There is a captivating background to the Cambodia casinos that lie just over the border from nearby Thailand, in which gambling den gambling is not allowed. Eight gambling halls are based in a relatively small area in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia casinos is in a prime destination, a 3 to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 largest wagering centers in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a huge business with Thai workers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very few Westerners. The amazing income acquired from the gambling halls ranges from 7.5 million dollars to more than 12.5 million dollars, and there are a couple of restrictions requirements for casino ownership. Ownership is required to be largely Thai; however, funding sources are vague. The borders are officially open from 0900 to 1700, and though visas are for all intents and purposes needed to cross, there are means around this, as is real of most borders.
The original Cambodia gambling dens opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving only 1 gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, an anchored bateau gambling den, contains 150 slots and 60 table games. The Naga river boat is open all hours with forty two tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, four tables of vingt-et-un, ten of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly followed. There are one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and five tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four one armed bandits and 68 tables at the Holiday Palace. The newest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features three hundred slot machine games and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slot machines and 96 gaming tables, including 87 baccarat chemin de fer (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 one armed bandits and sixty six of the normal gaming tables, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the 8 gambling halls in Poipet, also in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machine games and 97 casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an all-around resort and hotel building that contains many luxuries in addition to the gambling den, which offers ten thousand square feet of 130 slots and 88 gaming tables.