Bingo will return to Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio

Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio is bringing back bingo — which had been on pause since March because of the novel coronavirus pandemic — in a limited capacity and with modifications starting Friday, Oct. 23, a casino spokesman said.

There will be nightly sessions at 6:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday as well as an afternoon session at 2 p.m. Sunday, said Michael Felci, public relations manager for the casino.

He said the bingo area will be limited to 50% capacity, people will need to wear face coverings and must social distance while playing the bingo games. Hand sanitizer will be available at each of the bingo stations.

He said the bingo area will undergo deep cleaning before and after each session and that will involve using a fogging system to disseminate cleaning chemicals.

A snack bar that had been open in the bingo space pre-pandemic will remain closed for now, Felci said.

“People can go to other spaces within the property for food and drinks and bring it with them, but we’re going to keep the snack bar itself at bingo closed,” he said.

Fantasy Springs is one of the first tribally-owned casino properties in Southern California to bring back bingo.

Sycuan Casino Resort in San Diego County brought back the game in late August with similar measures, including sanitizing between sessions, spreading players out and limiting capacity to make sure that there was a safe distance between players.

Pechanga Resort Casino near Temecula lists its bingo facility as temporarily closed on its website.

Over the summer, Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa replaced its bingo space at the original Casino Morongo property with additional slot machines.  Officials were exploring bringing bingo back in another location, a representative for the casino said in July, but as of yet Morongo has not announced the return of the game.