There is a fascinating background to the Cambodia gambling dens that sit just across the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, in which casino gaming is not legal. Eight casinos are situated in a relatively tiny location in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This collection of Cambodia casinos is in a perfect spot, a three to 4 hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 biggest gambling locations in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a huge business with Thai workers and visitors from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The phenomenal income accrued from the casinos ranges from 7.5 million dollars to more than 12.5 million, and there are a couple of restrictions requirements for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is presumed to be largely Thai; however, financial sources are cryptic. The borders are officially open from 09:00 to 17:00, and even though visas are for all intents and purposes needed to pass, there are means around this, as is real of many border crossings.
The original Cambodia casinos opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving only 1 gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary barge gambling hall, features 150 slot machine games and 60 gaming tables. The Naga casino never closes with 42 tables of mini-punto banco, 4 tables of 21, 10 of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and one each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The first gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown before long opened. There are one hundred and fifty slot machine games and five tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slots and sixty eight gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The newest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains 300 slots and seventy table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slots and 96 gaming tables, including eighty seven baccarat chemin de fer (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five one armed bandits and sixty six of the normal table games, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the 8 casinos in Poipet, again in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slots and 97 casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of a comprehensive resort and hotel complex that highlights a number of luxuries accompanying the gambling hall, which contains ten thousand square feet of 130 slots and eighty eight table games.