There is an interesting story to the Cambodia gambling dens that reside just across the dividing line from next door Thailand, where gambling den wagering is prohibited. Eight gambling dens are established in a generally tiny area in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This collection of Cambodia casinos is in an excellent spot, a 3 to 4 hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the two most popular gambling centers in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a thriving business with Thai blue-collar workers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very few Westerners. The astonishing capital gained from the casinos ranges from seven and a half million dollars to more than 12.5 million dollars, and there are a number of controls requirements for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is required to be mostly Thai; however, investment sources are vague. The borders are officially open from 09:00 to 17:00, and despite the fact visas are allegedly required to cross, there are ways around this, as is true of most borders.
The initial Cambodia gambling halls opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving just a single casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked ship gambling den, highlights one hundred and fifty slots and 60 tables. The Naga river boat never closes with forty two tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, 4 tables of vingt-et-un, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and one each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The original casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly followed. There are 150 one armed bandits and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slots and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features 300 slots and seventy tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slot machine games and ninety six gaming tables, including 87 punto banco (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five one armed bandits and sixty six of the common table games, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the 8 gambling dens in Poipet, again in a motel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six one armed bandits and 97 games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an international resort and hotel building that highlights numerous luxuries aside from the gambling hall, which houses 10,000 square feet of one hundred and thirty slot machine games and 88 tables.