Cambodia Gambling Halls
There is a captivating history to the Cambodia gambling halls that reside just across the dividing line from next door Thailand, in which gambling hall gaming is banned. Eight casinos are based in a relatively tiny area in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia gambling dens is in a prime spot, a 3 to 4 hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the two largest gaming centers in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a thriving business with Thai workers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The phenomenal capital gained from the gambling dens ranges from seven and a half million dollars to over 12.5 million dollars, and there are a number of limitations requirements for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mostly Thai; although, funding sources are ambiguous. The borders are formally open from 9:00 a.m. to 1700, and even though visas are supposedly necessary to cross, there are methods and means around this, as is accurate of most border crossings.
The initial Cambodia gambling halls premiered in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were required to close in 1998, leaving just one casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked bateau casino, contains one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and 60 table games. The Naga river boat is open all day and night with 42 tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, four tables of blackjack, 10 of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The first casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in the late nineties and the Golden Crown quickly followed. There are one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and five tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slots and 68 gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The newest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights three hundred slot machine games and seventy table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slot machine games and 96 gaming tables, including 87 baccarat (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five one armed bandits and sixty six of the normal tables, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional 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 97 games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an international resort and hotel building that contains many luxuries accompanying the gambling den, which offers 10,000 square feet of 130 slot machines and 88 tables.