There is a captivating background to the Cambodia casinos that lie just across the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, in which gambling den betting is banned. Eight casinos are established in a relatively small space in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia gambling halls is in a prime spot, a 3 to four hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the two largest gaming locations in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai workers and guests from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very few Westerners. The phenomenal income gained from the gambling halls ranges from $7.5 million to over twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a number of controls requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is assumed to be largely Thai; however, financing sources are vague. The borders are ceremoniously open from 0900 to 5:00 p.m., and despite the fact visas are apparently needed to pass, there are methods around this, as is real of most border crossings.
The first Cambodia gambling halls opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in 1998, leaving only one casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a stationary bateau casino, contains 150 slot machines and 60 gaming tables. The Naga river boat is open all day and night with forty two tables of mini-baccarat, 4 tables of vingt-et-un, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and a single table each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The initial casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown before long opened. A total of one hundred and fifty slots and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slot machines and 68 table games at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains 300 slot machines and seventy table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slots and 96 table games, including 87 baccarat (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machine games and sixty six of the normal gaming tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the 8 gambling dens in Poipet, again a part of a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slots and 97 table games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in a comprehensive resort and hotel complex that features many luxuries on top of the gambling hall, which provides ten thousand square feet of 130 slot machine games and 88 table games.