There is an interesting story to the Cambodia casinos that sit just over the dividing line from next door Thailand, where gambling hall gaming is not legal. Eight gambling dens are based in a generally tiny location in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia gambling dens is in an excellent spot, a three to four hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the two biggest gaming centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a thriving business with Thai blue-collar workers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The astonishing capital accrued from the gambling halls ranges from 7.5 million dollars to more than 12.5 million dollars, and there are a couple of restrictions constraints for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mainly Thai; however, investment sources are cryptic. The borders are officially open from 9:00 a.m. to 17:00, and though visas are allegedly required to pass, there are methods around this, as is correct of many borders.
The 1st Cambodia casinos opened in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were forced to close in the late nineties, leaving just 1 casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a moored boat gambling hall, highlights one hundred and fifty slot machines and 60 table games. The Naga gambling hall is open all hours with forty two tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, four tables of vingt-et-un, 10 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 the late nineties and the Golden Crown soon followed. There are one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slot machines and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains 300 slot machine games and seventy table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and ninety six table games, including eighty seven baccarat banque (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Also, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five one armed bandits and 66 of the normal gaming tables, as well as 1 table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the 8 gambling halls in Poipet, also in a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machines and 97 table games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an all-inclusive vacation and hotel compound that features numerous conveniences in addition to the gambling hall, which offers 10,000 sq.ft. of one hundred and thirty one armed bandits and eighty eight table games.
