There is a captivating history to the Cambodia gambling halls that sit just across the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, in which gambling hall wagering is prohibited. Eight gambling halls are anchored in a generally small area in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This group of Cambodia gambling halls is in a perfect area, a three to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 biggest betting centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a huge business with Thai blue-collar workers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The phenomenal income gained from the gambling dens ranges from seven and a half million dollars to more than 12.5 million dollars, and there are a couple of controls requirements for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is assumed to be largely Thai; although, funding sources are ambiguous. The borders are formally open from 09:00 to 5:00 p.m., and despite the fact visas are allegedly necessary to pass, there are methods around this, as is accurate of most border crossings.
The initial Cambodia gambling dens opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving only 1 casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked bateau gambling den, contains 150 slot machines and sixty gaming tables. The Naga casino never closes with forty two tables of mini-baccarat, four tables of twenty-one, ten of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The first gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown soon followed. A total of one hundred and fifty slot machines and five tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slots and sixty eight gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features 300 one armed bandits and 70 table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slot machine games and ninety six gaming tables, including 87 punto banco (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Also, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slots and 66 of the common tables, as well as 1 table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the eight gambling halls in Poipet, also in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six slots and 97 casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an all-inclusive resort and hotel compound that highlights numerous conveniences in addition to the gambling den, which has ten thousand square feet of one hundred and thirty one armed bandits and eighty eight table games.