Cambodia Gambling Dens
There is an interesting background to the Cambodia casinos that reside just over the dividing line from nearby Thailand, in which gambling den wagering is not allowed. Eight gambling dens are based in a generally small location in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia casinos is in a prime location, a 3 to 4 hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 biggest betting centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai blue-collar workers and guests from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The astonishing income accrued from the gambling dens ranges from 7.5 million dollars to more than 12.5 million dollars, and there are a few limitations constraints for gambling den ownership. Ownership is presumed to be mostly Thai; however, financial sources are ambiguous. The borders are officially open from 0900 to 1700, and although visas are supposedly needed to cross, there are methods and means around this, as is true of many borders.
The 1st Cambodia casinos opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in 1998, leaving only 1 gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary bateau casino, contains one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and 60 tables. The Naga gambling den is open all day and night with 42 tables of mini-punto banco, 4 tables of 21, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and a single table each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The 1st casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in the late nineties and the Golden Crown soon opened. A total of 150 slot machine games and five tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machine games and sixty eight table games at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains three hundred slot machines and 70 gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slot machine games and ninety six gaming tables, including 87 baccarat banque (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machines and 66 of the familiar table games, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the eight gambling dens in Poipet, again a part of a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slots and ninety seven games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an all-around vacation and hotel building that contains numerous luxuries in addition to the gambling hall, which provides 10,000 square feet of one hundred and thirty slot machine games and eighty eight gaming tables.