Debt - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	3 Months Ended	9 Months Ended	3 Months Ended	9 Months Ended			1 Months Ended		3 Months Ended	9 Months Ended	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended					9 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2012 Revolving Credit Facility	Sep. 30, 2012 Revolving Credit Facility	Mar. 31, 2012 Amended Revolving Credit Facility	Sep. 30, 2012 Amended Revolving Credit Facility	Sep. 30, 2012 Amended Revolving Credit Facility Minimum	Sep. 30, 2012 Amended Revolving Credit Facility Maximum	Dec. 31, 2011 Senior Notes 6.25% Due 2013	Jan. 06, 2012 Senior Notes 6.25% Due 2013	Jun. 30, 2012 Senior Notes 6.25% Due 2013	Sep. 30, 2012 Senior Notes 6.25% Due 2013	Sep. 30, 2012 Senior Notes 6.75% Due 2014	Jun. 30, 2012 Senior Notes 6.75% Due 2014	Sep. 30, 2012 Senior Notes 6.75% Due 2014	Jul. 31, 2012 Senior Notes 6.75% Due 2014	Dec. 31, 2011 Senior Notes 6.75% Due 2014	Sep. 30, 2012 Swingline Loans	Sep. 30, 2012 Letter of Credit	Sep. 30, 2012 Senior Notes 7.75% Due 2017
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Line of credit facility maximum borrowing capacity		$ 450,000,000		$ 785,000,000												$ 30,000,000
Revolving Credit Facility initiation date		Dec. 31, 2007
Purchase of Senior Notes										335,000,000
Line of credit interest on outstanding borrowings		At CCA’s option, interest on outstanding borrowings of the Amended Revolving Credit Facility is based on either a base rate plus a margin ranging from 0.25% to 1.0% or a London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) plus a margin ranging from 1.25% to 2.0% based on CCA’s leverage ratio.
Debt issuance costs, capitalized			6,000,000
Charge against write-off of loan costs	100,000								100,000		200,000	200,000
Revolving Credit Facility maturity date		Dec. 31, 2016
Base rate plus a margin				0.50%	0.25%	1.00%
LIBOR plus a margin				1.50%	1.25%	2.00%
Percentage of commitment fee to unfunded balance				0.30%
Sublimit for issuance of standby letters of credit				100,000,000
Borrowings under credit facility				635,000,000													26,000,000
Line of credit facility				124,000,000
Percentage of capital stock of foreign subsidiary secured by pledge under Revolving Credit Facilities				65.00%
Aggregate principal amount										375,000,000	40,000,000		40,000,000		150,000,000			465,000,000
Interest rate stated percentage of Senior Notes										6.25%	6.75%		6.75%					7.75%
Unsecured senior notes issued date										Mar. 31, 2005			Jan. 31, 2006					Jun. 30, 2009
Note maturity date										Mar. 15, 2013			Jan. 31, 2014					Jun. 01, 2017
Maximum cash tender offer							150,000,000
Early tender deadline date							January 5, 2012
Total consideration offered upon tendering of senior notes							1,002.50
Principal amount of Senior Notes for which consideration is offered							1,000
Cash tender paid								57,500,000
Redemption of Senior Notes								277,500,000
Principal amount of Senior Notes outstanding after redemption								40,000,000		40,000,000				40,000,000
Amount charged against purchase and redemption of debt										1,400,000
Redemption date										April 16, 2012
Percentage of redemption price of the principal amount together with accrued and unpaid interest										100.00%		100.00%		100.00%
Redemption date												Jun. 14, 2012		Aug. 27, 2012
Redeemable aggregate principal amount												$ 60,000,000		$ 50,000,000
Issued price of Senior Notes																		97.116%
Yield to maturity																		8.25%