The act of living in Zimbabwe is something of a risk at the moment, so you could imagine that there would be very little appetite for going to Zimbabwe’s gambling halls. In reality, it seems to be working the other way, with the awful economic circumstances leading to a higher ambition to bet, to attempt to find a fast win, a way from the crisis.
For the majority of the citizens subsisting on the tiny local wages, there are 2 dominant styles of gambling, the national lotto and Zimbet. As with almost everywhere else in the world, there is a national lottery where the odds of profiting are extremely low, but then the prizes are also remarkably big. It’s been said by economists who study the subject that the majority don’t purchase a ticket with an actual expectation of profiting. Zimbet is built on either the local or the UK soccer leagues and involves determining the results of future matches.
Zimbabwe’s gambling dens, on the other hand, mollycoddle the incredibly rich of the nation and vacationers. Up until a short while ago, there was a considerably large vacationing business, founded on safaris and visits to Victoria Falls. The economic collapse and associated conflict have cut into this market.
Amongst Zimbabwe’s gambling dens, there are 2 in the capital, Harare, the Carribea Bay Resort and Casino, which has 5 gaming tables and slots, and the Plumtree gambling hall, which has just the slot machines. The Zambesi Valley Hotel and Entertainment Center in Kariba also has only one armed bandits. Mutare contains the Monclair Hotel and Casino and the Leopard Rock Hotel and Casino, both of which offer gaming tables, slot machines and video poker machines, and Victoria Falls has the Elephant Hills Hotel and Casino and the Makasa Sun Hotel and Casino, the two of which have gaming machines and table games.
In addition to Zimbabwe’s gambling halls and the aforementioned mentioned lottery and Zimbet (which is considerably like a parimutuel betting system), there are a total of 2 horse racing complexes in the country: the Matabeleland Turf Club in Bulawayo (the 2nd municipality) and the Borrowdale Park in Harare.
Since the economy has shrunk by more than 40 percent in the past few years and with the associated poverty and violence that has cropped up, it isn’t well-known how healthy the tourist business which is the foundation for Zimbabwe’s casinos will do in the near future. How many of the casinos will still be around till things improve is basically not known.