The casino is a popular place for tourists and locals alike to indulge in their favorite pastime. But, behind all the glitz and glamour is a very rigged system designed to take as much money from patrons as possible. The house always wins. But, there are some ways to get ahead.

The word casino comes from the Italian cazino or casiono, meaning “little castle.” While casinos add a slew of luxuries to lure guests, like restaurants, free drinks and stage shows, they would not exist without gambling games like slot machines, blackjack, roulette and baccarat. These games create the billions of dollars in profits casinos rake in each year.

Every casino game has a built in advantage for the house. This advantage can be lower than two percent, but it’s enough to keep the casinos profitable for millions of players a day. This edge makes up the vig or rake, which casino workers collect from the table games and slot machines.

A casino also collects the drop — money that is lost to the dealer or dropped from a game. These funds are re-invested in the next round of bets to increase the house’s odds of winning. The higher the house’s odds, the more the casino can make in winning bets.

The casino has no clocks on the floor, as it wants players to lose track of time and stay longer to gamble. They even prohibit dealers from wearing watches to help this cause. If you find yourself losing track of time, set a budget and stick to it.