Cambodia Gambling Halls
There is an appealing background to the Cambodia gambling halls that sit just over the border from neighboring Thailand, where casino wagering is not permitted. Eight gambling halls are situated in a relatively small area in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia gambling dens is in a prime destination, a three to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 biggest wagering centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a thriving business with Thai laborers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The phenomenal income gained from the casinos ranges from $7.5 million to over 12.5 million dollars, and there are a number of controls requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is presumed to be mainly Thai; still, financing sources are vague. The borders are officially open from 0900 to 1700, and even though visas are apparently required to cross, there are methods around this, as is true of many borders.
The first Cambodia casinos premiered in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in 1998, leaving just a single casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary ship casino, features 150 slot machines and 60 tables. The Naga gambling den never closes with 42 tables of mini-baccarat banque, 4 tables of blackjack, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and one each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The first gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown soon opened. There are 150 one armed bandits and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slot machines and sixty eight table games at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features 300 one armed bandits and 70 table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slot machine games and ninety six table games, including eighty seven baccarat chemin de fer (the most beloved game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 one armed bandits and sixty six of the familiar tables, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the 8 casinos in Poipet, also a part of a hotel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six one armed bandits and 97 games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in a comprehensive resort and hotel building that contains a number of luxuries on top of the casino, which contains 10,000 square feet of 130 slot machine games and 88 tables.