Casinos and gaming in the Orient
The monopoly that Las Vegas enjoyed when it comes to casino gaming is now being challenged. Asian resorts like Macau and Singapore are at the center of this change, offering some of the finest casinos in the world.
Many of the major Macau casinos – which include the Wynn, the Casino Lisboa and the Venetian -–are based on ones in Vegas. This is because the development of the island in China as a top Asian casinos resort was largely the work of smart gaming industry operators from Vegas. However most of these Macau casinos offer eastern gambling games, alongside the roulette, poker, blackjack and slot machines, that make them stand out.
It should be noted that they also stand out because many of them are quite an expensive experience for anyone who does not have an unlimited budget to gamble with. For example, the Venetian Macau – the biggest casino in the world – is an unforgettable experience for any lover of gaming.
The Asian casinos phenomenon
From its recreation of Venice architecture, to the massive choice of games, the Venetian is spectacular – but it is also somewhere that is most suited to someone with a high roller budget. The rest of us will be unlikely to encounter them during a visit though, as they have their own section of the casino – complete with separate hotel suites and entrance.
Macau may be the biggest Asian casino resort, but it is no longer the only one. The major rival is Singapore and it boasts two impressive island resorts – the Sentosa and the Marina Bay Sands and Resort – both of which have casinos of the same name.
Again either of these is well worth a visit if you have the slightest interest in casino gaming – especially as there is plenty of other things to do at both – but they are primarily playgrounds for the wealthy.
90 percent of the money generated by both of these resorts comes from these super-rich, but they offer the rest of us the chance to pretend we are high rollers for a little while. So, when you get to Singapore, you can clean up and win some real coin!
Countries in Asia with a quantity of casinos
Armenia (5)
Bahrain (1)
Cambodia (34)
China (4)
Hong Kong (7)
India (23)
Iraq (1)
Israel (6)
Japan (27)
Kazakhstan (15)
Laos (3)
Lebanon (2)
Macau (50)
Malaysia (5)
Myanmar (5)
Nepal (11)
North Korea (2)
Philippines (69)
Singapore (4)
South Korea (23)
Sri Lanka (9)
Thailand (2)
Turkey (9)
Turkmenistan (2)
United Arab Emirates (4)
Vietnam (9)
Find out more about the travel lifestyle choices