For a long time, Las Vegas has been the gaming capital of the world, with its bright lights and vast attractions; people have flocked from all around the globe to witness the great city in all its glory. Vegas, also known as Sin City, provides a variety of different attractions and activities to take part in, including strip clubs, rollercoasters and a helicopter ride out to the nearby natural wonder, the Grand Canyon. In recent years, however, we have seen the rise of Macau, a small island on the south coast of China.
Like everything else in China, it’s go big or go home and it has become the largest gaming city in the world, bigger than Las Vegas. The enormity of the city has seen casino chains build their biggest and best casinos yet. Macau is home to the biggest casino in the world, The Venetian Macau. But which one should you be headed to for your next shot at the jackpot? Read on to find out or you can even try your luck at online jackpots to warm up before jetting off here: https://casino.paddypower.com
The people
When comparing the two in terms of size, Macau has an area of 115km2 whilst Las Vegas is 352km2. It is important to note that Vegas is over three times larger than Macau as this could easily affect the number of people that gamble there. With this size in mind, the population of Macau is 612,167 whilst Las Vegas is only slightly larger at 640,174, these are the residential population sizes, not taking into consideration the tourists. The annual visitors for Las Vegas is 42.9 million people, whilst Macau receives 30 million visitors through tourism. Of those visitors that go to each location, in Las Vegas, 69% of them gamble whereas 74% gamble in Macao. From the numbers, you can see, that even though Las Vegas has much more space to accommodate people, it doesn’t necessarily take advantage of it, as Macau is only slightly behind in every category.
The facilities
As great as it is having all the space and visitors in the cities, what about those who don’t gamble? What about the families who visit, or those passing through. In Las Vegas, you will find 104 casinos and 68 hotels; while in Macau there are only 49 casinos, although there are 75 hotels. For those who aren’t gambling in each city, what is there that they can do? In Macau, you have your typical museums and iconic buildings as well as temples and a giant panda pavilion; however in Las Vegas, there is so much more. Las Vegas has grown to accommodate a wide variety of people: you can go on rollercoasters, zip lines, watch theatre and acrobat shows, visit aquariums, go shopping or even take tours slightly out of town to visit the Grand Canyon or Hoover Dam – Las Vegas has it all. Which is why Vegas has the perfect facilities for everyone, not just gamblers.
The numbers
It’s all well and good having big space and tons of things to do, but what do the numbers say? How do they convert into revenue and money into gamers’ pockets? In 2016, Las Vegas saw $11.1 billion in gross gaming revenue whereas Macau saw over double that with $28 billion, even though people’s budgets are far less in Macau with people averaging a gambling budget of $250 opposed to Las Vegas’ $619. The table minimums are roughly $3 in Las Vegas whilst in Macao are $36. With regards to the most popular games, it’s Baccarat in Macau and Slots in Vegas.
Collectively, Macau is the place which attracts serious gamblers. For years and years, gamblers have flocked to Las Vegas to try and grab a small fortune, but now, they head for Macau, a quieter city, that has everything you need in the biggest forms. Whilst Las Vegas is certainly the gaming capital of the USA and thousands of people dream of going, Macau is certainly taking over as the gambling capital of the world.
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