[ English ]

There is an interesting story to the Cambodia gambling dens that lie just over the border from nearby Thailand, in which gambling den betting is not allowed. Eight casinos are situated in a relatively small space in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia casinos is in an excellent area, a three to four hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the two largest gambling locations in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai blue-collar workers and tourists 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, and there are a number of controls requirements for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is presumed to be largely Thai; still, financial sources are cryptic. The borders are ceremoniously open from 0900 to 17:00, and though visas are supposedly required to pass, there are means around this, as is correct of many border crossings.

The original Cambodia gambling halls premiered in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were forced to close in the late nineties, leaving just one casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a moored ship gambling den, features one hundred and fifty slot machines and sixty gaming tables. The Naga casino never closes with 42 tables of mini-punto banco, 4 tables of 21, 10 of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.

The original gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown soon opened. There are 150 one armed bandits and 5 table games at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four one armed bandits and 68 tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features 300 slot machines and 70 gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slot machines and ninety six gaming tables, including 87 baccarat (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machines and 66 of the familiar table games, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the 8 gambling dens in Poipet, again in a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machine games and 97 casino games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in a comprehensive resort and hotel building that highlights numerous comforts aside from the gambling den, which houses 10,000 square feet of 130 slot machine games and eighty eight tables.