There is a fascinating history to the Cambodia casinos that lie just across the border from neighboring Thailand, in which gambling den gaming is not legal. Eight casinos are anchored in a relatively small area in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia gambling halls is in a perfect destination, a 3 to four hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the two largest gambling centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a huge business with Thai workers and visitors from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very few Westerners. The astonishing capital acquired from the gambling dens ranges from seven and a half million dollars to more than twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a few restrictions constraints for casino ownership. Ownership is presumed to be mostly Thai; still, investment sources are cryptic. The borders are formally open from 09:00 to 5:00 p.m., and though visas are for all intents and purposes needed to cross, there are methods and means around this, as is true of many border crossings.
The first Cambodia gambling dens premiered in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving just a single gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, an anchored boat gambling hall, contains 150 slot machine games and 60 gaming tables. The Naga gambling hall is open 24 hours with forty two tables of mini-baccarat banque, 4 tables of twenty-one, 10 of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in the late nineties and the Golden Crown quickly followed. A total of one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and five table games at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slot machine games and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights 300 slot machine games and 70 tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six one armed bandits and 96 table games, including 87 baccarat banque (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Also, 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 casinos in Poipet, again in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six slot machine games and ninety seven table games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of a comprehensive resort and hotel building that contains numerous conveniences on top of the casino, which houses 10,000 square feet of 130 one armed bandits and eighty eight tables.