- Agua Caliente Casino Palm Springs/Rancho Mirage
- Augustine Casino
- Barona Resort & Casino
- Barstow Casino and Resort Project
- Cahuilla Casino
- Casino Pauma
- Fantasy Springs Casino
- Golden Acorn Casino
- Havasu Landing Resort & Casino
- Jamul Casino
- La Jolla Trading Post & Casino
- Morongo Travel Center
- Pala Casino Spa Resort
- Pechanga Resort & Casino
- Quechan Casino Resort
- Red Earth Casino
- San Manuel Casino
- Soboba Casino
- Spotlight 29 Casino
- Tortoise Rock Casino
- Valley View Casino
- Viejas Casino
California Slots Casinos FAQ
Yes. Even though you technically earn that money on tribal grounds, you’ll still need to pay taxes on it at the end of the year.
The National Indian Gaming Commission is responsible for most casino regulation, except for a few high-stakes games and tournaments.
Mostly because California’s Native American tribes have made it difficult to pass pro-gambling legislation in the state senate, as it represents a big source of income for the tribes.
No. You can play Chumba Casino, LuckyLandSlots, and other sweepstakes slot sites, as these have you compete for digital currencies instead of real money.
Not likely anytime soon. Sports betting and other types of gambling legislation are more likely than slots gambling to come to fruition in the coming years.
The Morongo Casino Resort and Spa is one of California’s largest Indian Casinos, located in Cabazon, California, in Riverside county and part of the Inland Empire of 4.2 million people just east of the Los Angeles area, comprising the metropolitan regions of the cities of Riverside, Ontario, and San Bernardino.
There is quite a bit of Indian gaming in this region, and there’s a lot of competition for the gambling dollars here, but the Morongo stands out both in terms of quantity and quality, both being one of the largest and one of the highest rated.
The Morongo Casino Resort and Spa features a 150,000 square foot casino floor, making it larger than most Las Vegas casinos, and also is one of only four resorts in California to earn the prestigious four diamond award from AAA. It’s 27 floor structure really stands out as well and is the tallest in the Inland Empire.
The casino resort is owned by the Morongo Band of Cahuilla Mission Indians, and is situated on the Morongo Indian Reservation in Cabazon, halfway between Riverside and Palm Springs, California. Cabazon is a small town of about 2,500 people famous for both its exhibit of the world’s largest dinosaur sculptures and its gambling.
How Many Slot Machines Does Morongo Have A Year
The Morongo Indians got in on the ground floor of Indian gaming back in the 1980’s, and together with a sister tribe, defied California law at the time by operating gaming on their reservations. The county and state sought to shut this down, but the tribes fought back in court.
In the landmark case of Indian gaming in the U.S., California v. Cabazon Band of Mission Indians, in which the Morongo Indians were a party to, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Indians and this set in motion the Indian gaming landscape we see today.
A year later, Congress passed a law allowing for Indians to offer gambling under provisions of their sovereignty, and today Indian gaming represents a significant portion of the overall casino market in the U.S., especially in states like California who still refuse to issue licenses for it.
California has permitted licensed cardrooms for many years though, although non card related gambling is the sole province of the Indian tribes since they are not subject to state regulation.
Still though, the Indians have been willing to compromise, for instance they have entered into pacts where only card table games are offered, and this has resulted in several non card games such as craps and roulette being modified to be played with a deck of cards instead of a wheel or dice.
The Accommodations at the Morongo Casino Resort and Spa
Most of the traffic here is drive up, due to the great location of the property within easy driving distance for almost 20 million people, but it’s more than just a casino, it’s also a resort and they do get quite a few visitors that stay a while to enjoy the scenery and the amenities here.
The hotel is a four diamond property which means that you can expect that it is up to world class standards. The theme here is a retro 60’s look, which might sound a little drab but it’s quite tastefully done.
The cost of rooms here are fairly reasonable, and for $139 a night you can get a room and a buffet for two, and for $199 per night you get the room and the buffet plus a round of golf for two, with comparable dinner and spa packages also available.
The rooms here are nice and certainly in the category of luxurious, with beautiful furnishings, premium bathrooms, free wi-fi, fully stocked mini bar, in room safe, coffee maker, and 42 inch wall mounted TV.
Suites are also available, and you can even book one of their six exclusive casitas with their own private pools and VIP service and accommodations.
6 restaurants await you here to take care of all your dining wishes, including the Potrero Canyon Buffet with a great selection of buffet items, the Cielo Steakhouse serving the finest in steaks, the Café Serrano offering American cuisine, the poolside Sunset Bar and Grill, Mexican at Tacos and Tequila, Asian dishes at Natural 9 Noodle Company, and a food court with 4 different choices of quickly delivered meals.
Morongo Slot Machine List
On the entertainment side, the Morongo brings in the biggest acts on the casino circuit, featuring musical performances, comedy acts, the hottest DJs, and even boxing events. The Vibe club also features live performances as well as DJs on hand to keep you entertained.
The Drum Room is a beautifully decorated lounge for those seeking a more refined and upscale lounge experience, the MEBar delivers a very social atmosphere, and the Pit Bar lets you enjoy cocktails right on the casino floor.
The Sage Spa and Salon here offers a full selection of spa treatments with a Native American influence, and is regarded as one of the finest spas in all of Southern California. There’s also a pool area, a 36 hole world class golf course, a bowling alley, and over 130 retail shops nearby.
Best Slots At Morongo
The Casino at the Morongo
The Morongo boldly proclaims that they have the best casino in California, and they may be right. It’s at least one of the best though, and their 150,000 square foot gaming area is packed with the loosest slots you’ll ever find as well as some nice table games.
The 2,600 slot and video gaming machines are the main attraction here, and this provides slot machine lovers with a bevy of great choices, with all the latest games, hundreds of progressive slot machines, and stakes that run from a penny to $100 a pull in their high limit slot area.
Smoking is permitted in California casinos but the Morongo also has a non smoking gambling area for those who prefer non smoking.
There are 74 gaming tables in total for those who enjoy table casino games, including popular ones like Blackjack, Baccarat, Fortune Pai Gow, 3 Card Poker, 4 Card Poker, and Ultimate Texas Holdem. There’s also a high limit table area with tableside dining and premium bar service.
How Many Slot Machines Does Morongo Have A Million
Those who enjoy playing poker will find a nice poker room here with both cash games and daily tournaments. This isn’t the biggest poker room around but offers a good selection of games including Holdem, Omaha, and 7 Card Stud in a smoke free environment.
Bingo is where this tribe started and it still figures prominently in their operation, with a 440 seat bingo hall boasting the best bingo in Southern California.
Like all good casinos, the Morongo also has a rewards program, where your free membership entitles you to immediate discounts at their restaurants, spa, and nightclub, in addition to rewarding you further for your play and your loyalty.
The Morongo Casino Resort and Spa is clearly one of Southern California’s premier destinations for gambling, and offer some very high quality accommodations and amenities as well.