There is an appealing history to the Cambodia gambling halls that sit just across the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, in which casino wagering is against the law. Eight casinos are established in a generally tiny location in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia casinos is in a perfect spot, a 3 to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the two biggest gaming centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a huge business with Thai blue-collar workers and guests 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 to over twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a few controls constraints for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mostly Thai; although, financing sources are ambiguous. The borders are ceremoniously open from 09:00 to 17:00, and despite the fact visas are allegedly needed to cross, there are means around this, as is true of many borders.
The original Cambodia casinos opened in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were forced to close in 1998, leaving just one gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, an anchored bateau casino, contains 150 one armed bandits and sixty gaming tables. The Naga gambling hall never closes with 42 tables of mini-punto banco, four tables of chemin de fer, 10 of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The original gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown before long followed. A total of one hundred and fifty slot machines and 5 table games at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machines and sixty eight gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features 300 slot machine games and seventy tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and ninety six gaming tables, including eighty seven punto banco (the most beloved game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Also, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slots and sixty six of the familiar tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the eight gambling halls in Poipet, also in a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machine games and 97 casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in a multinational resort and hotel building that features many amenities on top of the casino, which has ten thousand square feet of one hundred and thirty slot machine games and 88 table games.
