There is an interesting story to the Cambodia casinos that sit just across the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, in which gambling den gaming is illegal. Eight gambling dens are based in a relatively small space in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This collection of Cambodia gambling dens is in a prime location, a 3 to four hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 most popular gambling centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a thriving business with Thai blue-collar workers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The phenomenal income acquired from the gambling dens ranges from $7.5 million to over 12.5 million dollars, and there are a few restrictions requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mainly Thai; however, funding sources are cryptic. The borders are officially open from 0900 to 1700, and even though visas are allegedly necessary to pass, there are methods around this, as is accurate of many border crossings.
The first Cambodia gambling dens premiered in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were forced to close in 1998, leaving only 1 gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a moored barge gambling hall, features 150 slots and sixty table games. The Naga casino never closes with 42 tables of mini-punto banco, 4 tables of vingt-et-un, 10 of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly followed. There are one hundred and fifty slot machines and five tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slots and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains 300 slots and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and 96 table games, including 87 baccarat chemin de fer (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machines and 66 of the normal tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the 8 casinos in Poipet, also a part of a hotel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six slot machines and 97 casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an international vacation and hotel compound that features numerous amenities accompanying the casino, which offers 10,000 sq.ft. of 130 slot machines and 88 tables.
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