Global Casino Landscapes: A Journey Across Continents
Outside of Antarctica, every continent has some kind of casino scene. These casino landscapes can be vast and offer many mega-resorts, or they can mostly consist of smaller regional establishments. If you have a flair for international gambling, then you may want to know more about each continent's casino industry. That said, we'll move from North America to Asia while covering what to expect from each region.
North America
Canada, Mexico, and the US all have land-based casinos. Mexico and Canada are mostly home to smaller gaming venues with fewer than 300 slot machines-although they can feature casino resorts. Montreal Casino is the biggest establishment in the Great White North, offering over 3,000 slot machines. Hipódromo de las Américas is the largest casino in Mexico, featuring more than 700 slot machines. Of course, the US gambling scene is easily the biggest of these three countries. It features the world's gambling capital in Las Vegas, along with Atlantic City, Reno, and Biloxi as other notable gaming destinations. Most states have brick-and-mortar casinos as well, which further boosts the number of available US casinos. Based in Durant, Oklahoma, Choctaw Casino Resort is the world's biggest casino with over 7,400 slot machines and 105 table games.
South America
The South American casino scene doesn't get much attention, but it does exist in some capacity. Argentina (145 casinos) and Columbia (100) especially have notable gambling industries. Argentina is home to the biggest South America casino, Hipódromo Argentino de Palermo, which boasts over 4,000 slot machines. It also offers City Center Rosario, which is the continent's second-biggest casino with over 3,000 slots and 30 table games. Chile has the largest gaming venue outside of Argentina in the Sun Monticello Casino & Hotel, which features more than 1,800 slots and 80 tables.
Europe
While the US ranks far ahead of any other country with 2,100+ casinos, Europe has the five next-biggest casino tallies. Romania (453), the Czech Republic (421), Spain (334), the UK (308), and Slovakia (224) are ranked 2-6 in terms of casinos. Much like Canada and Mexico, these countries mainly have smaller gambling establishments. For example, Victoria Gate (Leeds) is the biggest UK casino with 220 slot machines and 10 tables. As long as you're okay with smaller casinos, then you should have a good time when gambling in Europe. You'll find that many of these casinos are heavy on atmosphere and posh table-game environments, rather than gaudy resort offerings.
Africa
Most countries in Africa don't have a thriving casino industry, but they still offer casinos, nonetheless. South Africa is this continent's gambling capital with 60 casinos, including GrandWest Casino and its 2,500+ slot machines and almost 80 tables. SA also has the continent's second-largest casino in Time Square Casino Menlyn Maine, which has 2,000 slots and 60 tables. In terms of numbers, Kenya is the continent's next-biggest gaming destination with 40 casinos. Casino Flamingo is the largest in Kenya with 160 slot machines and 15 table games.
Asia
A massive continent with over 4.56 billion people, Asia spans from the Middle East to Japan. The many Asian areas vary wildly regarding their approach to gaming. The entire Middle East only has a couple casinos, for example, while Macau and Singapore are two of the world's biggest gambling hotspots. Speaking of which, Macau is the Las Vegas of the Far East thanks to its huge casino resorts and many entertainment attractions. It features 48 casinos when including the Cotai and Taipa areas. The top gaming establishments here include the Venetian Macao (3,500 slots, 800 tables) and Parisian Macao (2,500 slots, 400 tables). As for Singapore, it features the Marina Bay Sands (2,500 slots, 700 tables) and Resorts World Sentosa (2,400 slots, 500 tables) casinos. These resorts are known for far more than just gambling because they also have many amenities and unique attractions.
Oceania
Australia headlines the Oceania gambling industry with more than 200 casinos. This figure is an impressive amount considering that the Land Down Under only has 25.7 million people. Located near Cairns in North Queensland, Aquis Great Barrier Reef is Australia's biggest casino with 3,600 slot machines and 140 tables. Melbourne's Crown Casino & Entertainment Complex is the next-largest gaming destination with 2,500 slots and almost 400 tables. The Northern Marina Islands (7 casinos) and New Zealand rank a distant second and third, respectively, in terms of gaming establishments.
How to Get Started Gambling Around the World
You can see that there are many gaming options on each continent. If you're interested in visiting another region's casinos, then you can do so with just a little know-how. The first and most-obvious step is to choose a destination, whether it be Argentina, Macau, South Africa, or elsewhere. Make sure that gambling is legal wherever you're going because you don't want to pack for a gambling adventure, or lack thereof, in Saudi Arabia. The next steps involve getting a passport, finding a cheap plane ticket(s), and arranging accommodations. The cheap flight is especially important because long international flights can easily be $1,500 or more without any help. Once you've arranged everything and arrive at your destination, you're in for an exciting gambling adventure!