Betting in Cairo
Cairo is Egypt’s largest city and also its capital. Situated alongside the Nile River, Cairo was established in 969 CE, near to an area known as “Old Cairo”. Remains of ancient civilizations can still be observed there today. Cairo rapidly progressed to becoming a hub for cultural and political life. It became known as “the city of a thousand minarets” due to its Islamic architecture. To date, Cairo is home to around 8 million citizens, with another 10 million people living just outside of the city.
Cairo has an unusually relaxed stance with regards to gambling, especially compared to other Middle Eastern cities. Tolerance of gambling activities in countries where the Islamic faith is strong is normally low to non-existent. However, Cairo has more casinos than United Arab Emirates, Israel, Iraq and Lebanon have put together.
A large percentage of Cairo’s casinos can be found within the city’s finest hotels. These include the Sofitel Cairo Maadi Towers & Casino, the Iberotel Cairo Hotel & Casino, the Conrad Cairo Casino & Hotel and the Kings & Queens Hotel Casino, which is located inside the Sheraton Heliopolis. Likewise, the five-star Semiramis InterContinental Hotel provides 24/7 gambling activities under the guidance of a company known as Casinos Austria International. It offers 34 slot machines and 14 gaming tables featuring Punto Banco, Blackjack, Roulette and American Roulette.
Casinos can also be found on Gezira Island, on the river Nile where the Cairo Tower is the main landmark. The Casino El Gezirah Barriere is located in the Sofitel El Gezirah Hotel and is open around the clock, offering slot machines, gaming tables, several bars and six restaurants. Similarly, the Cairo Marriott Hotel is host to the Omar Khayyam Casino on the island.
Caesars Entertainment (and its London Clubs International division) operate two of Cairo’s most frequented casinos. One of which is The London Club Cairo located within the Ramses Hilton Hotel. Players have around the clock access to various slot machines and 23 gaming tables including Punto Banco, American Roulette, Blackjack and Poker.
A gambling venue called Caesars Cairo, adjoining the Four Seasons Hotel, is situated in the Cairo-Giza region, which is in close proximity to the world famous pyramids. Caesars Cairo is open for play around the clock and offers 30 slots machines and an equal amount of gaming tables. Despite a great deal of the city’s casinos having exotic sounding names such as the French-inspired Les Ambassaseurs, there are also a fair few that go by typically local names, for example, the Cleopatra Casino. Others use arabesque names such as Al Andalous Casino, Al Karnak Casino, El Sayeda Zeinab, Casino El Gaheed, Koshtomor Casino and the Felfala Casino.
The city’s casinos have varying opening hours during Ramadan. The Islamic religion forbids Muslims from all gambling activities and so the 24/7 casinos show their respect by altering their opening hours during this time, only opening after the sun has gone down and closing before the sun rises.
