The casino at Saint-Vincent.Free entry, strict paperwork.

A free, named ticket: the entry rules

Identification is not optional: the casino explains that anti-money-laundering rules in force since 29 December 2007 require every customer to be identified and their details recorded before they reach the gaming rooms. Its customer-care and cheque-cashing desks also update the personal details on file where the law requires it.

The ticket is strictly personal. Under the house rules, passing it to someone else gets its holder barred from the gaming rooms indefinitely, and the management can withdraw a ticket at any time at its sole discretion. Holders of Club Rewards, Fidelity and VIP cards can use priority lanes. The south car park is free, and the north car park is free for Club Rewards cardholders.

Who the house rules keep out

The house rules list who may not enter the gaming rooms: minors, military personnel in uniform, people known to gamble professionally, people intending to carry out credit transactions (other than the authorised banks that work with the casino), and anyone already barred. They also exclude Italian citizens resident in the Aosta Valley, except from the areas they are allowed into; the casino's information page says residents may play only the electronic games and the Texas Hold'em poker tournaments.

The same rules say the casino uses video surveillance to keep play regular and customers safe.

Two floors, two dress standards

The casino covers 3,500 square metres on two floors, with a large number of gaming tables and more than 400 electronic gaming positions. Everywhere, visitors are expected to be decently dressed; beyond that, the ground floor has no special restrictions.

The first-floor table area bars slippers, sandals, vests, tracksuits and sports shorts. Shorts that come below the knee, or Bermudas just above it, are allowed, and sweatshirts, pullovers and sleeveless jackets must be worn or left at the cloakroom. For the Sala Privè on the same floor, men must also wear long trousers.

The cloakroom takes coats, jackets, hats, bags and umbrellas, and the games management, the head of security or the customer-care manager can require you to leave items there. One detail worth knowing: clothes abandoned at the cloakroom go to charity after six months.

The games on offer

The casino's games page lists French roulette, American roulette (with 38 numbers, including a double zero), Fairoulette, blackjack, punto banco, chemin de fer, craps and Ultimate Texas Hold'em, alongside the electronic games and their jackpots. Chemin de fer has monthly tournaments, and Fairoulette follows the French rules with faster play and coloured chips that let players place their own bets.

The house rules group what the ticket gives access to as French games, American games and electronic games, plus the bars and restaurants.

From the Grand Hotel Billia to a resort casino

The Casino de la Vallée was officially inaugurated on 29 April 1947, when it occupied rooms in the Grand Hotel Billia. It has since been renovated as part of a resort project and remains directly connected to the hotel complex, known today as the Saint-Vincent Resort & Casino.

Getting there from Turin, Milan, France or Switzerland

The casino's contact page gives its address as Via Italo Mus, 11027 Saint-Vincent; its travel page gives the resort's address, Viale Piemonte 72, and separate GPS points for the hotel and the casino. From anywhere in Italy, leave the A5 motorway at the Châtillon–Saint-Vincent toll gate, turn right onto the SS26 towards the centre of Saint-Vincent, and the resort is on the left after about five minutes.

• From France: after the Mont Blanc tunnel, take the A5 for about 62 km to the Châtillon–Saint-Vincent exit.
• From Switzerland: after the Great St Bernard tunnel, follow the E27 towards Aosta for about 60 km to the Autoporto junction, then join the A5.
• By air: the casino lists Turin Caselle (86 km), Milan Malpensa (159 km), Geneva (177 km) and Milan Linate (186 km) as the most convenient airports; its travel page also points to coach links from Turin and Milan.

Family requests and other help

The casino says it has always accepted formal requests from families to bar a relative in temporary difficulty from its gaming rooms, and that this protection is now part of a state law in force since 1 January 2013. For information, it points to its customer-care office and the secretariat of the games management. In the UK, GamCare runs the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133, and our safer gambling page lists other support.