What is a Casino?

A casino is a gambling establishment that offers various games of chance. While some casinos may have a slight element of skill (like poker), most are pure chance. Casinos have long been a popular attraction for people seeking to test their luck and perhaps strike it rich.

While lighted fountains, shopping centers, elaborate hotels and even musical shows draw in the crowds, casinos would not exist without the billions of dollars in profits generated by gambling. Slot machines, black jack, roulette, craps, baccarat and other casino games provide the thrill that makes people keep coming back for more.

Casinos make money by taking a small percentage of every bet made by a patron. This can be as low as two percent, but it adds up over the millions of bets placed each year and is enough to fund such extravagant amenities as lighted fountains, towers and replicas of famous landmarks and pyramids.

Most casinos are very secure and employ a number of measures to prevent cheating or fraud. Dealers are heavily focused on their own game and can quickly spot blatant attempts at cheating such as palming, marking or switching cards and dice. Pit bosses and table managers have a broader view of the games, and can also spot betting patterns that might signal cheating. Casinos have high tech “eye-in-the-sky” surveillance systems that allow security workers to watch the action at each table and even in each window and doorway through one way glass.