The entire process of living in Zimbabwe is somewhat of a risk at the current time, so you could envision that there would be very little desire for visiting Zimbabwe’s casinos. In fact, it appears to be functioning the other way, with the desperate economic conditions leading to a higher desire to wager, to try and find a quick win, a way out of the difficulty.
For nearly all of the citizens surviving on the abismal local money, there are two established styles of betting, the national lottery and Zimbet. Just as with practically everywhere else in the world, there is a national lotto where the chances of profiting are extremely tiny, but then the winnings are also unbelievably large. It’s been said by economists who study the subject that many do not buy a card with the rational assumption of profiting. Zimbet is based on one of the local or the English football leagues and involves predicting the results of future matches.
Zimbabwe’s casinos, on the other foot, pander to the incredibly rich of the country and tourists. Up till a short while ago, there was a incredibly substantial vacationing industry, built on safaris and visits to Victoria Falls. The market woes and connected crime have carved into this market.
Amongst Zimbabwe’s casinos, there are 2 in the capital, Harare, the Carribea Bay Resort and Casino, which has five gaming tables and slot machines, and the Plumtree Casino, which has only slot machine games. The Zambesi Valley Hotel and Entertainment Centre in Kariba also has only slots. Mutare has the Monclair Hotel and Casino and the Leopard Rock Hotel and Casino, the two of which have table games, slots and video poker machines, and Victoria Falls houses the Elephant Hills Hotel and Casino and the Makasa Sun Hotel and Casino, the pair of which have gaming machines and tables.
In addition to Zimbabwe’s casinos and the previously alluded to lottery and Zimbet (which is quite like a parimutuel betting system), there are also two horse racing complexs in the nation: the Matabeleland Turf Club in Bulawayo (the 2nd metropolis) and the Borrowdale Park in Harare.
Given that the market has diminished by beyond 40%in the past few years and with the associated deprivation and crime that has come to pass, it isn’t well-known how well the tourist business which is the backbone of Zimbabwe’s gambling dens will do in the near future. How many of the casinos will still be around till conditions improve is merely unknown.