There is an interesting story to the Cambodia casinos that sit just over the border from next door Thailand, in which gambling den wagering is not legal. Eight casinos are situated in a generally tiny space in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia gambling dens is in a perfect spot, a 3 to 4 hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 most popular gambling centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai laborers and guests from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very couple of Westerners. The phenomenal capital accrued from the gambling halls ranges from 7.5 million dollars to over 12.5 million, and there are a few controls requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mainly Thai; although, financial sources are vague. The borders are formally open from 0900 to 1700, and even though visas are supposedly required to cross, there are methods around this, as is accurate of most border crossings.
The initial Cambodia gambling halls premiered in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving only one casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a moored bateau gambling den, features 150 slot machine games and 60 tables. The Naga casino never closes with 42 tables of mini-punto banco, four tables of twenty-one, 10 of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The first gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown soon opened. A total of one hundred and fifty slots and 5 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 machines and seventy table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slots and ninety six table games, including eighty seven baccarat (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Also, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 one armed bandits and 66 of the normal tables, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the 8 gambling dens in Poipet, again in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six slot machine games and 97 games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an international vacation and hotel complex that features numerous conveniences accompanying the gambling hall, which provides 10,000 sq.ft. of 130 slot machine games and 88 gaming tables.