A casino, also known as a gambling hall, is a facility that houses various types of gambling activities. These include casino games such as blackjack, roulette, and craps; and poker. Casinos can be found in large resorts and major cities, as well as in some rural areas. They can offer a variety of amenities to attract customers, including restaurants, free drinks, stage shows, and dramatic scenery. Some casinos even offer hotel rooms and other recreational facilities.
Casinos are heavily regulated, both to ensure the integrity of the games and protect their patrons from crime. Security measures start on the casino floor, where surveillance personnel watch every table, change window, and doorway with cameras that can be adjusted to focus on suspicious patrons. The cameras can also record video, so if a criminal act or cheating is detected after the fact, the casino has a valuable piece of evidence to use in pursuing the culprit.
In addition to cameras, casinos employ a variety of other security methods. For example, some casinos have catwalks on the ceiling that allow surveillance personnel to look down through one-way glass on the activities of players at table games and slot machines. Casinos also use more traditional security measures, such as requiring that players keep their cards visible at all times.
In modern times, many casinos are owned by business entities rather than individuals, and they generate billions in annual revenues for these businesses, investors, and Native American tribes. Successful casinos also contribute to the economies of their host cities and states.