What Is a Casino?

A casino is a gambling establishment where punters can spend time playing games of chance for a fee. They also have the opportunity to win real money from these games. The best casinos feature opulent décor and overflowing bars.

The first casinos were often mafia-owned, but federal crackdowns and the mob’s waning power saw them replaced by real estate investors and hotel chains with deep pockets. Today, casinos bring in billions of dollars each year for the owners and operators and, in some cases, state and local governments that reap taxes and fees from gamblers.

Modern casinos come in all shapes and sizes, from massive resorts to small card rooms. Some are found on cruise ships and riverboats, and there are even racinos in some states that allow casinos to operate slot machines at racetracks.

A casino’s security starts on the floor, where workers watch for blatant cheating. Dealers can spot a crooked shuffle or marked dice, and table managers look for patterns in betting to see if patrons are stealing from one another. Elaborate surveillance systems offer a high-tech “eye in the sky” that can focus on specific suspicious patrons and adjust to different cameras as needed. Then there are the hidden cameras in the ceiling that watch every table, change window and doorway. And finally, there are the bank of monitors in a separate room that control slot machine payouts. That’s why you’ll rarely find a clock on the house floor; the casinos want players to lose track of time, so they can keep gambling as long as possible.