There is a fascinating history to the Cambodia casinos that sit just across the border from next door Thailand, where casino wagering is banned. Eight gambling dens are anchored in a relatively tiny space in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This collection of Cambodia gambling dens is in a perfect spot, a 3 to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the two biggest wagering locations in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai laborers and visitors from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The astonishing capital gained from the gambling dens ranges from 7.5 million dollars to more than twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a couple of controls requirements for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is required to be mainly Thai; although, funding sources are cryptic. The borders are officially open from 09:00 to 1700, and even though visas are allegedly needed to pass, there are means around this, as is real of most borders.
The original Cambodia casinos opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving only one gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked boat gambling hall, highlights one hundred and fifty slots and 60 tables. The Naga river boat is open all day and night with 42 tables of mini-punto banco, 4 tables of blackjack, ten of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The 1st gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly opened. A total of 150 one armed bandits and five table games at the Golden Crown and 104 one armed bandits and sixty eight table games at the Holiday Palace. The newest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains three hundred slot machines and seventy table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and ninety six gaming tables, including 87 baccarat (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five slots and sixty six of the common tables, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the 8 casinos in Poipet, also a part of a motel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six slot machines and ninety seven games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an international resort and hotel building that features a number of comforts on top of the gambling hall, which contains 10,000 square feet of one hundred and thirty one armed bandits and eighty eight table games.