There is an interesting history to the Cambodia gambling halls that lie just across the dividing line from nearby Thailand, in which casino wagering is not allowed. Eight gambling halls are based in a relatively tiny area in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia gambling halls is in a perfect destination, a three to 4 hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 most popular betting locations in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a huge business with Thai workers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very couple of Westerners. The astonishing capital accrued 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 restrictions requirements for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is required to be largely Thai; still, funding sources are cryptic. The borders are officially open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and although visas are supposedly necessary to pass, there are means around this, as is correct of many border crossings.
The 1st Cambodia gambling dens opened in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were forced to close in the late nineties, leaving only a single gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary bateau gambling hall, features 150 one armed bandits and 60 gaming tables. The Naga river boat is open all day and night with forty two tables of mini-baccarat, four tables of twenty-one, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The 1st gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in the late nineties and the Golden Crown soon followed. There are 150 slot machine games and five table games at the Golden Crown and 104 one armed bandits and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features three hundred slot machines and 70 gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 one armed bandits and 96 gaming tables, including eighty seven baccarat chemin de fer (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machines and 66 of the familiar table games, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the eight casinos in Poipet, again a part of a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 one armed bandits and ninety seven casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an all-inclusive resort and hotel building that contains many amenities aside from the gambling den, which offers ten thousand sq.ft. of one hundred and thirty slot machines and 88 gaming tables.