When people hear of Las Vegas, they immediately think of gambling and casinos. Las Vegas is certainly known for its gambling culture around the world. In fact, many travelers and tourists visit Las Vegas to gamble in casinos or witness the gambling culture. Due to its popularity, Las Vegas is known as the capital of gambling around the globe.
Along with gambling, people also visit Las Vegas for its amazing nightlife and leisure activities. 40 million travelers visit Las Vegas every year for a vacation or a short trip. As a result, Sin City has introduced many innovative entertaining activities as well as boosted tourism by establishing luxurious hotels and restaurants for people.
Las Vegas has had its gambling industry since the 1930s and has been going strong ever since. While gambling isn’t legal in many states of the US, Nevada legalized it many years ago. Today Las Vegas has over 100 casinos all over the city.
MGM Grand and Caesars Palace are among the most popular and lavish casinos in Vegas. They offer a variety of gambling games and options while also providing hotel accommodations for guests.
You may know Las Vegas as the gambling capital but have you ever wondered how it reached its status or what’s the history of gambling? There are many facts about gambling that may be less known or even unknown to the public. Here are some facts about gambling in Las Vegas that you probably didn’t know.
Around 200,000 slot machines in Las Vegas
Las Vegas has around 200,000 slot machines throughout the city. Each slot machine is different which offers unique features to its players. As slot machines require the bare minimum from you and can be played solo, they have risen in popularity.
Slot machines offer you immense opportunities and can make you richer. Some of the popular slot machine games include Wheel of Fortune or Double Jackpot. Wheel of Fortune is a crowd favorite that regularly gives out jackpots. The most anyone has won on Wheel of Fortune would be around $3.8 million.
The oldest casino in Las Vegas was in 1931
The Golden Gate Hotel & Casino is the oldest casino in Las Vegas. It was established back in 1906 when it was Hotel Nevada. Back then the accommodation for each room was $1 per night as it made its income from selling alcohol and offering gambling.
However, the hotel stopped offering gambling games as it became illegal in 1910. Gambling came back to the hotel in 1931 when it was legalized in Nevada. Hotel Nevada then changed its name to Sal Sagev which is Las Vegas spelled backwards. It officially became the Golden Gate Casino in 1955.
The most popular table game in Vegas
Poker is by far the most popular table game in the casino even though there are numerous popular table games. Las Vegas is even considered the poker capital of the world. Poker is also one of those casino games that can be improved with practice and skills.
Poker has numerous variations of games that can be played. An annual poker event is also held in Vegas called the World Series of Poker (WSOP) since 2004. Players from all around the world come to Vegas to participate in it and try their luck.
You can also travel to Vegas during the WSOP to see the fuss about the event. You can also participate in the tournament and win some money as it’s open to the public. Even if you don’t participate, you can learn 2, 5, or 10 poker facts or more while watching others play.
The Black Book of the gambling industry
The Black Book of Las Vegas is something you don’t want your name in. The Black Book is officially known as the ‘Gaming Control Board Excluded Person List’ which has a list of all the people who have been barred from entering any casinos in Las Vegas.
The book became known back in 1960 and was created for people who broke any gaming laws or felony convictions. However, there are many other reasons people can end up there.
The book was originally created when casinos were owned by mobsters rather than companies. To reduce corruption and improve Vegas’ reputation, the book put the names of those mobsters and banned them from casinos. Today, that list of people is publicly available for anyone to see.
Conclusion
All these facts about gambling are to give you some knowledge about it. As everyone knows Las Vegas as the gambling capital and the place for leisure activities, fewer people know facts or information about the gambling culture in Vegas and how it came to be.
The next time you are in Las Vegas, have all the fun you want at the countless casinos and hotels there.