There is an appealing background to the Cambodia gambling halls that sit just over the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, in which casino betting is not legal. Eight casinos are situated in a generally tiny space in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This band of Cambodia casinos is in an excellent location, a 3 to 4 hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the two most popular gaming locations in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a huge business with Thai workers and guests from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The amazing capital acquired from the gambling halls ranges from $7.5 million to over 12.5 million dollars, and there are a few controls requirements for casino ownership. Ownership is required to be largely Thai; although, funding sources are cryptic. The borders are ceremoniously open from 0900 to 17:00, and although visas are apparently needed to cross, there are methods around this, as is true of most borders.
The 1st Cambodia gambling halls opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in 1998, leaving only a single gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, an anchored ship casino, features 150 slots and sixty tables. The Naga river boat is open 24 hours with forty two tables of mini-baccarat, four tables of chemin de fer, ten of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and a single table each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The original gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in the late nineties and the Golden Crown before long opened. A total of one hundred and fifty slot machines and 5 table games at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machines and 68 tables at the Holiday Palace. The newest 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 eighty seven punto banco (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five slot machine games and sixty six of the familiar gaming tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the eight gambling dens in Poipet, also in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 one armed bandits and ninety seven casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of a comprehensive vacation and hotel compound that highlights numerous conveniences on top of the casino, which provides ten thousand square feet of 130 slots and 88 tables.