A casino is a gambling establishment that offers an array of games of chance to people who want to gamble. These games may include slots, blackjack, roulette, poker, craps, baccarat, and more. There are many types of casinos in the world, but the most famous ones are located in Las Vegas and Atlantic City. Some casinos also offer special experiences such as shows, dining, and other activities to appeal to a variety of customers.

The term ‘casino’ has its roots in Italian, and it originally referred to a villa or summerhouse where people could gather for entertainment purposes. The word has since grown to mean much more, and today casinos are often multi-level buildings with a wide range of gambling games as well as restaurants, hotels, bars, stage shows, and other attractions.

Because large amounts of money are handled within a casino, both patrons and staff members may be tempted to cheat or steal. For this reason, most casinos have security measures in place. Several of these involve cameras throughout the casino which are monitored by security workers in a room filled with banks of monitors.

Some casinos also employ more sophisticated methods, such as “chip tracking,” in which betting chips have built-in microcircuitry that enables the casino to oversee the exact amounts wagered minute by minute; and in which roulette wheels are electronically monitored to discover statistical deviations from expected outcomes. In addition to the usual table games, a casino may feature Asian games such as sic bo (which was introduced to the United States in the 1990s), fan-tan, and pai-gow.