There is a captivating story to the Cambodia gambling dens that sit just across the border from next door Thailand, in which casino betting is banned. Eight gambling dens are anchored in a generally tiny area in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This collection of Cambodia casinos is in an excellent location, a three to 4 hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 most popular wagering locations in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a thriving business with Thai workers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very few Westerners. The phenomenal income acquired from the gambling dens ranges from 7.5 million dollars to over twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a few restrictions constraints for casino ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mainly Thai; however, financing sources are vague. The borders are formally open from 09:00 to 17:00, and although visas are apparently needed to cross, there are methods around this, as is accurate of many border crossings.
The initial Cambodia gambling dens opened in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were forced to close in the late nineties, leaving only a single gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked bateau casino, features 150 slots and 60 gaming tables. The Naga river boat is open all day and night with forty two tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, 4 tables of twenty-one, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and one each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The 1st casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly followed. There are 150 one armed bandits and five tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slot machine games and 68 gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains three hundred one armed bandits and 70 table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and ninety six table games, including 87 baccarat chemin de fer (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machine games and sixty six of the normal gaming tables, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the eight gambling dens in Poipet, also a part of a motel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six slot machine games and ninety seven casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an all-around vacation and hotel compound that features a number of conveniences aside from the gambling den, which contains 10,000 sq.ft. of 130 slot machines and 88 table games.