There is a captivating background to the Cambodia gambling dens that reside just across the border from nearby Thailand, where gambling den betting is illegal. Eight gambling dens are situated in a generally tiny area in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This band of Cambodia gambling dens is in a perfect area, a three to 4 hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 most popular betting locations in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a huge business with Thai workers and visitors from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The amazing capital accrued from the gambling dens ranges from 7.5 million dollars to over twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a couple of controls requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mostly Thai; although, investment sources are vague. The borders are formally open from 9:00 a.m. to 17:00, and despite the fact visas are for all intents and purposes needed to cross, there are methods around this, as is true of many border crossings.
The first Cambodia gambling halls opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were forced to close in the late nineties, leaving only one gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary ship gambling den, features 150 slot machines and 60 table games. The Naga river boat never closes with forty two tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, four tables of blackjack, 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 the late nineties and the Golden Crown soon opened. There are 150 slot machine games and 5 table games at the Golden Crown and 104 one armed bandits and sixty eight gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains three hundred slot machines and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slot machines and 96 table games, including eighty seven punto banco (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slots and sixty six of the normal gaming tables, as well as 1 table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the eight gambling dens in Poipet, again a part of a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machines and 97 casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an all-around resort and hotel compound that highlights numerous amenities aside from the casino, which provides ten thousand square feet of one hundred and thirty slot machines and eighty eight tables.