There is a fascinating story to the Cambodia casinos that reside just over the dividing line from nearby Thailand, in which gambling den wagering is not allowed. Eight gambling dens are established in a relatively tiny space in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia casinos is in an excellent location, a 3 to four hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the two most popular gaming centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a thriving business with Thai workers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The amazing income gained from the gambling halls ranges from $7.5 million to more than 12.5 million dollars, and there are a few restrictions constraints for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is required to be largely Thai; although, financing 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 pass, there are methods and means around this, as is accurate of most border crossings.
The first Cambodia gambling dens premiered in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were forced to close in the late nineties, leaving just 1 gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked barge gambling den, contains one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and 60 table games. The Naga casino is open all hours with forty two tables of mini-punto banco, 4 tables of blackjack, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and a single table each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The original casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in the late nineties and the Golden Crown quickly opened. There are one hundred and fifty slots and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slots and 68 table games at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features three hundred slots and 70 tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slot machine games and ninety six table games, including eighty seven punto banco (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Also, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five slots and sixty six of the common gaming tables, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the 8 gambling dens in Poipet, also a part of a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 one armed bandits and ninety seven games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an all-around vacation and hotel complex that contains numerous luxuries accompanying the gambling den, which houses 10,000 square feet of 130 one armed bandits and eighty eight tables.