[ English ]

There is a captivating story to the Cambodia gambling halls that sit just over the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, where gambling den betting is not legal. Eight gambling dens are established in a relatively tiny area in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia casinos is in an excellent destination, a three to 4 hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 largest gambling centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai workers and guests from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The amazing capital acquired from the gambling dens ranges from $7.5 million to over twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a couple of controls requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is presumed to be mainly Thai; still, financing sources are vague. The borders are formally open from 0900 to 5:00 p.m., and despite the fact visas are apparently necessary to cross, there are means around this, as is real of many borders.

The initial Cambodia casinos opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were forced to close in 1998, leaving just 1 casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary boat gambling den, contains one hundred and fifty slots and sixty tables. The Naga river boat is open all day and night with forty two tables of mini-baccarat banque, 4 tables of 21, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and a single table each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.

The first gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly followed. There are one hundred and fifty slots and five table games at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slot machine games and sixty eight table games at the Holiday Palace. The newest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains 300 one armed bandits and seventy tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and 96 table games, including 87 baccarat banque (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 66 of the familiar gaming tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the 8 casinos in Poipet, also in a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machines and ninety seven table games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an all-around resort and hotel complex that contains a number of amenities in addition to the casino, which provides ten thousand square feet of 130 one armed bandits and eighty eight gaming tables.