There is an appealing history to the Cambodia gambling dens that sit just across the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, in which gambling den gaming is prohibited. Eight gambling halls are anchored in a generally small area in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This collection of Cambodia gambling dens is in a prime spot, a three to four hour trip from Bangkok and Macao, the two largest gaming centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a huge 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 seven and a half million dollars to over twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a number of restrictions constraints for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mainly Thai; although, funding sources are cryptic. The borders are ceremoniously open from 0900 to 5:00 p.m., and though visas are supposedly needed to pass, there are methods and means around this, as is true of many border crossings.
The 1st Cambodia gambling halls opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were forced to close in 1998, leaving only one gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, an anchored ship gambling den, contains one hundred and fifty slots and sixty table games. The Naga river boat never closes with 42 tables of mini-punto banco, four tables of twenty-one, 10 of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The first casino in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly opened. There are 150 one armed bandits and five table games at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slot machines and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights 300 slots and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six one armed bandits and 96 table games, including eighty seven baccarat banque (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five slot machine games and sixty six of the common table games, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the 8 casinos in Poipet, also in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slots and 97 table games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an international vacation and hotel compound that contains many amenities accompanying the casino, which has ten thousand sq.ft. of one hundred and thirty slots and 88 gaming tables.