Casinos in Europe
Casinos in Europe differ greatly from their counterparts across the Atlantic Ocean in North America - especially Las Vegas and other cities in the United States - as well as the resorts that have started to spring up around the world in places like South America, Macau, South Africa and the Caribbean.
Most American casinos are part of a larger tourist resort, usually in the form of a hotel and casino complex. These are usually huge, sprawling buildings and often a resort complex will house any number of hotels, linked together to form the resort.
These resorts can be found all over the United States and they continue to pop up regularly.
European casinos, on the other hand, are usually completely different. Many European casinos are not even attached to a hotel, let alone an entire resort. Most European casinos come from an age before the concept of massive gambling Meccas - when nobility, gentry and royalty mixed in the exclusive clubs around the continent.
There is actually a very small selection of casinos to choose from in mainland Europe and it is believed that these are coming under threat from the success of online gambling (although the extent to which real life casinos will be affected by this remains to be seen).
This said, however, a number of European casinos do actually now have hotels attached or are in very close proximity to the casino itself.
The casinos of Europe can claim to be some of the most impressive old buildings in the world today, and many are set in landscapes that truly have to be seen to be believed.
Rather than the glitz, glamour and bright lights that draw people to Vegas, European casinos entice the crowds by exuding class, a rich heritage and the sophisticated feeling of "old money'.
For further information on some of Europe's top casinos and hotel-casino resorts, follow the individual links below:
