Thirty territories by size
Alberta's largest casino territories
Alberta's 30 casino territories range from 188,115 km² around Rivers Casino & Entertainment Centre to 27 km² around Cowboys Casino, thousands of times smaller. The list below ranks all 30 by area, measured in square kilometres on an equal-area map cut along the provincial border.
The three largest
Rivers Casino & Entertainment Centre in Fort McMurray holds the largest territory, 188,115 km² of the 660,806 km² measured for Alberta. Two towns from the list fall inside it: Fort McMurray and Fort Chipewyan. Fort Chipewyan lies 221.8 km from the casino, straight line, not road. Casino Dene, the nearest other casino, is 273.4 km away.
Great Northern Casino in Grande Prairie comes second at 105,175 km². Wild Horse Casino at Evergreen Park stands 9.1 km from it, yet the cell still runs north to High Level and Rainbow Lake. Its 13 towns end at Chateh, 391.6 km out.
Eagle River Casino & Travel Plaza, near Whitecourt, ranks third with 75,331 km². Ten towns fall inside, from Whitecourt at 8.7 km to Jasper at 210.7 km. River Cree Resort & Casino, its nearest neighbour, stands 156.7 km away. Five casinos share the Northern Alberta zone, and their territories cover 438,818 km².
The smallest cells
The six smallest territories sit in central Calgary and Edmonton, where casinos stand a few kilometres apart. Cowboys Casino holds 27 km², Elbow River Casino 29 km², ACE Casino Blackfoot 48 km² and Grand Villa Casino Edmonton 49 km². PURE Casino Yellowhead and Starlight Casino Edmonton follow at 79 km² and 97 km². Four of the six contain no town from the list, while Cowboys Casino holds Calgary and Grand Villa Casino Edmonton holds Edmonton.
Spacing explains the pattern. Cowboys Casino and Elbow River Casino are 0.5 km apart in a straight line. ACE Casino Blackfoot stands 2.3 km from Elbow River Casino and 2.5 km from Cowboys Casino. In Lethbridge, PURE Casino Lethbridge and Bully's Casino at RMTC are 1.3 km apart, yet their territories measure 14,263 km² and 16,897 km².
Alberta's 30 casino territories by measured area
Areas are in square kilometres on an equal-area map of Alberta, and each casino name opens its own page. Bar length follows the square root of the area, so the smallest cells stay visible.
Size is not a verdict
A large territory says one thing: the next casino is far away. It says nothing about the games, the food or the building at the casino itself.
Areas are measured on a Lambert azimuthal equal-area map centred at 54.5 degrees north, 115 degrees west. A square kilometre near High Level counts the same as one near Lethbridge. The cells are cut along the provincial border, and the 30 together cover all 660,806 km². Behind them sit straight lines between map points, with roads, rivers and mountains left out.
Questions
Which casino has the largest territory?
Rivers Casino & Entertainment Centre, with 188,115 km². Great Northern Casino follows at 105,175 km², then Eagle River Casino & Travel Plaza at 75,331 km².
Which casino has the smallest territory?
Cowboys Casino in central Calgary, with 27 km². Elbow River Casino is next at 29 km², and ACE Casino Blackfoot follows at 48 km².
Why are the Calgary territories so small?
The central Calgary casinos stand very close together. Cowboys Casino and Elbow River Casino are 0.5 km apart in a straight line, not by road. ACE Casino Blackfoot is 2.3 km from Elbow River Casino. Each cell ends where another casino becomes closer, so these cells stay small.