Rendezvous Casino Brighton Reviewed for 2024

Ah, Brighton. Famous, of course, for its welcoming community, happy diversity, beautiful beach and electric nightlife, it’s the perfect place to have a flutter. 

Despite its ‘small city’ status, Brighton is home to a few different casinos, which include offers from Genting, Grosvenor and, of course, the star of this review, Rendezvous Casino. 

With plans to visit all three casinos during my visit to what is often referred to as the ‘Blackpool of the South’, I was looking forward to pitting them against one another and seeing which one I thought offered the best experience overall.

I was also aware that this place claims to offer a ‘Las Vegas-like’ experience so, with this in mind, lets jump straight into my experience at the Rendezvous Casino.

Located within the iconic Brighton Marina, the Rendezvous Casino opened its doors back in 2002 and quickly became a hot spot within the city. 

Brighton Marina has experienced substantial change since it was opened by the late Queen Elizabeth II all the way back in 1979. The complex now sports a bowling alley, cinema, an amusement centre, various eateries, and a few bars, so it’s easy to make a day, or even a weekend, out of a visit here.

The casino boasts a spot directly on the seafront. The exterior is nothing special really and to be honest, you probably wouldn’t even know it was a casino at all just by glancing at it. 

The interior is mainly quite modern, though without being pretentious. I’m unaware of any recent refurbishments or any planned refurbishments but the place seems to be holding up quite well overall. All of the furniture, tables and machines looked to be in good nick and the staff did a good job of keeping things clean.

Location

Rendezvous Casino is located in Marina Square, just slightly to the east of Brighton’s city centre.

Thanks to its popular location, there are different options when it comes to getting there.

By Car: Thanks to the free parking options in Brighton Marina, arriving by car is no problem at all. You’ll find a 

Simply enter BN2 5UT into your sat nav and you’ll be taken directly to the casino.

By Train: The casino is located just over ten minutes away by car from Brighton Train Station, which has links to the rest of the country, so taking a cab would probably be your best bet. 

Walking from the station to the casino would take you around an hour, though the walk does take you through the vibrant city centre and then onto the seafront so it would be scenic at least.

By Bus: For more localised travel around Brighton, the services 7, 21, 21B, 25C, 47, 52 and 57 all provide access to Brighton Marina.

The Rendezvous Casino is split over two floors and provides punters with 8,000 square footage of gaming space. While it may not be the biggest venue in the world, it certainly felt spacious enough.

What struck me immediately, probably more so due to the fact that I visited on the weekend, is that the bottom floor has much more of a casual and lively feel to it. The tables are predominantly low stake and crowds to tend to gather around which creates a bit more of a party atmosphere.

Ultimately, I got the feeling that if you’re after more of a high stakes gambling experience, going upstairs is your best bet. Whether this divide would exist on a weekday, I cannot say, but certainly on the busier days.

Jumping into what games are on offer, you’ll find all the standard offerings, including American roulette, blackjack, and three card poker alongside 30 electronic roulette terminals and 20 slot machines.

The casino was very busy when I visited so I chose to stay away from the table games. But all of the tables were manned and the atmosphere was great.

I did spend a half hour or so playing a few different slots which turned out to be a great decision – what can I say, it was my lucky day.

Turning to poker, there is a dedicated poker room here which is open from Wednesday to Sunday from 6:30pm for cash games. Tournaments are hosted Wednesday to Friday from 7:30pm and Saturday to Sunday from 5pm.

I spent a solid hour on one of the poker tables and I had a good time. The dealer was professional and friendly and the floor staff were available for taking drink orders so you could order drinks directly to your table, so no complaints from me here. 

I thought the regularity of the tournaments was pretty impressive here actually as it’s not uncommon for me to find casinos that either don’t offer tournaments at all or only offer them, say, once a week.

While there is no hotel attached directly to the casino, Brighton Marina is home to the vibrant Malmaison hotel which is just a minute’s walk away. This would be my recommendation of where to stay if you’re planning on making a night of it as that’s exactly what I did.

The hotel is part of the Malmaison chain which operates 16 hotels throughout the UK and boasts a ‘boutique’ feel, with contemporary neon lighting and funky wallpaper. Deluxe sea-view rooms are available and guests can dine in the Bar and Grill restaurant which offers fantastic views over the seafront. 

Conveniently, there is a large multi-storey car park which provides parking for up to a whopping 1500 cars. The parking is complimentary for guests at the hotel which is another bonus.

There are a number of accessible rooms available here, but you will have to call up to book one of these as you’ll be required to speak to one of the team so they can allocate the most suitable room for you.

