[ English ]

There is a captivating background to the Cambodia gambling dens that sit just over the dividing line from next door Thailand, where gambling den wagering is against the law. Eight gambling halls are established in a generally tiny location in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia gambling dens is in a prime location, a 3 to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 largest gaming locations in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a thriving business with Thai blue-collar workers and visitors from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very couple of Westerners. The phenomenal income acquired from the casinos ranges from seven and a half million dollars to over 12.5 million dollars, and there are a couple of limitations requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mostly Thai; however, financial sources are ambiguous. The borders are officially open from 0900 to 17:00, and although visas are allegedly needed to pass, there are ways around this, as is accurate of many border crossings.

The first Cambodia gambling dens opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving only 1 gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary boat casino, highlights one hundred and fifty slots and 60 gaming tables. The Naga river boat is open all hours with 42 tables of mini-baccarat, 4 tables of 21, 10 of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.

The first gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in the late nineties and the Golden Crown soon followed. There are 150 slot machines and five tables at the Golden Crown and 104 one armed bandits and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The newest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features 300 slots and 70 tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slot machine games and ninety six table games, including 87 baccarat (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five slot machines and sixty six of the common table games, as well as 1 table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the 8 casinos in Poipet, again a part of a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machines and ninety seven table games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of a comprehensive vacation and hotel compound that highlights a number of comforts aside from the gambling hall, which provides 10,000 sq.ft. of one hundred and thirty slot machine games and 88 tables.