There is a fascinating background to the Cambodia gambling halls that reside just across the dividing line from nearby Thailand, in which casino gaming is not allowed. Eight gambling dens are based in a relatively small location in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia casinos is in a perfect destination, a three to four hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the two most popular wagering locations in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a huge business with Thai workers and guests from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The amazing income accrued from the gambling dens ranges from $7.5 million to more than twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a few limitations constraints for casino ownership. Ownership is presumed to be largely Thai; still, funding sources are vague. The borders are ceremoniously open from 09:00 to 1700, and although visas are supposedly necessary to pass, there are ways around this, as is correct of most borders.
The initial Cambodia casinos opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were forced to close in 1998, leaving just a single gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary boat gambling hall, highlights one hundred and fifty slots and sixty table games. The Naga gambling hall is open all hours with 42 tables of mini-punto banco, 4 tables of 21, 10 of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and a single table each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly followed. A total of one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and 5 table games at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machines and 68 gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights three hundred slots and seventy table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slots and ninety six table games, including eighty seven baccarat banque (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 one armed bandits and 66 of the normal tables, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the 8 gambling halls in Poipet, also in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slots and 97 casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in a multinational vacation and hotel compound that features a number of comforts aside from the casino, which houses ten thousand square feet of one hundred and thirty slot machines and eighty eight table games.