If you’re looking for something a little more private, I’d recommend checking out The Britania Suite which is a holiday apartment rental located at the other side of the marina. 

The Rendezvous Casino is open seven days a week, from 10am – 4am Sunday to Thursday and from 10am – 6am on Friday and Saturday.

I found the staff to be one of the highlights of this casino. It was service with a smile from the moment I entered which I did appreciate considering just how busy it was.

Food and Drink

Land based gambling venues need to give themselves an edge over the best online casinos, and to do this Rendezvous claims to be serious about food. That is always an encouraging sign in my book as it’s something that can sometimes be overlooked. 

As something of a foodie, I couldn’t resist popping in to put their claim to the test and it’s fair to say that I wasn’t disappointed.

As you’d expect from a seafront restaurant, there are seafood dishes in abundance here. From smoked salmon to tuna carpaccio, if seafood is your thing, the Waterside Restaurant has got you covered.

If seafood isn’t your go-to, don’t worry, there’s plenty of other things to choose from too. I decided to go for the glazed pork belly and it really was fantastic. Faultless even. 

And though I’m more of a traditionalist when it comes to matters of décor, I can absolutely appreciate contemporary when it’s done well and I feel like it is done well here. Dark wood tones are complimented by white furniture and the view across the gaming floor is a nice touch which adds to the atmosphere of the place. 

The Waterside Bar is equally as stylish and is celebrated for its cocktails. I took the liberty of trying a couple out and they were great. There’s also a range of premium beer, wine and spirits to choose from too.

Considering I visited on a sunny Saturday afternoon, the bar was extremely busy and I felt as though a couple more staff members would have been beneficial. But I enjoyed my time there nonetheless. 

Entertainment

There were no live shows or anything like that on during my visit which is a shame but after a quick research and a few conversations with the staff and some locals, I found that live music and the like is a regular offering here.

Aside from this, there are various screens dotted around the place which show all the major sporting events, so you can keep tabs on your team during your visit.

Smoking: As is to be expected, neither smoking nor vaping is permitted anywhere inside the building. However, there is a dedicated smoking area for those partial to a cigarette break.

Dress Code: There’s no formal dress code in place here, so just keep it smart/casual and you’ll be fine.

The casino is fully accessible to wheelchair users, including the entirety of each floor as well as all of the other areas like the restaurant and bar.

There is also access to dedicated disabled toilets.

Finding land-based casinos with decent bonuses and promotions can be tricky. But luckily, Rendezvous Casino usually has something up for grabs.

All offers are, of course, subject to change but some examples of the things available at this casino include a hybrid online/in-person welcome promotion which offers 500 free spins to be used at MetGaming.com as well as a £20 free play voucher which can then be used in the Rendezvous Casino.

As part of the Metropolitan Gaming group, the Rendezvous Casino is a part of the Met Card scheme. 

The Met Card is a scheme which compromises of four loyalty levels and allows you to earn Met Points every time you visit a participating casino. Registration is free and once you’re signed up you can begin collecting points on every transaction you make, including on games, food and drink.

What’s more, you’ll also earn 10% off food and drink too, so it’s probably worth signing up to even if you’re only planning the one visit.

Out of the three main casinos in Brighton, I was most looking forward to visiting Rendezvous as I’d heard good things about it and, ultimately, I wasn’t disappointed.

One thing to note is the atmosphere. I visited on a hot Saturday afternoon so it’s not like I was expecting the atmosphere to be flat, but it definitely exceeded my expectations in this regard. Punters and staff alike were smiling, chatting, and just generally having a great time.

I probably spent around two hours or so on the casino floor and I thoroughly enjoyed myself, even though it must have been close to full capacity.

My visit to the restaurant was a definite highlight. The food and drinks alike were fantastic and I’d recommend checking it out if you do visit the casino. 

At the beginning of this review, I revealed my intention to visit the main casino offerings in Brighton, which are the Genting, Grosvenor and Rendezvous casinos, to compare their strengths and weaknesses and see which one I preferred overall.

In my opinion, Rendezvous Casino probably offers the best experience overall. It offers a bit of everything and it does it well. I wouldn’t quite go as far as to say that it delivers on a ‘Vegas-like’ experience, though, so perhaps they were overreaching a little here.

Definitely one for casino-goers of all experience levels, I liked the fact that there were lower-stakes tables separate from high-steaks tables. Like I mentioned before, the atmosphere around the lower-stakes tables was much livelier and I’d recommend this area for the more casual gambler.

All things considered, I’d definitely return to the Rendezvous Casino should I find myself in the area again and, as such, I’d say it’s totally worth a visit.