One of the most important discoveries players have to make is knowing whether it is legal to visit casinos in a particular state, especially if they plan to visit or move there.
As fun-filled as it may be, casino is not legal is every part of the United States. So you have to be careful and avoid gambling in an unauthorized environment because you will be breaking the law if you do that.
This is why we are putting this article together to help you discover the states, where it is legal to visit and play games in a casino. At least, that should help you decide whether it is safe to play at your current location or not.
This article will also help you decide which state to visit whenever you want to have fun at a casino.
What Is a Casino?
Before we go on to find out the casino legal states, let’s first understand what a casino is.
Many people associate casinos with gambling. Well, they are not far from the truth. But casinos are more than just a place for gambling.
A casino is a place or a platform for playing games. Sometimes, these games are played to win money or other prizes, depending on the casino’s policy.
Casinos are basically meant for creating entertainments and amusements. This is why people love playing cards, dice games, slots, and other forms of fun-filled games at casinos.
You can also visit casinos to bet on sports as a way of supporting your favorite players.
So, you can see, casinos are not always about gambling. Of course, many players see it that way but if you understand that the main purpose of casinos is to help you have fun and de-stress, you will no longer see it as a gambling spot.
All the same, there is pleasure in having fun and making money out of it. That’s another side of casinos that makes them attractive.
Who Should Play at the Casino?
You might have heard different degrading things about people that visit casinos and will be wondering if you should bother going to one. Well, people have different opinions about casinos.
All the same, for you to visit and play in a casino, you have to be up to 18 years old. The age limit in some states is 21 years.
It is also important that casino goers should be mentally and emotionally capable to know when to walk away from the gaming table. That will prevent them from spending more than they can afford to lose.
So, if you are up to the required age limit and you are sure you are in your right state of mind, nothing should stop you from visiting and playing in a casino. Except it is not legal in your state.
Types of Casino
The fun part of casinos involves visiting a place, where you can meet and interact with other players while playing games. But that is fast changing because the development in technology is bringing casinos closer to people through their phones, tablets, and computers.
So, right now, we have land-based or physical casinos and online casinos.
Physical casinos also have many types. They include Native American tribal casinos, riverboat casinos, resorts (they merge casino and hotel services), and standalone casinos.
For online casinos, you can find web-based casinos, web app casinos, mobile casinos, and downloadable casinos.
You can always go for the type that suits you better. The major thing is that it offers the kind of games you love playing and that you have fun playing them.
Arguments for and against Casinos
In as much as you love playing games at casinos, it is not everyone that believes you are doing the right thing.
We will use this section to discover why people support and stand against casinos.
Arguments for Casinos
People that stand for casinos have the following to say:
- Casinos provide jobs to casino officials.
- It attracts tourists.
- It increases government income through tax.
- People have fun and socialize.
Arguments against Casinos
People that stand against casinos do so for the following reasons:
- People can become addicted to gambling.
- Casinos can make players bankrupt.
- It can cause depression and other mental illnesses.
- It can lead to suicide.
- It increases theft.
- Casinos destroy the lives and relationships of players.
- It increases crime and violence.
Casino Legal States
Now that you have found out what a casino is, who should play there, the types we have, and the argument for and against it, let’s now look into the states that have legalized casinos.
Traditional Physical Casinos Legal States
The number of states that is legalizing land-based casinos is increasing. Currently, the traditional non-tribal physical casinos are available in the following states:
- Arkansas
- Colorado
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Nevada
- New Jersey
- New York
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- Virginia
- West Virginia
Physical Tribal Native American Casinos
Currently, there are 527 American Indian casinos spread across the country. These casinos are legally operating in the following states:
- Alaska
- Alabama
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Florida
- Iowa
- Idaho
- Indiana
- Kansas
- Louisiana
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Montana
- Nebraska
- New Mexico
- New York
- Nevada
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- South Dakota
- Texas
- Washington
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
If you enjoy playing games at tribal casinos and you live in any of these states, you should go ahead to look for any of the tribal casinos close to you.
Online Casinos Legal States
It is disheartening to discover that only seven states have legalized online casinos so far. These 7 casino legal states are:
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Michigan
- New Jersey
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- West Virginia
You may be happy to know that sports betting is legal in some of the states that have not legalized online casinos. We will provide the lists of sports betting legal states in our subsequent articles. But for now, you should avoid playing online casino games if you are not living in any of the seven states we mentioned above.
Riverboat Casino Legal States
We can’t conclude this article without mentioning the states that have legalized riverboat casinos. Currently, only six states allow this type of casino in their territories. They are:
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- Missouri
List of Legal Casinos in the States:
Let’s Wrap It Up
The list of casino legal states we provided shows that you can find casinos legally operating in many part of the United States. Hopefully your state is one of them. But, remember, if casino is not yet legalized in your state, you should avoid visiting or playing in one. But if it is, you should go ahead and have fun while playing casino games.