There is an interesting background to the Cambodia gambling dens that sit just across the dividing line from nearby Thailand, in which gambling den gambling is not permitted. Eight gambling halls are established in a relatively tiny area in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia gambling halls is in a prime destination, a three to four hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 biggest betting locations in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a huge business with Thai workers and guests from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The phenomenal capital accrued from the gambling halls ranges from seven and a half million dollars to more than 12.5 million, and there are a couple of controls requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is required to be largely Thai; although, financial sources are cryptic. The borders are officially open from 09:00 to 5:00 p.m., and though visas are supposedly required to pass, there are ways around this, as is true of most border crossings.
The original Cambodia casinos premiered in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were required to close in 1998, leaving just a single gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary barge casino, contains 150 slots and sixty tables. The Naga river boat is open 24 hours with 42 tables of mini-punto banco, 4 tables of blackjack, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in the late nineties and the Golden Crown quickly opened. There are 150 one armed bandits and five tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machines and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features 300 slot machines and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slot machine games and ninety six gaming tables, including 87 baccarat banque (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Also, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machine games and sixty six of the normal gaming tables, as well as a single 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 166 slot machines and ninety seven casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in a multinational vacation and hotel building that features a number of amenities aside from the gambling den, which contains ten thousand square feet of one hundred and thirty one armed bandits and 88 table games.