Gambling in Florida

Florida has three types of casino gambling options. These are Indian casinos, casino boats and the slot machines at pari- mutuels that are available in two counties in South Florida.

Indian casinos in Florida

There are seven Indian gaming locations in Florida that are operated by the Seminole and Miccosukee tribes. The Seminole tribe operates six of these casinos and the Miccosukee tribe operates one. The games allowed in the Miccosukee Tribe Indian casinos are class II games, and the age limit is 18 years old. Class II casino games are also referred to as games of chance. In these casinos, you will find low limit poker games, video pull tabs and high stake bingo games.

The Seminoles Casinos are allowed to offer class three gaming machines. This includes games such as blackjack, baccarat, three card poker and pai gow poker among others. The minimum gambling age to play in Indian Casinos is 18 years old.

Casino boats in Florida

The casino boats in Florida give gamblers a chance to visit casinos on the ships that cruise in the areas where it is legal to have casino type gambling. The boats are expected to travel 9 miles to the Gulf of Mexico from the west and 3 miles into the Atlantic Ocean from the east coast. The casino boats allow for games such as craps, blackjack, roulette, video poker and slots. You will also find games such as three card poker, big six wheel and Pai gow poker on offer in some casino cruises. The age restriction for anyone to board casino boats is set at 21. This also covers access to alcohol.

Pari - mutuels in Florida

Pari - mutuels is a betting system whose name originated from a French word meaning mutual betting. In this form of betting, all bets are placed together in a pool. The taxes and the house cut are removed and pay off odds are then calculated by sharing the remaining amount among all the winning bets. It is a form of betting used in wagering on sports events where the finish is ranked in order. This is used in games such as horse racing, greyhound racing and jai alai among others.

In Florida, this form of wagering is authorized for horse racing, greyhound racing, jal alai games and card room poker games. There are more than 30 pari- mutuel facilities to be found in Florida. They have a minimum gambling age of 18 when it comes to placing pari-mutuel bets or playing poker. A minimum age of 21 is placed on gaming machines.

These are the casino gambling options in Florida. It also has a lottery.

The Florida Lottery

This is a government run venture that offers numerous online and scratch off games with a variety of prize levels to choose from. The revenue collected from the lottery is divided among prize winners, a state trust fund towards Education, retailers as commission and to the online and scratch off ticket vendors with any remainder directed to operational costs such as advertising.