Cambodia Gambling Dens
There is a captivating background to the Cambodia gambling dens that sit just across the border from nearby Thailand, in which casino betting is not allowed. Eight casinos are anchored in a relatively small space in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This collection of Cambodia casinos is in a perfect spot, a three to four hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 largest wagering centers in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a huge business with Thai workers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very few Westerners. The phenomenal capital gained from the gambling halls ranges from seven and a half million dollars to over 12.5 million dollars, and there are a few controls constraints for casino ownership. Ownership is assumed to be largely Thai; although, financing sources are vague. The borders are ceremoniously open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and despite the fact visas are allegedly necessary to cross, there are ways around this, as is accurate of many borders.
The initial Cambodia gambling dens opened in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were required to close in 1998, leaving just 1 gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary boat gambling hall, contains 150 slot machines and 60 table games. The Naga gambling den never closes with 42 tables of mini-baccarat, 4 tables of twenty-one, 10 of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and one each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in the late nineties and the Golden Crown quickly followed. There are 150 slot machines and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machine games and 68 table games at the Holiday Palace. The newest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features three hundred slot machine games and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 one armed bandits and ninety six gaming tables, including eighty seven baccarat (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machine games and 66 of the familiar tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the 8 casinos in Poipet, also in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 one armed bandits and ninety seven casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an international vacation and hotel building that features numerous luxuries aside from the gambling den, which houses ten thousand square feet of one hundred and thirty slot machine games and eighty eight gaming tables.