There is an interesting story to the Cambodia casinos that reside just across the border from next door Thailand, in which casino wagering is not permitted. Eight casinos are established in a relatively tiny location in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia casinos is in a prime area, a 3 to 4 hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the two largest gambling locations in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a thriving business with Thai laborers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The amazing capital gained from the gambling dens ranges from $7.5 million to more than twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a number of limitations requirements for casino ownership. Ownership is required to be mostly Thai; however, funding sources are vague. The borders are formally open from 9:00 a.m. to 1700, and even though visas are supposedly needed to pass, there are methods and means around this, as is accurate of many border crossings.
The first Cambodia gambling dens premiered in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were forced to close in the late nineties, leaving only one gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a moored boat gambling den, contains 150 slot machine games and sixty table games. The Naga gambling hall never closes 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 soon opened. There are one hundred and fifty slot machine games and five tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machine games and 68 gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features three hundred slots and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and 96 gaming tables, including eighty seven baccarat chemin de fer (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five slots and 66 of the familiar table games, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the 8 gambling dens in Poipet, also a part of a motel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six slot machines and 97 casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an all-around vacation and hotel building that highlights numerous comforts in addition to the casino, which houses 10,000 square feet of 130 slots and eighty eight tables.