There is an interesting story to the Cambodia casinos that lie just over the dividing line from next door Thailand, where gambling den betting is prohibited. Eight gambling dens are established in a generally small space in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This band of Cambodia casinos is in a prime location, a 3 to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the two most popular betting locations in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a huge business with Thai workers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The phenomenal income gained from the gambling halls ranges from $7.5 million to more than 12.5 million, and there are a couple of controls constraints for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is presumed to be mostly Thai; however, investment sources are vague. The borders are ceremoniously open from 9:00 a.m. to 1700, and though visas are allegedly required to pass, there are means around this, as is real of many borders.
The initial Cambodia casinos opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in 1998, leaving just 1 gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked barge casino, features 150 slot machines and 60 gaming tables. The Naga river boat never closes with forty two tables of mini-baccarat, four tables of blackjack, ten of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in the late nineties and the Golden Crown soon opened. A total of one hundred and fifty slot machine games and five table games at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machine games and 68 tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights 300 slot machine games and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slot machines and ninety six table games, including eighty seven baccarat chemin de fer (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Also, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machines and sixty six of the normal gaming tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the eight gambling halls in Poipet, again in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six slot machine games and 97 games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an international resort and hotel complex that highlights many luxuries on top of the casino, which houses ten thousand square feet of 130 slots and 88 table games.