Issue link: http://globelitetravelmarketing.uberflip.com/i/782043
Resort Southern California in Valley Center; Pala Casino Spa Resort in Pala; Barona Resort & Casino in Lakeside; and Pechanga Resort & Casino in Temecula. All of these properties boast Vegas-style hotels with eateries, shopping and spas. In 2014, after a $160-million renovation, Harrah's opened a new 403-room hotel tower and a pool deck that features a lazy river and weekend parties with live deejays. Closer to Los Angeles, the name of the game is card rooms. Two facilities are worth visiting for their grandeur alone: the Com- merce Casino (Commerce) and the Bicycle Club (Bell Gardens). Both venues have expansive poker rooms and host some of the most popular tournaments in the area. The Desert Package deals abound for stay-and-play vacations at casino resorts in and around the Coachella Valley and Palm Springs. At Morongo Casino Resort & Spa in Cabazon, for instance, $199 per night gets guests a room plus a $30 casino credit and a $100 credit at one of the on-site restaurants. Similar deals are available at the Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa (Rancho Mirage). Most area casinos have their own golf courses, but locals rave about Eagle Falls, the course at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio. The 18-hole course was designed by architect Clive Clark. Lake Tahoe Okay, okay, so the casinos that sidle up to Lake Tahoe are on the Nevada side of the state line. Still, they're close enough to most other destinations in California that they deserve a mention here. Excluding those in Reno, the most acces- sible venues are located in South Lake Tahoe. Here, the Montbleu Resort, Casino & Spa (formerly a Caesars property) is by far the swankiest, with ultra-modern lounges and a steakhouse that makes Ruth's Chris seem like McDonald's. The Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Lake Tahoe, with 500 hotel rooms and a 25,000-square-foot casino, opened in 2015 in the old Horizon Casino Resort space located down the street. Of course the best thing about casinos at Lake Tahoe is that because they're in Nevada, they play by Nevada rules (see sidebar). Since sports books and dice games are illegal in the state of California, this means Tahoe is the spot to place those kinds of bets. Big spenders, consider yourselves warned. And good luck. 60 2 0 1 7 T R A V E L G U I D E T O C A L I F O R N I A PECHANGA CASINO; BYRON W.MOORE/SHUTTERSTOCK CASINOS PECHANGA CASINO, top; Morongo Casino Resort & Spa in Cabazon, above.