Whether you love to hit the slots, put on your best poker face or throw dice, a casino is the place to indulge your gambling itch. But there’s a lot more to casinos than just gambling. Most offer plenty of great food and tasty sips, plus other fun non-gambling activities to make your casino experience complete.
Casinos come in many sizes, from massive Las Vegas resorts to small card rooms. There are also floating casinos, operating on boats and barges on waterways across the country, and racinos, which bring gambling to racetracks. In addition, state and local governments often reap profits from the casino industry through taxes and fees.
Gambling laws vary by state and even by type of gambling. In general, however, the minimum age for casino gamblers is 21. Some states also require a valid photo ID to enter the premises.
With large amounts of cash handled within the casino, both patrons and staff may be tempted to cheat or steal, either in collusion or independently. To combat this, most casinos have numerous security measures in place. These can include a network of security cameras, a team of security guards and other high-tech surveillance systems that can be aimed at specific tables or slot machines at will.
Some casinos use bright and sometimes gaudy floor and wall coverings to create a lively and cheerful atmosphere that can distract players from their losses. Some even don’t have clocks on their walls, because they figure that people distracted by their winnings will forget how much time has passed.