There is an appealing background to the Cambodia gambling halls that sit just across the dividing line from nearby Thailand, in which casino gaming is not permitted. Eight gambling halls are based in a relatively small area in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This band of Cambodia gambling dens is in a perfect area, a three to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 biggest gambling centers in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a thriving business with Thai laborers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The amazing income acquired from the casinos ranges from 7.5 million dollars to over 12.5 million, and there are a number of controls constraints for casino ownership. Ownership is required to be largely Thai; still, financial sources are vague. The borders are officially open from 0900 to 1700, and despite the fact visas are apparently needed to cross, there are methods around this, as is correct of many border crossings.
The first Cambodia casinos premiered in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in 1998, leaving just a single casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary barge casino, features 150 slots and sixty table games. The Naga gambling hall never closes with forty two tables of mini-baccarat, four tables of vingt-et-un, 10 of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and a single table each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The 1st gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly opened. There are one hundred and fifty slots and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and 104 one armed bandits and 68 gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains 300 one armed bandits and seventy table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and 96 gaming tables, including eighty seven punto banco (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 one armed bandits and 66 of the familiar gaming tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the 8 casinos in Poipet, also in a motel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six one armed bandits and 97 table games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in a comprehensive resort and hotel complex that contains numerous comforts in addition to the gambling hall, which offers ten thousand sq.ft. of one hundred and thirty slot machine games and 88 tables.