Review of Sycuan Casino Resort (San Diego, CA): A Native American owned, brand new casino resort and our pros and cons

Sycuan Casino Resort (hotel lobby)

During the planning phase of my wife and myself’s cross country road trip going from North Carolina to California, one of the stops we added to our itinerary was Los Angeles.  My wife’s friend from college lives there, and it made sense to stop by to say hello.

It was while we were planning that trip to Los Angeles that we thought of spending 2 days nearby, in San Diego.  I found out MyVegas Rewards has in its list of companies Sycuan Casino Resort, offering 2 free nights during the midweek.

I researched the distance from Sycuan Casino Resort to Los Angeles, and it was definitely a doable distance at around 2 hours.  I went ahead and reserved the 2 free nights from 1/15 - 1/17, thrilled that we got free stays using MyVegas Rewards! ***Click here if you’re interested in reading about MyVegas Rewards.  

Long story short, we didn’t get to visit Los Angeles this time around.  We had spent 4 days in bustling Las Vegas just prior to going there, and we didn’t want to risk transmitting Covid-19 to our friends, especially to our friend’s young son.  

We ended up staying at Avi Resort in Laughlin Nevada instead of at our friend’s place, and we were headed for Sycuan Casino Resort after visiting Joshua Tree National Park on the afternoon of January 15, 2023.

We left Joshua Tree National Park at around 3 o’clock, turned left to get on CA-62 headed west.  We could start to see the slowly but surely setting sun, hidden by the occasional clouds.  We had a 3 hour drive to Sycuan Casino Resort, and we definitely wanted to arrive there before the sun sets completely.  

We drove roughly 45 minutes or so when we got on the I-10 going west.  As soon as we got on the I-10, we saw gigantic wind turbines numbering into the hundreds.  Most were turning effortlessly, while some were just standing there not turning at all.  They were all standing impossibly tall, set against a beautiful backdrop of verdant mountains.  It reminded me why California is a leader in green technology thanks to its geography.

We noticed rain starting to pelt our car’s windows right at that moment.  Traffic, even on a Sunday afternoon, was fairly busy, but then again, it is Southern California after all, known for its impossibly bad traffic, despite having super highways with 10 lanes on certain stretches of the highway.

Leaving that thought aside, we pushed on, jostled by never ending stream of cars cutting in and out of traffic and tailgating right up on my bumper.  We drove on, being ever more vigilant on the road, careful not to get into an accident.  We drove defensively for sure, not wanting to piss off speed demons and wanna be NASCAR drivers.

Rain got heavier and heavier the more west and south we went.  The verdant valleys and mountains along the way were incredibly beautiful thanks to the historic rainfall soaking the Southern California, a very much needed rain in that part of the country.  We got why Southern California is such a desirable area.

We inched closer to our destination despite the slow traffic and it wasn’t any better by the time we got within about 10 miles to Sycuan Casino Resort.  Rain, that had been steady, turned real heavy.  We had the windshield wipers working overtime to clear the rain from the windows.

There were pools of water gathering on the edges of the roads, and we were busy dodging those, unsure what lay underneath the unseeable, murky waters.  We crawled as we got near Sycuan Casino Resort, as the roads nearby were all country roads going up into the hills.

We didn’t see anything heading up there.  What we saw were just constant pounding of heavy raindrops against our windshield and the constant drone of wet tires as it tried desperately to not lose contact with wet roads…

Lucky for us, we arrived at the main gate to the resort after what seemed like an eternity.  We were finally greeted by welcoming bright, neon lights of the resort, appearing like a mirage, out of nowhere.  We drove slowly trying to discern where the main entrance to the resort was, and where the nearest parking garage was.

I parked in the lot behind the main entrance then walked inside (with my wife staying with the car) to try to figure out where everything was.  I headed to the Rewards desk first to inquire about my free hotel nights using MyVegas Rewards as well as my $15 free play.

The staff member, a friendly and wise Asian lady helped me with both of them without a fuss, and I headed back to our car in the pouring rain.  We drove to the parking garage we had just passed on our way in, as I was told that was the nearest parking for the hotel lobby.

We went inside, found a spot, then headed to the hotel lobby.  I checked in, mentioning my MyVegas Rewards for 2 free hotel nights, and I got my keys to our room.  I had asked (nicely) while checking in, if we could get a high floor with a nice view, and he obliged!  It was a corner room with incredibly high ceilings with views of the valley.

We walked inside to our free room and was amazed by it!  Our “Signature Room” was new, modern with latest furnishings, with an awesome bathroom!  We couldn’t believe it!

Signature room, Sycuan Casino Resort, CA

Awesome shower and bathroom!

We thanked our lucky stars for the room and we thanked MyVegas Rewards.  We settled in for several minutes, then we headed downstairs to grab something to eat, as it was after 7 p.m.

We picked up a chicken sandwich, onion rings, and a soda at the Double Down Grill, then headed back upstairs to our room so we can eat and enjoy our meal in peace and quiet.  The food was good, but nothing to write home about.  It served its purpose of a satisfying meal at a decent price ($21).  Compared to many restaurants we had eaten at during our cross country trip, it was at least better than most…

We got a good night’s rest on the awesome and comfortable king sized bed, then woke up to plan our exploration of the resort.  Here are our observations and our pros and cons of Sycuan Casino Resort:

Pros

• New resort with modern architectural features and designs 

I found out the resort was built in 2019, making it practically brand spanking new.  Everything about the resort is new and appealing.  It uses modern design elements and the resort wouldn’t look out of place, even if it was placed smack dab in the middle of Las Vegas Strip.

