Bingo in the sun, poker by the pool

A Holiday in the Won
Where are YOU going for your holidays this year? Will you be heading for the sun, the slopes, or the slots? Will you be playing bingo in the sun or poker by the pool? Las Vegas continues to be one of the world’s most popular holiday destinations. It is internationally renowned as the ultimate destination for gambling, shopping, fine dining and entertainment.

Las Vegas sprung out of the Nevada desert in 1905 and only became a city in 1911. Today, nearly 2 million people live, work, and play in Sin City. The city’s tolerance for all forms of adult entertainment has earned Las Vegas a somewhat shady reputation. Ironically, the city also has the highest number of churches per capita of any major U.S. city.

Today, Las Vegas has come a long way from its gangster-fuelled past and is now a very popular destination for tourists who never even spend a cent at the table.

Multi-billion dollar hotels and resorts have sprung up which offer something for all the family. There are breathtaking live shows and performance form the world’s hottest stars of screen and stage.

Of course… If you do want to gamble, then Las Vegas is Mecca.

Whatever the game. Whatever the stake. You can find the action in Las Vegas. Confident tourists might decide to take just $100 worth of spending money in the hope of turning it into a fortune with one spin of the roulette wheel, or perhaps they will plan to win a progressive jackpot on one of the supercharged slots – where a million dollar payout is a daily occurrence.

Gambling tourists have other options, as well as Las Vegas. Macau is the new kid on the block. On the one hand, the fortresses, churches and food of its former colonial master Portugal speak to a uniquely Mediterranean style on the China coast. On the other, Macau is the self-styled Las Vegas of the East.

Gambling has been legal in Macau since the 1850s when the Portuguese government controlled the colony. Macau currently has 28 casinos, of which the biggest is the Venetian Macau.

However, work is currently underway on the Sands China which is set to be the world’s biggest casino. The multi-billion dollar project was put on hold last November, when credit dried up and revenue failed to keep pace with demands of the project.

The record breaking casino will feature: 670 tables, a shopping mall, conference facilities, and two hotel towers with 6,000 rooms. Now funding is back on track, the 13.3 million square feet casino is due for completion in December 2011.

Of course for those that can’t get away can still have a flutter online and be in with the chance of hitting the jackpot.