There is an appealing background to the Cambodia gambling halls that sit just over the border from next door Thailand, in which casino gambling is prohibited. Eight casinos are situated in a generally small location in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This band of Cambodia gambling dens is in a perfect destination, a three to 4 hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the two largest wagering locations in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a huge business with Thai workers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The phenomenal income acquired from the gambling halls ranges from 7.5 million dollars to more than 12.5 million dollars, and there are a few restrictions constraints for gambling den ownership. Ownership is required to be mostly Thai; however, financing sources are vague. The borders are officially open from 09:00 to 17:00, and although visas are apparently necessary to cross, there are methods around this, as is true of most borders.
The original Cambodia gambling halls opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in 1998, leaving only 1 gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked ship gambling hall, highlights one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and sixty table games. The Naga gambling den never closes with forty two tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, four tables of twenty-one, 10 of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown before long followed. A total of 150 slot machines and 5 table games at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slots and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features three hundred slots and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six one armed bandits and 96 gaming tables, including 87 punto banco (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five one armed bandits and 66 of the familiar table games, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the 8 gambling halls in Poipet, again in a motel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six one armed bandits and 97 casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of a multinational resort and hotel compound that contains a number of luxuries aside from the casino, which contains ten thousand sq.ft. of 130 slot machines and eighty eight tables.
