There is a captivating background to the Cambodia casinos that sit just over the border from next door Thailand, in which gambling den gaming is not legal. Eight gambling dens are situated in a relatively small area in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This collection of Cambodia casinos is in a perfect area, a 3 to four hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 biggest gaming locations in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai blue-collar workers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The phenomenal income acquired from the gambling dens ranges from seven and a half million dollars to over twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a few controls requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mainly Thai; although, investment sources are cryptic. The borders are ceremoniously open from 0900 to 5:00 p.m., and despite the fact visas are supposedly needed to cross, there are ways around this, as is accurate of many border crossings.
The initial Cambodia gambling dens premiered in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were forced to close in 1998, leaving just 1 gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a moored bateau casino, highlights one hundred and fifty slot machine games and sixty tables. The Naga gambling hall is open 24 hours with 42 tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, four tables of twenty-one, ten of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and a single table each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown soon followed. There are 150 one armed bandits and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slot machine games and 68 table games at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features three hundred slots and seventy tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and ninety six table games, including eighty seven punto banco (the most beloved game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 one armed bandits and 66 of the normal table games, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the eight gambling dens in Poipet, also in a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machine games and ninety seven casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an all-around resort and hotel building that features a number of comforts in addition to the casino, which houses 10,000 sq.ft. of 130 slots and 88 tables.