Playing your favorite virtual card game or betting on one of your lucky slot machines in mobile casinos can be good fun. You can play from the comfort of your home without having to worry about how you’re behaving and what you’re wearing.
At the same time, visiting a land-based casino has a different thrill of its own. Some of us may have experienced gambling in a famous casino, but in case you have missed the excitement, here is a list of five of the oldest casinos in the world where you can still enjoy a round or two of poker.
Casino-di-Venezia
Casino of Venice, Italy, is the oldest working casino. The building was constructed way back in 1509 and operations started in 1638. It was later moved to another location in 1950 with a newly constructed building. The gambling houses, known to Italians as private rooms, were established to control gambling during the carnival season.
The casino building is amazing to look at. It is truly a work of art containing carved sculptures in both wood and marble, with a fusion of modern decorations and historic beauty.
Casino di Venezia perfectly represents Venice’s nickname, City of Canals, as the best way to visit this casino is via Gondola or a water taxi.
This casino is quite famous for holding world-class gambling tournaments. The World Poker Tour is held annually, which is sponsored by one of the largest online gambling companies of Italy.
Casino Wiesbaden
Built in 1810, originally as a new Bauhaus, Casino Wideness is also one of the oldest casinos in the world. A Bauhaus is a spa, containing a thermal spring that boasted of having a curative effect of healing and curing people who bathed in them. So this casino was more of a spa than a gambling place. Eventually, it also started offering casino games, attracting even more people.
The original games played in Casino Wiesbaden were card games, as Prince Charles of Nassau-Usingen issued the first permit of card gambling. Today, the place has a gaming area of 38,000 square foot featuring 14 table games, 24 electronic games and nearly 200 slot machines.
For adventure seekers, the casino holds monthly slot tournaments of a prize worth €10,000. Monthly tournament winners are qualified for the annual championship tournament of €43,000.
Casino de Monte Carlo Monaco
Also known as Grand Casino, this is one of the most prestigious and historic casinos. It was founded in 1856 and has been featured in films like Casino Royale, GoldenEye and Ocean’s twelve. This casino was a trendsetter of live entertainment and fine dining, which has now become a common trend in most casinos.
Casino de Monte Carlo is known for the rich and famous and stands glamorous with 157 years of existence. Despite many redesigns, the building still holds a distinctive Beaux-Art look. The 108,000 square feet of casino area contains over 1000 slot machines, dozens of video poker machines and over 56 casino tables.
In the year 1921, the casino also hosted the first Women’s Olympics ever.
Golden Gate Casino
John F. Miller saw potential in Las Vegas and set up a Miller hotel in a temporary tent in 1905. Later, in 1906, this was turned into a permanent structure by the name of Hotel Nevada. Eventually, a casino was introduced in the hotel building, till betting was banned in 1909. This casino later got its famous name, Golden Gate Casino, in 1955.
Over a period of 114 years, Golden Gate Casino has witnessed Las Vegas turning into the world gambling capital. Even after 100 years, the premises of the casino still has many of its exterior designs. However, in 2012, it underwent interior redesigning and has now been transformed to have a more modern look.
Golden Gate Casino was most famous for serving the economic shrimp cocktails from 1959 to 2017.
Kurhaus of Baden-Baden
Just like Casino Wiesbaden, the Kurhaus of Baden-Baden was also built in the thermal spring area. Completed in 1824, the building is a classic architectural structure by Friedrich Weinbrenner, who made sure to fit the building design with the other buildings he had already designed.
Baden-Baden gained more popularity in 1830, as the law of France outlawed gambling, resulting in the shutting down of French casinos, making gambling lovers cross the border to visit the casino.
Presently, the casino, with a floor area of 2200 square foot, offers 150 slot machines, 20 gaming tables and a separate poker room.
Players can enjoy blackjack, video poker, electronic keno, roulette and electronic bingo, to name a few.
Conclusion
A true casino buff will like to visit an in-land casino to have a gala experience. Visiting an age-old casino offers a unique experience. And if you’re lucky, you might even get a chance to play with a few celebrities, including authors, musicians and actors.
