A casino is a building or room where gambling activities take place. It has more recently come to mean a large entertainment complex that includes restaurants, free drinks and stage shows, but even more modest places that provide games of chance would technically qualify as casinos.
Casinos have some very specific goals when it comes to keeping their patrons happy and engaged in gambling activities. They want them to feel like they’re at a special destination that is different from any other casino. One way they achieve this is with the use of a lot of bright and sometimes gaudy floor and wall coverings that are designed to be stimulating. Another way is by using lighting to give the casino an opulent feeling. Casinos are also designed to minimize the awareness of time. That is why most of them don’t have clocks on the walls.
In addition to attracting patrons with lavish accommodations, restaurants and entertainment options, casino designers also focus on security. Because of the high amounts of money that are handled within a casino, both patrons and staff may be tempted to cheat or steal. To prevent these actions, casinos invest a great deal of money in security measures.
In 2008, 24% of Americans reported having visited a casino. The most popular casino was in Las Vegas, followed by Atlantic City and Chicago. Some of the most extravagantly outfitted casinos are in places that don’t necessarily have the highest number of people who visit them, such as the elegant spa town of Baden-Baden, which first became a playground for European royalty and aristocracy more than 150 years ago. The casino there features baroque flourishes and a red-and-gold poker room that Marlene Dietrich once called the most beautiful in the world.