Responsible gaming

Our commitment

Lodge Portfolio publishes informational reviews. We do not operate a casino, take wagers, process payments or promote online gambling, and we do not publish betting systems, strategy guarantees or anything that presents gambling as a way to earn money. We do not accept advertising from gambling operators on this site.

Every review we publish carries the minimum age for its province and a link back to this page. When we assess a property, one of the things we look at is how visible its responsible-gaming information is on the floor and how easy the building makes it to stop.

Know your limits

The mathematics of every casino game favour the house. That is not a flaw in the games; it is how the building, the staff, the theatre and the restaurants are paid for. Understanding that clearly is the single most protective thing a visitor can do.

• Decide the amount before you go. Treat it exactly as you would a concert ticket — money spent on an evening, not money at risk of return.
• Take cash, leave cards behind. ATMs on a gaming floor exist because the decision to withdraw more is easier to make there than at home.
• Set a time limit too. Casino floors are deliberately built without clocks or windows.
• Never chase a loss. The urge to win back what has gone is the most reliable predictor of a bad night becoming a worse one.
• Do not treat winnings as house money. The moment a win becomes a new budget, the original limit has stopped existing.
• Do not gamble to fix something. Stress, debt or a bad week are the wrong reasons to be in the room.
• Do not gamble on credit or borrowed money. Ever, and without exception.

Signs worth taking seriously

Problem gambling rarely announces itself. These are the patterns clinicians and provincial programmes describe most often — in yourself or in someone close to you:

• Spending more time or money than you intended, repeatedly.
• Returning to win back losses.
• Borrowing, selling things or using money set aside for something else in order to play.
• Hiding how much you play, or lying about it to people close to you.
• Restlessness or irritability when you try to cut back.
• Gambling to escape stress, low mood, loneliness or boredom.
• Missing work, study or family commitments because of gambling.
• Feeling guilty or anxious afterwards, but going back anyway.

Recognising one of these is not a diagnosis and it is not a failure. The provincial services listed below are free, confidential and staffed by people who have this conversation every day. You do not need to be in crisis to call one.

Provincial helplines

All lines below are free and confidential. Availability is generally 24/7 or extended hours.

Not listed here? ConnexOntario will refer callers from any province, and the Responsible Gambling Council maintains a national directory of services.

National organisations

• Responsible Gambling Council (RGC) — Canadian non-profit working on gambling harm prevention, research and public awareness. responsiblegambling.org
• Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA) — national research and guidance on addiction, including gambling. ccsa.ca
• GameSense (BCLC) — information programme with advisors staffed inside British Columbia casinos. gamesense.com
• Gamblers Anonymous — peer support meetings across Canada, in person and online.
• Credit Counselling Canada — free non-profit credit counselling where gambling has created debt.

Self-exclusion programmes

Every province with commercial casinos operates a voluntary self-exclusion programme. You sign an agreement barring yourself from gaming facilities in that province for a chosen period — commonly six months, one year, three years or five — and the operator is required to deny you entry and to remove you from marketing lists.

• Ontario — OLG self-exclusion, applied at any OLG-conducted site or through OLG directly, covering casinos across the province.
• British Columbia — BCLC Voluntary Self-Exclusion Program, registered through GameSense advisors on site.
• Alberta — AGLC self-exclusion, arranged at any licensed casino or through AGLC.
• Quebec — Loto-Québec self-exclusion, applied at any of the province\'s casinos.
• Manitoba — Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries voluntary exclusion.
• Saskatchewan — self-exclusion through the Saskatchewan Gaming Corporation and SIGA.
• Nova Scotia — provincial self-exclusion at Casino Nova Scotia properties.

Enrolment is confidential, free, and usually takes under half an hour with photo ID. Support workers can start the process with you over the phone if going to a property in person is not something you want to do.

If it is someone else

Provincial helplines take calls from family and friends, and several run dedicated programmes for people affected by someone else\'s gambling. You do not need the person\'s permission to call, and you do not need to have all the facts. The most useful things you can do are keep the conversation free of blame, avoid covering debts, and get advice for yourself before you try to manage it alone.