The act of living in Zimbabwe is somewhat of a risk at the moment, so you could imagine that there might be very little affinity for patronizing Zimbabwe’s gambling halls. In fact, it seems to be operating the other way, with the critical market circumstances leading to a greater desire to gamble, to try and locate a fast win, a way out of the situation.
For many of the locals subsisting on the meager local wages, there are two established forms of betting, the state lottery and Zimbet. As with most everywhere else on the globe, there is a national lotto where the chances of winning are remarkably tiny, but then the jackpots are also remarkably large. It’s been said by market analysts who understand the idea that many don’t purchase a card with the rational belief of profiting. Zimbet is built on either the local or the English soccer divisions and involves determining the outcomes of future games.
Zimbabwe’s gambling dens, on the other foot, cater to the considerably rich of the nation and travelers. Up till not long ago, there was a considerably large tourist business, based on safaris and trips to Victoria Falls. The economic woes and associated crime have cut into this market.
Amongst Zimbabwe’s gambling halls, there are 2 in the capital, Harare, the Carribea Bay Resort and Casino, which has 5 gaming tables and one armed bandits, and the Plumtree gambling hall, which has only slot machine games. The Zambesi Valley Hotel and Entertainment Center in Kariba also has only slots. Mutare has the Monclair Hotel and Casino and the Leopard Rock Hotel and Casino, the two of which contain table games, slots and video machines, and Victoria Falls has the Elephant Hills Hotel and Casino and the Makasa Sun Hotel and Casino, the two of which has gaming machines and tables.
In addition to Zimbabwe’s gambling halls and the previously alluded to lottery and Zimbet (which is very like a parimutuel betting system), there are also 2 horse racing complexes in the state: the Matabeleland Turf Club in Bulawayo (the second metropolis) and the Borrowdale Park in Harare.
Given that the market has shrunk by beyond 40% in recent years and with the associated poverty and conflict that has come to pass, it isn’t understood how well the vacationing industry which funds Zimbabwe’s gambling dens will do in the next few years. How many of them will be alive until things improve is simply unknown.