There is a captivating background to the Cambodia gambling halls that sit just over the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, where gambling hall gambling is prohibited. Eight gambling halls are situated in a generally small location in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia gambling dens is in a prime destination, a three to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 largest gambling centers in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a thriving business with Thai workers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very few Westerners. The phenomenal capital gained from the gambling dens ranges from $7.5 million to more than 12.5 million dollars, and there are a couple of restrictions constraints for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is required to be largely Thai; however, investment sources are vague. The borders are ceremoniously open from 09:00 to 17:00, and even though visas are for all intents and purposes needed to cross, there are ways around this, as is correct of most borders.
The original Cambodia gambling dens opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were forced to close in 1998, leaving just 1 gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary ship gambling den, highlights 150 slot machine games and sixty tables. The Naga gambling den is open 24 hours with forty two tables of mini-baccarat banque, four tables of blackjack, ten of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The first gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in the late nineties and the Golden Crown soon opened. There are 150 slot machines and five tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four one armed bandits and sixty eight table games at the Holiday Palace. The newest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains 300 slots and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slot machines and 96 gaming tables, including eighty seven punto banco (the most beloved game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Also, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machines and sixty six of the normal tables, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the eight gambling dens in Poipet, again in a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machine games and ninety seven games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of a multinational resort and hotel building that contains a number of amenities aside from the casino, which offers 10,000 sq.ft. of 130 one armed bandits and 88 table games.