There is an appealing story to the Cambodia gambling halls that lie just over the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, where gambling hall gaming is not allowed. Eight casinos are anchored in a relatively small space in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This collection of Cambodia casinos is in an excellent location, a 3 to four hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the two biggest betting centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai laborers and guests from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The phenomenal income gained from the gambling dens ranges from 7.5 million dollars to over twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a few limitations constraints for gambling den ownership. Ownership is presumed to be largely Thai; still, investment sources are vague. The borders are ceremoniously open from 9:00 a.m. to 1700, and though visas are apparently needed to cross, there are methods around this, as is accurate of most border crossings.
The 1st Cambodia casinos premiered in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were forced to close in the late nineties, leaving just one gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary bateau gambling den, highlights 150 one armed bandits and 60 gaming tables. The Naga river boat never closes with 42 tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, 4 tables of chemin de fer, ten of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and a single table each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The first casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in the late nineties and the Golden Crown quickly followed. A total of 150 one armed bandits and five tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slots and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The newest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains three hundred slot machines and 70 gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slot machines and ninety six table games, including 87 baccarat banque (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five slot machines and sixty six of the familiar gaming tables, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the 8 gambling dens in Poipet, also a part of a motel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six slots and 97 games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of a comprehensive vacation and hotel compound that highlights a number of amenities in addition to the casino, which contains 10,000 sq.ft. of 130 one armed bandits and eighty eight gaming tables.
