There is an interesting history to the Cambodia casinos that sit just across the border from nearby Thailand, where casino gambling is against the law. Eight gambling dens are anchored in a generally small area in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia casinos is in a prime location, a three to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 biggest gaming centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a thriving business with Thai blue-collar workers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a couple of Westerners. The astonishing income accrued from the gambling halls ranges from $7.5 million to more than twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a few restrictions constraints for gambling den ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mostly Thai; although, funding sources are vague. The borders are officially open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and even though visas are supposedly needed to cross, there are means around this, as is true of many border crossings.
The initial Cambodia casinos opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in 1998, leaving only 1 casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a moored barge casino, features 150 slot machine games and sixty table games. The Naga casino is open all day and night with 42 tables of mini-baccarat, 4 tables of 21, 10 of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The original gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly followed. There are one hundred and fifty slots and five table games at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machines and sixty eight gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains 300 slot machines and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and ninety six table games, including 87 baccarat banque (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machines and sixty six of the common tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the 8 gambling dens in Poipet, again a part of a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slots and ninety seven casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an all-around resort and hotel compound that features a number of conveniences aside from the casino, which offers ten thousand sq.ft. of one hundred and thirty one armed bandits and eighty eight table games.