- Gambling Destinations Around The World Europe
- Gambling Destinations Around The World Trip
- Gambling Destinations Around The World Florida
- Gambling Spots Around The World
In 2015, Atlantic City was named the best gambling destination in the world, beating the big guns of Vegas and Monte Carlo. The resort city, located on the Atlantic coast boasts numerous casinos, and offers plenty of evening entertainment and fine dining to keep you amused when you’re taking a break from betting. Gambling is an industry that has evolved to encompass many different realms. Nowadays, there are people who visit various destinations around the world just to explore their gambling passion. The development of the gambling industry has indeed heralded a new era.
Gambling is a pastime that people have enjoyed for centuries. However, in recent decades, as the popularity of gambling has grown, many casinos and gambling locations have tightened up rules in order to make the games safer and more fun.
If you live in a place where gambling is illegal or if your home is nowhere close to a casino, travel might be your only chance to bet some money.
Vacations are enjoyable no matter where you go, so it might be worth exploring different locations around the world where you can gamble, relax, and enjoy delicious meals.
Especially for families with children or if not everyone is of gambling age, it is essential to find places that appeal to all ages.
World travelers, or those who haven’t left their home country, might each enjoy a trip to one of these eight exciting gambling destinations.
1. Singapore
The Republic of Singapore may be home to only a few casinos, but gambling is a massive part of the city-state.
A few years ago the government lifted a statewide ban on casinos, making it a place tourists are itching to visit. There is also a Singaporean lottery, known as the Singapore Pools. It is one of the most popular methods that residents choose to gamble.
Residents of Singapore make up the majority of gamblers in casinos, but tourists are now realizing just how much gambling the small city-state has to offer.
Marina Bay is the largest gambling destination in Singapore with six gambling locations and a wide variety of casino games. Visitors can also enjoy many fancy shops where they can buy designer brands and stay in style. Great guide to Singapore gambling scene here.
The gambling industry is rapidly increasing in Singapore, making it a place for both Singaporeans and tourists to enjoy.
2. The Bahamas
The Bahamas might not be the first location that comes to mind when you are ready to gamble, but it houses sites for gamblers of all interests to enjoy.
Most of the millions of visitors are attracted to the sunny weather and Carribean waters. With so many tourists each year, gambling has become a great source of revenue.
Tourists are the only legal source of gambling revenue in the Bahamas.
Gambling is entirely illegal for its permanent residents, so all casinos in the Bahamas are built with the enjoyment of foreigners in mind.
Online gambling is also illegal in the Bahamas, but some offshore accounts do accept its residents.
While Bahamians might have to search for the perfect online casino, tourists can take a quick stop to one of its elaborate resorts.
3. Australia
Gambling is a multi-billion dollar industry in Australia; its residents spend much of their leisure time in casinos and sports betting.
There are over 20 full casinos across Australia for visitors and residents to enjoy. There are also some smaller gambling sites with slot machines and video poker.
Australians love to play the lottery even more than they enjoy playing the slots. Sports betting is allowed both on land and online in the country.
A trip to Australia will likely involve a stop at a greyhound race, which is a vast form of betting entertainment.
Vacationing in the Land Down Under is a great way to get in a little gambling. And the best thing? Gamlbing age in Australia is only 18.
4. Las Vegas, United States
Las Vegas is the hottest gambling spot in the US and one of the biggest in the world. Grandiose hotel-casinos seem to touch the sky while lights illuminate the famous Strip.
Professional gamblers play at the high stakes tables while recreational players enjoy slots and lower stakes table games.
According to Lucian Marinescu at Online Casino Gems, Vegas is about a lot more than just gambling. “When I tell my friends that Vegas is a family destination, I can see the disbelief in their eyes. Whereas Vegas started as the gambling capital of the world, today you can do so much more. From 3 star Michelin restaurants to immersive Virtual Reality experiences, stunning shows (and not just Cirque du Soleil!), there’s something great in Vegas for everyone.”
