Cambodia Gambling Halls
There is an interesting background to the Cambodia gambling dens that lie just across the border from neighboring Thailand, where casino gambling is not allowed. Eight gambling dens are based in a generally small space in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia gambling halls is in a perfect area, a three to four hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the two largest wagering locations in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a huge business with Thai laborers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very few Westerners. The amazing capital accrued from the gambling halls ranges from $7.5 million to more than 12.5 million dollars, and there are a number of limitations constraints for gambling den ownership. Ownership is required to be mainly Thai; however, funding sources are ambiguous. The borders are formally open from 9:00 a.m. to 17:00, and although visas are apparently required to cross, there are ways around this, as is true of most borders.
The original Cambodia casinos premiered in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving just 1 casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary boat gambling hall, highlights one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and sixty tables. The Naga gambling den never closes with forty two tables of mini-baccarat, four tables of 21, 10 of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The 1st gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in the late nineties and the Golden Crown soon opened. There are 150 one armed bandits and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machines and sixty eight gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The newest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains three hundred slot machines and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slot machine games and 96 gaming tables, including 87 baccarat (the most beloved game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slots and 66 of the normal tables, as well as 1 table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the 8 casinos in Poipet, again a part of a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machine games and 97 table games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an all-inclusive resort and hotel compound that highlights a number of amenities accompanying the casino, which houses ten thousand square feet of 130 slot machines and 88 table games.