There is an interesting background to the Cambodia gambling halls that reside just over the dividing line from next door Thailand, where gambling hall gambling is not permitted. Eight casinos are situated in a generally small space in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia gambling halls is in a perfect spot, a three to four hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 largest betting centers in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a huge business with Thai laborers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The phenomenal capital gained from the casinos ranges from seven and a half million dollars to over 12.5 million, and there are a couple of limitations constraints for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is required to be largely Thai; however, financial sources are cryptic. The borders are formally open from 9:00 a.m. to 1700, and even though visas are supposedly required to pass, there are methods around this, as is accurate of most borders.
The 1st Cambodia casinos premiered in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in 1998, leaving just one gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked ship casino, contains one hundred and fifty slot machine games and sixty gaming tables. The Naga casino is open all day and night with 42 tables of mini-punto banco, 4 tables of twenty-one, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The original gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly followed. A total of 150 one armed bandits and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slots and 68 tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights 300 slots and seventy table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and 96 gaming tables, including eighty seven baccarat chemin de fer (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Also, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machines and sixty six of the familiar tables, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the 8 casinos in Poipet, again a part of a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 one armed bandits and ninety seven games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an all-inclusive vacation and hotel compound that features a number of comforts in addition to the gambling den, which houses 10,000 square feet of one hundred and thirty one armed bandits and 88 tables.