There are also options for the non-gambling crowd. Shows and lavish dining options, boutique shopping, and great nightlife are all a part of the Las Vegas lifestyle. Not to mention the fact that Vegas is home to some of the greatest casinos in the world.
You can see famous sights from around the world all in one city and explore the many gambling options while you’re at it.
5. London, England
London is home to 29 casinos and nearly 700 casino games for the pleasure of tourists. They boast poker and blackjack tables along with slots and other exciting forms of betting.
Although England does not typically offer hotel-casino combinations, casinos do offer memberships for short periods so you can earn bonuses during your trip.
After a long day of walking from tourist attraction to tourist attraction, you can take a load off by playing a few fun slots.
Spring and summer are the best times of the year to take a trip to this historic city. The weather is the best at that time, and most locals are also on vacation!
6. Macau, China
The casinos in Macau have recently exceeded the yearly number of gamblers and revenue that Las Vegas attracts.
Casinos initially were built in the city to draw in wealthier crowds in an attempt to clean up the streets. High rollers boosted the gambling economy.
Now, there are Vegas-style casinos in Macau that have surpassed their American counterparts. They attract more than just wealthy crowds.
Tourists and locals alike enjoy the slots and table games. Macao is still improving the live shows that offered, but gambling is already a huge attraction.
7. Sun City, South Africa
If you have ever wanted to take a trip to Africa, Sun City in South Africa might be the place to start.
The Sun City resort and casino contains card tables, slot machines, and roulette for visitors to enjoy. There are multiple options of casinos on the property. Some allow smoking and other nonsmoking to cater to everyone’s needs.
There are games for every player, not just recreational players or professionals, and many non-gambling activities.
8. Atlantic City, United States
Atlantic City, New Jersey is the Las Vegas of the east coast. It is the only location in the state where casino gambling is allowed.
Furthermore, all online casinos in New Jersey are required to have an office located in Atlantic City, making online gambling legal all over the state.
There is so much to do during a trip to AC in addition to gambling. Enjoy delicious meals, spend time shopping, or join the audience of a spectacular show. The booming gambling industry provides much of the money for everything AC offers.
There are also beaches to relax on just a short walk from some of the hotel-casinos. Get some sun and play some games to make the most out of Atlantic City.
No matter what type of gambling you enjoy, there are so many locations around the world to visit. Enjoy the elaborate sights and the new surroundings of an exciting place and maybe try your chances at a gambling table while you are at it.
- » History
The history of humanity is inextricably linked with the history of gambling, as it seems that no matter how far back in time you go there are signs that where groups of people gathered together gambling was sure to have been taking place. Now we are not going to attempt to track every single twist and turn in the evolution of gambling in this article, but what we are going to do is to pick out some of the most important dates to act as milestones on the road to today’s gambling experience.
The Earliest Evidence of Gambling
While it is almost certain that some forms of betting have been taking place since the dawn of human history, the earliest concrete evidence comes from Ancient China where tiles were unearthed which appeared to have been used for a rudimentary game of chance. The Chinese ‘Book of Songs’ makes reference to “the drawing of wood” which suggests that the tiles may have formed part of a lottery type game. We have evidence in the form of keno slips which were used in about 200bc as some sort of lottery to fund state works – possibly including construction of the Great Wall of China. Lotteries continued to be used for civic purposes throughout history – Harvard and Yale were both established using lottery funds – and continue to do so until the present day.
Dicing with the Law on the Streets of Ancient Rome
The Greek poet Sophocles claimed that dice were invented by a mythological hero during the siege of Troy, and while this may have somewhat dubious basis in fact, his writings around 500bc were the first mention of dice in Greek history. We know that dice existed far earlier than this, since a pair had been uncovered from an Egyptian tomb from 3000bc, but what is certain is that the Ancient Greeks and Romans loved to gamble on all manner of things, seemingly at any given opportunity. In fact all forms of gambling – including dice games – were forbidden within the ancient city of Rome and a penalty imposed on those caught which was worth four times the stake being bet. As a result of this, ingenious Roman citizens invented the first gambling chips, so if they were nabbed by the guards they could claim to be playing only for chips and not for real money. (Note that this ruse will not work if attempted at a Vegas casino).
