There is a captivating story to the Cambodia casinos that reside just across the dividing line from nearby Thailand, where casino betting is illegal. Eight casinos are based in a generally small space in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia gambling dens is in a prime area, a 3 to 4 hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 most popular gaming centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai blue-collar workers and visitors from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very couple of Westerners. The astonishing capital gained from the gambling halls ranges from $7.5 million to more than 12.5 million, and there are a number of controls requirements for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is presumed to be mainly Thai; however, financing sources are cryptic. The borders are formally open from 09:00 to 1700, and despite the fact visas are apparently required to pass, there are ways around this, as is accurate of most borders.
The first Cambodia gambling halls premiered in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving just one gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary bateau gambling den, features 150 slot machines and 60 gaming tables. The Naga river boat is open all day and night with forty two tables of mini-baccarat, 4 tables of chemin de fer, 10 of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly opened. A total of one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and five tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machine games and sixty eight gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights three hundred slots and 70 table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slot machines and ninety six gaming tables, including eighty seven baccarat banque (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 one armed bandits and 66 of the normal table games, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the eight gambling halls in Poipet, also a part of a motel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six slot machine games and ninety seven table games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an all-around resort and hotel complex that features many conveniences in addition to the casino, which has 10,000 sq.ft. of one hundred and thirty slot machines and eighty eight table games.
