There is a captivating story to the Cambodia casinos that sit just over the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, where gambling den betting is illegal. Eight gambling halls are established in a generally tiny space in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This band of Cambodia casinos is in an excellent destination, a 3 to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the two most popular wagering locations in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a thriving business with Thai workers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The amazing income gained from the casinos ranges from $7.5 million to over twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a number of restrictions requirements for casino ownership. Ownership is required to be largely Thai; although, funding sources are vague. The borders are officially open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and despite the fact visas are supposedly needed to pass, there are means around this, as is real of most borders.
The initial Cambodia gambling halls opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were forced to close in 1998, leaving just one gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary boat casino, highlights 150 slot machine games and sixty tables. 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 a single table each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly opened. There are 150 one armed bandits and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and 104 one armed bandits and 68 tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights 300 one armed bandits and seventy tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six one armed bandits and ninety six gaming tables, including 87 baccarat (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Also, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five slots and 66 of the familiar table games, as well as 1 table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the 8 casinos in Poipet, also in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slots and 97 games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an all-inclusive resort and hotel building that highlights many comforts aside from the casino, which has 10,000 square feet of 130 slot machine games and eighty eight tables.
