A casino is a gambling establishment. Some casinos are located in luxury hotels or resorts, while others stand alone. They are often a major tourist attraction and feature many gaming tables and slot machines. Some have live entertainment. They may also have restaurants, bars and other amenities. Casinos have a reputation for being the place where people can cheat or steal to win, so they devote a large amount of time, effort and money to security.
Most modern casinos have a physical security force that patrols the floor and responds to calls for assistance or reports of suspicious or definite criminal activity. They have a specialized surveillance department that uses closed circuit television and other electronic devices to monitor the activities of patrons at tables and slot machines. Some casinos have catwalks in the ceiling that allow security personnel to look down on players through one-way glass while they play.
Some casino games have very specific rules that must be followed, such as how cards are dealt and placed in the deck, or how dice are rolled and tossed. Security staff watch these rules closely and quickly detect any deviations from them, such as a dealer “palming” (holding the cards close to his chest while dealing them), marked dice or rigged slot machines.
There are many types of casino games, and some states or countries have laws that regulate them. For example, in the United States, some casinos were built on Indian reservations, which are exempt from state anti-gambling statutes.