There is a fascinating history to the Cambodia gambling halls that sit just across the border from next door Thailand, in which gambling hall gambling is illegal. Eight casinos are anchored in a generally small area in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia gambling dens is in an excellent location, a three to 4 hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the two biggest betting centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai blue-collar workers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The phenomenal capital gained from the casinos ranges from 7.5 million dollars to over twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a couple of limitations constraints for casino ownership. Ownership is presumed to be mostly Thai; although, financing sources are vague. The borders are formally open from 9:00 a.m. to 17:00, and despite the fact visas are apparently necessary to pass, there are ways around this, as is correct of many border crossings.
The 1st Cambodia gambling dens premiered in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in 1998, leaving only a single gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, an anchored ship gambling den, contains one hundred and fifty slot machine games and 60 table games. The Naga river boat never closes with forty two tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, 4 tables of chemin de fer, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in the late nineties and the Golden Crown quickly followed. There are one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and five table games at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machine games and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The newest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains 300 one armed bandits and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slot machines and 96 table games, including 87 punto banco (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five slot machine games and sixty six of the familiar tables, as well as 1 table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the eight gambling dens in Poipet, also a part of a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 one armed bandits and 97 casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of a multinational vacation and hotel compound that features many comforts on top of the gambling den, which provides ten thousand sq.ft. of 130 one armed bandits and eighty eight gaming tables.