There is a fascinating story to the Cambodia gambling halls that reside just across the dividing line from next door Thailand, where casino wagering is not allowed. Eight gambling halls are established in a generally small location in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia gambling dens is in an excellent destination, a 3 to 4 hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 biggest gaming locations in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a huge business with Thai workers and visitors from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very few Westerners. The amazing income acquired from the gambling halls ranges from seven and a half million dollars to over 12.5 million dollars, and there are a number of restrictions constraints for casino ownership. Ownership is required to be mostly Thai; still, financial sources are cryptic. The borders are officially open from 0900 to 1700, and even though visas are for all intents and purposes needed to pass, there are means around this, as is real of many border crossings.
The first Cambodia casinos opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving only 1 gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a moored barge gambling den, highlights one hundred and fifty slots and sixty table games. The Naga casino never closes with 42 tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, 4 tables of twenty-one, 10 of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The original gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly opened. There are one hundred and fifty slot machine games and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machine games and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights 300 one armed bandits and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and ninety six table games, including 87 punto banco (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machines and sixty six of the normal table games, as well as 1 table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the 8 gambling dens in Poipet, also in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slots and ninety seven table games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of a multinational vacation and hotel complex that highlights many amenities accompanying the gambling hall, which contains 10,000 square feet of 130 slots and 88 table games.