There is a captivating story to the Cambodia casinos that sit just across the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, in which gambling den gambling is not permitted. Eight gambling dens are based in a relatively tiny area in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia gambling halls is in an excellent spot, a three to 4 hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 most popular gambling centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai blue-collar workers and guests from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very couple of Westerners. The phenomenal capital gained from the gambling dens ranges from seven and a half million dollars to over 12.5 million dollars, and there are a few limitations requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is presumed to be largely Thai; although, financing sources are vague. The borders are formally open from 9:00 a.m. to 17:00, and although visas are allegedly needed to pass, there are ways around this, as is correct of many border crossings.
The original Cambodia gambling dens opened in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving just 1 casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked bateau gambling hall, contains one hundred and fifty slots and 60 table games. The Naga gambling hall never closes with forty two tables of mini-baccarat, four tables of 21, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and one each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The 1st casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly followed. There are 150 slot machines and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slot machines and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights 300 one armed bandits and 70 table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and 96 table games, including eighty seven punto banco (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machines and 66 of the normal tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the 8 gambling dens in Poipet, again in a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machines and 97 casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an all-inclusive resort and hotel complex that contains many amenities accompanying the gambling hall, which has ten thousand sq.ft. of 130 slots and 88 gaming tables.