There is an interesting story to the Cambodia casinos that lie just over the border from nearby Thailand, where casino betting is against the law. Eight gambling halls are anchored in a relatively small location in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia casinos is in an excellent spot, a 3 to 4 hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the two biggest betting centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a thriving business with Thai laborers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The astonishing income accrued from the gambling halls ranges from seven and a half million dollars to more than twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a couple of restrictions constraints for casino ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mainly Thai; although, financing sources are cryptic. The borders are officially open from 0900 to 17:00, and although visas are supposedly necessary to pass, there are means around this, as is correct of many borders.
The first Cambodia casinos premiered in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving only a single gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, an anchored bateau casino, contains 150 one armed bandits and 60 tables. The Naga river boat never closes with forty two tables of mini-punto banco, four tables of 21, 10 of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The 1st casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown soon opened. A total of 150 slots and 5 table games at the Golden Crown and 104 one armed bandits and sixty eight table games at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features three hundred slots and 70 tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slot machine games and 96 table games, including eighty seven punto banco (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five slots and sixty six of the common tables, as well as 1 table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the eight gambling halls in Poipet, again a part of a hotel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six slot machine games and ninety seven games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an international resort and hotel building that features numerous comforts on top of the gambling hall, which has ten thousand square feet of 130 slot machine games and 88 tables.