[ English ]

There is a captivating history to the Cambodia gambling dens that lie just across the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, where gambling den betting is banned. Eight casinos are established in a relatively small space in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This band of Cambodia casinos is in a perfect spot, a three to 4 hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the two most popular wagering locations in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai laborers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a 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 few limitations requirements for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mainly Thai; although, financing sources are cryptic. The borders are officially open from 0900 to 1700, and even though visas are apparently required to cross, there are methods and means around this, as is accurate of many border crossings.

The initial Cambodia gambling dens premiered in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in 1998, leaving only a single gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked bateau gambling hall, features 150 slots and sixty tables. The Naga gambling den never closes with forty two tables of mini-baccarat, 4 tables of chemin de fer, 10 of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and one each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.

The 1st casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly followed. A total of one hundred and fifty slots and 5 tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slots and sixty eight table games at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights three hundred slot machines and seventy table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slots and ninety six table games, including eighty seven baccarat chemin de fer (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Also, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 one armed bandits and sixty six of the familiar tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the eight casinos in Poipet, also in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six one armed bandits and 97 table games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an international vacation and hotel complex that highlights numerous comforts on top of the gambling hall, which has ten thousand sq.ft. of one hundred and thirty one armed bandits and eighty eight gaming tables.