There is an interesting history to the Cambodia gambling halls that lie just across the border from next door Thailand, in which casino gambling is prohibited. Eight gambling halls are anchored in a generally tiny space in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia casinos is in an excellent location, a three to four hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 largest betting locations in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a thriving business with Thai workers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The amazing capital accrued from the casinos ranges from $7.5 million to more than 12.5 million, and there are a few limitations requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is required to be mostly Thai; although, funding sources are cryptic. The borders are formally open from 9:00 a.m. to 1700, and despite the fact visas are supposedly needed to cross, there are ways around this, as is correct of many borders.
The initial Cambodia casinos opened in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving only 1 gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a moored bateau casino, features one hundred and fifty slot machine games and 60 table games. The Naga gambling den is open all hours with forty two tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, 4 tables of 21, 10 of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and one each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The first gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in the late nineties and the Golden Crown soon opened. There are one hundred and fifty slots and five tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machines and 68 gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The newest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights 300 slot machine games and 70 gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slot machines and 96 table games, including eighty seven baccarat chemin de fer (the most beloved game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 one armed bandits and sixty six of the common table games, as well as 1 table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the eight gambling dens in Poipet, again in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machine games and 97 table games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an all-around resort and hotel complex that contains many conveniences on top of the gambling den, which houses 10,000 sq.ft. of 130 one armed bandits and eighty eight gaming tables.