A casino is a building that houses gambling activities. Casinos often have lavish ambiance and provide free drinks and stage shows to attract gamblers. A more sophisticated casino may feature high-stakes gambling games such as baccarat and blackjack, while simpler casinos concentrate on table game like keno and roulette. In some places, a casino is also a restaurant or a hotel.

Casinos have security measures in place to deter cheating and theft by patrons and staff. Typical security measures include cameras located throughout the casino and a separate room filled with banks of security monitors that can be adjusted to focus on suspicious activities. Casinos also use rules and conduct to prevent fraud and theft. For example, players at card games must keep their cards visible at all times.

In the United States, the largest concentration of casinos is in Las Vegas, Nevada. However, many cities and towns around the country have their own casinos. The Bellagio is perhaps the best known casino in the world, famous for its dancing fountains and luxurious accommodations, and made even more popular by its appearance in the film Ocean’s 11.

Most casinos are open to adults over the age of twenty-one. According to a 2005 study by Roper Reports GfK NOP and the U.S. Gaming Panel by TNS, the average casino patron is a forty-six-year-old woman from an upper-middle class household with above-average income. Increasingly, older parents with children in college are making weekend trips to local casinos to indulge their gambling interests.