Playing your Cards Right in China
Most scholars agree that the first playing cards appeared in China in the 9th century, although the exact rules of the games they were used for have been lost to history. Some suggest that the cards were both the game and the stake, like trading card games played by children today, while other sources believe the first packs of cards to have been paper forms of Chinese domino. Certainly the cards used at this time bore very little relation to the standard 52 card decks we know today.
Baccarat in Italy and France
The earliest game still played in casinos today is the two player card game of Baccarat, a version of which was first mentioned as long ago as the 1400s when it migrated from Italy to France. Despite its early genesis, it took hundreds of years and various evolutions to arrive at the game we know today. Although different incarnations of the game have come and gone, the standard version played in casinos all over the world came from Cuba via Britain to the US, with a few alterations to the rules along the way. Although baccarat is effectively more of a spectator sport than a game, it is a feature of just about every casino due to its popularity with high rolling gamblers.
Blackjack through the Ages
Some suggest that the earliest forms of blackjack came from a Spanish game called ventiuna (21) as this game appeared in a book written by the author of Don Quixote in 1601. Or was it the game of trente-un (31) from 1570? Or even quinze (15) from France decades earlier? As with all of these origin stories, the inventors of games of chance were rarely noted in the historical annals. The French game of vingt-et-un in the seventeenth century is certainly a direct forefather of the modern game, and this is the game that arrived in the US along with early settlers from France. The name ‘blackjack’ was an American innovation, and linked to special promotions in Nevada casinos in the 1930s. To attract extra customers, 10 to 1 odds were paid out if the player won with a black Jack of Clubs or Spades together with an Ace of Spades. The special odds didn’t last long, but the name is still with us today.
Gambling Destinations Around The World Europe
First Casinos in Italy
The earliest gambling houses which could reasonably be compared to casinos started to appear in the early 17th century in Italy. For example, in 1638, the Ridotto was established in Venice to provide a controlled gambling environment amidst the chaos of the annual carnival season. Casinos started to spring up all over continental Europe during the 19th century, while at the same time in the US much more informal gambling houses were in vogue. In fact steam boats taking prosperous farmers and traders up and down the Mississippi provided the venue for a lot of informal gambling stateside. Now when we think of casinos we tend to picture the Las Vegas Strip, which grew out of the ashes of the Depression in America.
The Little Wheel in Paris
Roulette as we know it today originated in the gaming houses of Paris, where players would have been familiar with the wheel we now refer to (ironically enough) as the American Roulette wheel. It took another 50 years until the ‘European’ version came along with just one green zero, and generations of roulette players can be grateful for that. During the course of the 19th century roulette grew in popularity, and when the famous Monte Carlo casino adopted the single zero form of the game this spread throughout Europe and most of the world, although the Americans stuck to the original double zero wheels.
Poker: Bust to Boom
It’s hard to pin down the precise origin of poker – as with a lot of the games mentioned here, poker seems to have grown organically over decades and possibly centuries from various different card games. Some have poker’s antecedents coming from seventeenth century Persia, while others say that the game we know today was inspired by a French game called Poque. What we do know for sure is that an English actor by the name of Joseph Crowell reported that a recognizable form of the game was being played in New Orleans in 1829, so that is as good a date as any for the birth of poker. The growth of the game’s popularity was fairly sluggish up until world poker tournaments started being played in Vegas in the 1970s. However poker really exploded with the advent of online poker and televised events allowing spectators to see the players’ hands. When amateur player Chris Moneymaker qualified for and won the 2003 world poker championship after qualifying through online play, it allowed everyone to picture themselves as online poker millionaires.
