There is an interesting history to the Cambodia gambling dens that lie just across the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, in which gambling hall wagering is not allowed. Eight casinos are based in a generally tiny space in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This collection of Cambodia gambling dens is in a perfect destination, a three to 4 hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the two largest wagering centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai workers and guests from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very couple of Westerners. The amazing income gained from the gambling halls ranges from 7.5 million dollars to over twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a number of limitations requirements for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is required to be mainly Thai; although, funding sources are ambiguous. The borders are formally open from 09:00 to 1700, and although visas are for all intents and purposes necessary to cross, there are ways around this, as is true of most border crossings.
The first Cambodia casinos premiered in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were forced to close in 1998, leaving only a single gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked boat gambling hall, contains one hundred and fifty slot machine games and 60 table games. The Naga casino is open all hours with 42 tables of mini-punto banco, 4 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 1st casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown soon opened. A total of one hundred and fifty slots and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and 104 one armed bandits and 68 gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features three hundred slot machine games and seventy table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and ninety six gaming tables, including eighty seven baccarat chemin de fer (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five slot machine games and 66 of the normal gaming tables, as well as 1 table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the 8 gambling halls in Poipet, again a part of a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machine games and 97 casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an all-inclusive vacation and hotel building that highlights numerous amenities in addition to the gambling hall, which contains ten thousand sq.ft. of one hundred and thirty slots and 88 gaming tables.