Best Casinos in California Guide

Home » State Casino Guide 2024 » California Casinos

David Cooper | January 3, 2023 | Updated on: October 1st, 2024


Find the best casinos in California right here, at Casino US! When most people think about gambling, they immediately think of Las Vegas. But gamblers can find some of the best casinos in the state of California.

With around 150 legal casinos in the Golden State, California can give the state of Nevada a run for its money. Before you go and declare California to be the new gambling mecca, there are a few things to keep in mind.

The casino games on offer depend on whether you’re playing at a card room casino or a Native American casino. In addition to this, these Native American casinos are located on reservations, making them a little more difficult to access.

But for those living in, or visiting California, there are still plenty of casino options available. These include both land-based casinos, and online options. Find the top casinos in California, here at Casino US!

California Casinos

Live Gambling Allowed in California

Gambling in California has expanded to cater to bettors that have a large interest in betting like some states. Horse racing betting in California is legal and it is done through pool-betting, also known as pari-mutuel.

Another form of gambling that is accepted in California is the lottery. Various lottery games such as instant tickets can be enjoyed by Californians. Games such as Bingo ad raffles are ones that gamblers can enjoy, however, these can be played through registered charities.

Types Online Gambling Permitted in California

The state of California only permits horse racing betting as the main online gambling that bettors can enjoy. Some fantasy sports websites accept Californians, like Draftkings, Yahoo! and FanDuel are just some of the Daily fantasy sports sites that cater to players based in California.

Players can enjoy internet gaming at the casino sites we’ve listed.

For some gambling laws to be affirmed they need to go through a vote. Like we’ve previously mentioned, horse racing was the first form of betting to be legalized in the state and it is regulated by the California Horse Racing Board. Card clubs are permitted in California and they have been around for a very long time.

Card clubs were initially meant to poker activities but as the years progressed other forms of casino card games were included such as Baccarat and Blackjack.

Gambling laws in The Golden State

With nearly 40 million people living in the state, you’d hope there would be enough casinos to meet the demand.

There are around 150 legal casinos in CA. But things get a little more complicated. Not all the best casinos offer the same games due to state laws.

If a player is looking to go to their nearest casino and play slots, roulette, or craps, you’re probably going to be disappointed. The card club gambling casinos in California are not permitted to allow players to play casino games that rely solely on luck. This means that these card club casinos can offer games where player skill comes into play, such as Pai Gow poker, baccarat, and blackjack, but not roulette.

If you want to play these sorts of games at places to gamble in California, you’ll need to head to one run by Native Americans. They’re able to offer games that don’t require any skill from the player. They do tend to be a little more out of the way for most Californians, though. If you’re wondering “where can I find the best casinos in CA near me?” – Casino US is here to help.

List of Top 10 California Casinos

Casino Games Other Features Contacts
Hustler casinoHustler Casino 50 poker tables & 30 table games Restaurants & bars 1000 West Redondo Beach Blvd

Gardena, CA

90247

310 – 719 – 9800

Pala Casino Resort & SpaPala casino 2000 Slots

80 table games

15 table poker

Spa

Hotel

Restaurants

35008 Pala

Temecula Road

Pala, CA 92059

1-877-946-7252

Fantasy Springs Resort & CasinosFantasy Springs 2000 slots

40 table games

50 Room Hotel

Restaurants

Bars, Bowling, Golf

Live Entertainment

84-245 Indio Springs Parkway.

Indio, CA 92203

800-827-2946

Pechanga Resort & CasinoPechanga resort 4000 Slots

154 Table games

700 Seat Bingo

Restaurants, Bar, Comedy Cub, Cabaret Lounge, Spa, Hotel 45000 Pechanga Parkway, Temecula, CA 92592

1-877-711-2946

Harrah’s RiconHarrahs 1700 Slots

68+ Table Games

Restaurants

Golf, Spa, Hotel

777 Harrah’s Rincon Way, Valley Center, CA 92082

760-751-3100

Cache Creek CasinoCache Creek 2,400 Slot Machines

Table Games

Variety of Asian-inspired cuisine, hotel 14455 Highway 16, Brooks, California 95606

530-796-3118

Chumash CasinoChumash 2,000 Slot Machines

Poker

Table Games

Bingo

Hotel, Restaurants, Live music 3400 East Highway 246, Santa Ynez, CA 93460

(800) 248-6274

Graton CasinoGraton 3,000 Slot Machines

Live Poker Room

Table Games

Restaurants

Live entertainment

Spa

630 Park Court, Rohnert Park, CA 94928

(707) 588-7100

Morongo CasinoMorongo 2,700 Slot Machines

74 table games

13 table poker rooms

Bingo hall

Restaurants

Spa

Hotel

Live entertainment

49500 Seminole Drive

Cabazon, CA 92230

(951) 849-3080

San Manuel Indian CasinoSan Manuel 3,600 Slot Machines

100+ table games

Hotel

Restaurants

Live entertainment

777 San Manuel Boulevard

Highland, CA 92346

800-359-2464

 

Online Gambling in California

Many states are currently looking into passing laws to officially allow gambling online. With California’s large population, this would probably be a success. However, for any law like this to be allowed, it would likely need the backing of the Native American casinos. At this time, no such law has been passed. This means there are no laws permitting online poker, or playing blackjack online.

Gambling Laws In California

It is likely that casino laws will be officially allowing casino sites in CA. The land-based casinos in California will need to be given some incentive to support the bill, but California cannot afford to ignore this.

Until online gambling in California is officially legalized, players are still free to enjoy an online gaming casino site that accepts players.

Best Casinos In California Gambling Resources

Casinos can trace its roots back to 1933. This was when betting on horse racing was legalized for the first time, thanks to a constitutional amendment. However, this change in the law led to a change in the public’s opinion as well. Consequently, there was an increase in the number of horse racing tracks.

While horse racing gained popularity in the 1930s, gambling in California at actual casinos only started to take off in 2000. It was only then that the State started to allow Native American tribes to run casinos legally.

How to Bet on Football

More information relating to gambling in California can be found at the following websites:

California Office of Problem Gambling

While many people gamble without issue, some develop an addiction and become problem gamblers. The California Office of Problem Gambling offers people who suffer from gambling problems can get information and assistance.

California CPG

The California CPG, Council on Problem Gambling, aims to provide help to people who are addicted to gambling, as well as their families. This is a non-profit organization that offers information on how to identify problem gamblers.

California Casinos FAQs

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