There is an interesting history to the Cambodia casinos that reside just across the dividing line from next door Thailand, in which gambling den wagering is not legal. Eight gambling dens are based in a relatively tiny location in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia gambling dens is in an excellent spot, a three to four hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 biggest wagering centers in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a thriving business with Thai workers and visitors from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very few Westerners. The amazing capital acquired from the casinos ranges from 7.5 million dollars to over 12.5 million dollars, and there are a couple of controls constraints for gambling den ownership. Ownership is required to be largely Thai; however, investment sources are vague. The borders are formally open from 9:00 a.m. to 1700, and though visas are allegedly needed to cross, there are methods and means around this, as is real of many border crossings.
The 1st Cambodia gambling dens opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were forced to close in the late nineties, leaving only a single casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, an anchored barge casino, features one hundred and fifty slots and 60 tables. The Naga casino is open 24 hours with forty two tables of mini-punto banco, four tables of twenty-one, ten of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and one 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 quickly followed. A total of one hundred and fifty slots and five tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slot machine games and 68 tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains 300 slots and 70 tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slot machines and 96 table games, including 87 baccarat (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machines and 66 of the familiar gaming tables, as well as 1 table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the eight gambling halls in Poipet, also a part of a hotel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six slots and 97 table games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in a comprehensive resort and hotel building that contains a number of conveniences in addition to the gambling den, which offers 10,000 square feet of one hundred and thirty slot machines and eighty eight table games.