When Durango Resort and Casino (a local’s casino) opened last year, I wondered: would you (as a tourist) leave the strip or downtown tourist corridor to check it out? This is a burning question in my mind after visiting the beautiful new casino down the street from me.

When Fontainebleau opened, it got most of the attention from tourists who don’t leave the Vegas Strip or downtown Las Vegas often. Once I could afford the hotel rooms on the Vegas Strip, I was also someone who didn’t leave the touristy areas much so there’s no judgment here. 

Visiting casinos outside of the area you’re staying in is not always worth the time. Durango is a gorgeous casino. It’s also a 15-20 minute drive from Mandalay Bay. Altogether a trip will take a few hours with a meal and gambling. That’s a large chunk of time from a two or three-day trip.

Now that I live in Las Vegas I’m much more aware of the good, bad, and ugly of locals casinos. I live in a great part of town where I can drive to several casinos in 10-15 minutes.

Unless I’m working, meeting someone, or staying at a property on the Vegas Strip or downtown Las Vegas I tend to stay away from these parts of town. This is just a preference of not wanting to deal with tourists and extra traffic from working locals if I don’t have to. Also, I’m lazy.

Drop your thoughts below or on the social media site or app you’re reading this. Let’s take a look at some of my favorite things at Durango.

Durango Casino Favorites

Overall, I’m impressed with Durango. It’s a beautiful property and already one of the best-looking off-strip casinos. I’ll get into whether or not it’s a “luxury” property in a bit.

It should come as no surprise that my favorite part of the casino is the indoor-outdoor sportsbook and restaurant called The George. You can see a long Twitter X thread of pictures here. The drone flythrough below is pretty sweet.

Game day game changer. pic.twitter.com/FOLHLdWGg2

— Durango Casino & Resort (@durangoresortlv) December 6, 2023

The sportsbook isn’t as large as Circa but the combination of the three spaces could make this a destination sportsbook for locals and tourists looking for a change of pace. I’ve already heard from a handful of people who plan on visiting later this month just to see the sportsbook.

For the sake of not repeating myself, you can read about the sportsbook and a few other places at Durango here.

There are a variety of restaurants at Durango ranging from the affordable food hall options to the fine dining steakhouse. We didn’t sample the food at all restaurants during my tour but I did take home a delicious and surprisingly filling cookie from Summer House.

This is a full-service restaurant that also has a coffee and pastry counter. They serve La Colombe coffee, which is delicious and not available in most Las Vegas casinos.

Big surprise that this is my first stop @durangoresortlv pic.twitter.com/gKTHlbBEKs

— Marc (@MeltzVegas) December 6, 2023

It should be no surprise that I stopped at Vesta Coffee on my first visit to Durango as a customer. The coffee is as good as the non-casino locations. I wanted to work by the Vesta location in the hotel lobby area but all the seats were full. Ironically, the food hall was packed but I was early enough to grab a seat.

Restaurants I want to try include Nicco’s Steakhouse, Irv’s, Fiorella, and The George. I’ll probably wait until people return to work after the holidays. The casino was a madhouse when I visited and I hate crowds. The line for Irv’s at 12:30 pm was dumb.

The only negative I’ve found at the property so far is that the slot and video poker machines are packed tight. This could also just be bothersome when it’s super busy like opening week. 

The video poker options aren’t great but they’re not bad according to vpFREE.

Table games don’t have the same problem with overcrowding. There’s ample space in this area. When I visited, the lowest minimum bets were $15 for 3/2 blackjack and $25 for Face Up Pai Gow. 

Durango Is Beautiful But Not Quite Luxury

Station Casinos is touting Durango as “next-generation luxury” and “affordable luxury.” SLS considered itself “affordable luxury” and proceeded to use Ikea furniture throughout the property. Durango is better than that.

I’d call Durango “off-strip luxury.” It’s a beautiful property that is absolutely a step above much of the local competition.

However, Durango is not on the same level of luxury as Wynn, The Venetian, Bellagio, etc. It’s not even on par with Red Rock, Green Valley Ranch, or M Resort because one luxury amenity isn’t available. 

There’s no spa yet at Durango. If Station Casinos adds another hotel tower, it will include a spa. That could take this property to another level. Many high-end travelers won’t visit a casino without a salon, spa, etc.

My favorite parts ohe @durangoresortlv hotel room are the yuuuuuuuuuuge shower and free hot coffee. Go figure. Minibar prices aren’t too bad. pic.twitter.com/25PAuLAonm

— Marc (@MeltzVegas) December 5, 2023

The hotel rooms are fine. They’re well designed and functional but outside of the huge shower, they’re unspectacular. This is probably just personal taste. You can see the rooms here.  

Even though there are great coffee options on the casino floor, Durango rooms have complimentary Nespresso pods. As you’d imagine, mini bar prices aren’t as bad as the Vegas Strip. They’re just inexpensive enough to question whether you want to walk the 100-120 steps to the gift shop to save a couple of dollars.