One Armed Bandits Appear in New York
The first gambling machine which resembled the slots we know today was one developed by Messrs Sittman and Pitt in New York, which used the 52 cards on drum reels to make a sort of poker game. Around the same time the Liberty Bell machine was invented by a Charles Fey in San Francisco. This machine proved much more practical in the sense that winnings could be precisely regulated, and marked the beginning of the real slot game revolution. The fact that some new video slot games still feature bell symbols dates back to this early invention. While early machines spewed out cigars and gum instead of money, the money dispensing versions soon became a staple in bars and casinos around the globe, and when the first video slot was invented in 1976 this paved the way for the online video slots which were to follow.
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Gambling in the US: Two Sides of the Same Coin
The United States has always had an up and down relationship with gambling, dating back to when the very first European settlers arrived. Whereas Puritan bands of settlers banned gambling outright in their new settlements, those emigrating from England had a more lenient view of gambling and were more than happy to tolerate it. This dichotomous relationship has continued until now, and in 1910 public pressure led to a nationwide prohibition on gambling. Just like the alcohol prohibition of the same era, this proved somewhat difficult to enforce and gambling continued on in an only slightly discreet manner. The Wall Street Crash and the Great Depression that this spawned in the early 1930s led to gambling being legalized again, as for many this was the only prospect of alleviating the grinding poverty which they suffered through. Although gambling is legal in a number of States today –most famously in Las Vegas, Nevada - online gambling is still something of a grey area in the United States. Right now, many international internet casinos are unable to accept American clients, although the signs are that this will change in the near future.
The New Frontier for Gambling
Microgaming is one of the largest casino and slot game developers in the world today, and they are also considered to be pioneers of online gambling. The leap into the world of virtual casinos was taken all the way back in 1994, which in internet terms is kind of like 2300bc! Online gaming was worth over a billion dollars within 5 years, and today is a multibillion dollar industry with over a thousand online casinos and growing. The first live dealer casinos appeared in 2003 courtesy of Playtech, bringing us closer to a hybrid between brick and mortar casinos and the virtual world.
Gambling Has Gone Mobile
Since New Jersey legalized online gambling in 2011, there has been a boom in the interest people have in it. America has seen a move towards legalizing it state by state, as well as experiencing the rapid rise in mobile gambling. Across the globe, internet users are gradually veering away from their desktops and towards their handheld devices. This is true of online gamblers too, wanting to be able to enjoy their favorite games whilst on the go. The top gambling sites out there have recognized a market and have stepped up to deliver. With a wave of impressive mobile focused online gambling destinations taking the world by storm, it's safe to say that desktops are being left far behind in favour of more mobile alternatives.
…The Future
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What Comes Next?
It is just about as difficult to predict the future for gambling as it is to uncover some of the origins of the gambling games we know so well today. Much of the focus at the moment is on the mobile gaming market, with online casinos scrambling to make more content compatible with the latest hand held devices. Virtual reality technology is just taking its first steps as a commercial proposition, and you can be sure that there will be gambling applications down the road. How would you like to sit around a virtual poker table with a bunch of your friends from all over the world, share a few laughs, try to tell if you can spot a tell-tale facial tick; and all this from the comfort of your home? VR Headsets can make it happen – maybe not today, but certainly just a few years down the track if technology continues to advance in bounds and leaps.
And after that? Well who knows, but when it comes to gambling all things are possible.
References
Gambling Spots Around The World
- Dice: Game Pieces (Britannica.com)
- Baccarat (card game) (Wikipedia.org)
- Twenty-One (card game) (Wikipedia.org)
- How Casinos Work (HowStuffWorks.com)
- Where Did Poker Originate? (History.com)
- History Of Poker (Wopc.co.uk)
- Chris Moneymaker (Wikipedia.org)
- Historical Interlude (VideoGameHistorian.com)
- Charles Fey and San Francieco's Liberty Bell Slot Machine (California Historical Quarterly)
- Microgaming: About Us (Microgaming.co.uk)
- New Jersey Now Allows Gambling via Internet (NYTimes.com)