There is an interesting background to the Cambodia gambling dens that sit just over the dividing line from next door Thailand, in which gambling den betting is not allowed. Eight casinos are established in a relatively tiny space in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia gambling halls is in an excellent spot, a three to 4 hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 biggest betting centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a huge business with Thai blue-collar workers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very few Westerners. The amazing income accrued from the gambling dens ranges from $7.5 million to more than 12.5 million dollars, and there are a number of controls requirements for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is required to be mainly Thai; still, funding sources are cryptic. The borders are formally open from 09:00 to 1700, and though visas are supposedly required to cross, there are methods around this, as is accurate of many border crossings.
The original Cambodia casinos opened in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were forced to close in 1998, leaving only a single gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked ship gambling hall, highlights 150 slot machines and 60 table games. The Naga river boat never closes with forty two tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, four tables of blackjack, 10 of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and a single table each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly opened. A total of 150 one armed bandits and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slots and 68 tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features three hundred slot machine games and 70 table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slot machine games and ninety six gaming tables, including eighty seven baccarat chemin de fer (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five slots and sixty six of the familiar tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the eight casinos in Poipet, again in a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slots and 97 games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in a multinational vacation and hotel complex that highlights numerous luxuries in addition to the casino, which has 10,000 sq.ft. of 130 slot machines and eighty eight tables.