There is a captivating background to the Cambodia gambling dens that lie just over the border from neighboring Thailand, in which casino gaming is banned. Eight casinos are based in a relatively small location in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia gambling halls is in an excellent location, a three to 4 hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the two biggest gambling centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai blue-collar workers and guests from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The astonishing capital accrued from the gambling dens ranges from $7.5 million to over 12.5 million, and there are a few restrictions requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is presumed to be mostly Thai; still, financial sources are vague. The borders are officially open from 09:00 to 1700, and despite the fact visas are for all intents and purposes required to pass, there are ways around this, as is real of most border crossings.
The initial Cambodia gambling dens opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving only one casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked ship casino, highlights one hundred and fifty slot machines and 60 gaming tables. The Naga gambling hall is open 24 hours with forty two tables of mini-baccarat banque, four tables of 21, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The 1st gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in the late nineties and the Golden Crown soon followed. There are one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and five table games at the Golden Crown and 104 slots and sixty eight table games at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights 300 slot machines and seventy table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slots and ninety six table games, including 87 baccarat chemin de fer (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slots and sixty six of the common table games, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the eight casinos in Poipet, again a part of a hotel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six one armed bandits and 97 table games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of a comprehensive resort and hotel building that features numerous amenities in addition to the casino, which offers 10,000 sq.ft. of one hundred and thirty slots and 88 table games.