The lobby area is absolutely stunning with seating areas near the lobby with casino area sprawled right in front.  The look is gorgeous, and it is on par with some of the best hotels we’ve visited including 5 Diamond rated hotels like Bellagio, the Venetian, and Aria.

There is plenty of places to walk around, especially near the lobby area and the restaurant area.  

Near the lobby/main entrance 

Loved artwork like this near the elevator 

• Beautiful hotel room

Our Signature Room was absolutely stunning.  For a low price of $0 for a two night stay, we consider ourselves really lucky to get a room this nice in San Diego.  

On the second day at the hotel, we got up and saw how beautiful the views outside were.  The hotel is surrounded on both sides by verdant mountains and valleys, reminding us of places like Italy’s Tuscany Region.

Verdant valley view, Sycuan Casino Resort 

We made coffees compliments of the hotel (has an in-room coffee machine for a change!) then sat on comfortable lounge chairs to see the outside.  It was one of those moments in life that we cherish, as they don’t come around everyday.  We looked out, contemplating what it would be like to live in San Diego, and sipped our aromatic coffees.

After a night’s sleep, we both agreed the hotel room is not a 4 Diamond rated hotel, but rather a 4 1/2 or even a 5 Diamond rated hotel.  It was that good and appealing.  If you were to say the room is actually a standard room at the Bellagio, we would’ve believed it.

A rainbow!

Comfortable lounge chairs put to good use!

• Nice collection of restaurants 

Besides the Double Down Grill just the previous night, we also got to try the excellent Pink Buddha, a Chinese restaurant.  The decor was new and beautiful, the menu was extensive, and most importantly, the foods tasted great!

The restaurant is an upscale fast casual concept, where you order the food/pay first, then the food is delivered to your table.  Service was good and foods arrived quickly.  We savored the delicious, huge bowl of hot & sour soup, while sipping our fragrant green teas.

Our main entrees came soon after that, and both our entrees were awesome.  Although a bit pricey at $54 for lunch for two with green teas, the food taste and quality were top notch.  The decor of the place added to the excellent dining experience as well.

Pink Buddha, Sycuan Casino Resort 

View from our table, Pink Buddha, Sycuan Casino Resort 

Besides these two restaurants, there are 6 other choices to satisfy any palate.  Had we had few more days at the resort, we have no doubt we would’ve tried at least half of the 8 restaurants at the resort.

• Huge casino with a separate, enclosed non-smoking section

I had a $15 in free play to play the slots, and I immediately checked out the non-smoking area.  Unlike most casinos where a non-smoking area is interspersed with smoking sections (which doesn’t help non smokers), Sycuan actually has a partitioned area with actual doors on each side to really make it a non-smoking area.

We definitely smelled less smoke than at most casinos.  Kudos to Sycuan for that!  Why can’t other casinos do the same?!?

The casino has over 2400 slot machines and the layout of the machines really makes it appealing.  Having tall ceilings near the lobby area also makes it modern and less claustrophobic compared to many older casinos that are operating in many parts of the country.

• Awesome hotel front desk staff and Rewards desk staff

The staff were very accommodating, friendly, and helpful during my interactions.  The Rewards desk staff helped me redeem MyVegas Rewards for 2 nights free hotel stay and $15 in free play.  They could easily have been less than thrilled by the request, but she was super friendly and helpful.

The front desk staff member was also memorable as he was friendly and very accommodating.  It also helped that he got us an amazing room in the corner with great views.  

• Huge enclosed parking lot

We found the parking lot huge and found it easy enough.  The fact that it was an enclosed structure also helped us during our first night as it was pouring outside.

It was an easy walk to the hotel using an enclosed bridge/walkway from the parking lot.  The setup of the parking lot was smart and very intuitive.  

Cons

• Staff at Double Down Grill

I’m really nitpicking here as just about everything else was great.  Double Down Grill is a counter-style casual restaurant where you line up to order, then pick up the food when ready.

Because it was our first trip, we didn’t know how things worked, so we asked if we order first then pay at the counter or when picking up.  One of the staff member remarked condescendingly that of course you pay at the counter.  

We were tired from the drive all day from Laughlin (Nevada), with a stopover at Joshua Tree National Park, then finally at Sycuan Casino Resort.  We were in no mood to make a fuss about that that evening.

Again, no big deal, but if there’s one thing I can nitpick, it’d be that.  It wasn’t a pleasant experience but these days in the age of labor shortages, that’s sort of par for the course…At least the food was good and inexpensive.  I guess sometimes you get what you pay for…

In conclusion:

Sycuan Casino Resort was such an unexpected pleasure of a place that we are still talking about it after our trip was completed!  It feels like we won a trip on a game show where the prize is a 2 night stay at the fantastic resort and a $15 free play at the slots!

We couldn’t believe our luck thanks to MyVegas Rewards.  Had I known about it sooner, I’d have used it on our previous trip to Las Vegas area and Southern California!

We highly recommend Sycuan Casino Resort when planning a trip to Southern California.  It is a brand new, beautiful and modern resort with so many things to do.  Because of the heavy rain the entire duration of our trip there, we stayed at the resort for two days, but we didn’t mind it.

We stayed in our hotel room, watched the rain fall and watched a rainbow!  When we got hungry, we went downstairs to try excellent dining options.  We also got to play slots little bit as well, even if we didn’t win.  That’s ok, as the value we got from the resort was much greater than what we “donated” to the casino.

You win some, you lose some…

Thank you for reading and keep up with us on our continuing journey across the American West!  

Jake

Wandering Money Pig 

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