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There is an appealing background to the Cambodia gambling dens that lie just across the dividing line from next door Thailand, in which gambling den wagering is not allowed. Eight gambling halls are based in a relatively tiny location in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia gambling halls is in a prime area, a three to 4 hour travel from Bangkok and Macao, the two biggest gambling centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a huge business with Thai blue-collar workers and guests from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very couple of Westerners. The amazing income gained from the gambling dens ranges from 7.5 million dollars to over 12.5 million, and there are a couple of restrictions requirements for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is assumed to be largely Thai; although, financial sources are ambiguous. The borders are formally open from 9:00 a.m. to 1700, and despite the fact visas are apparently necessary to pass, there are means around this, as is true of most border crossings.

The first Cambodia gambling halls premiered in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving only 1 casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, an anchored barge gambling hall, contains one hundred and fifty slot machine games and 60 tables. The Naga gambling hall is open all hours with forty two tables of mini-baccarat, 4 tables of blackjack, ten of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and a single table each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.

The first gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in 1999 and the Golden Crown soon followed. There are 150 slot machines and five tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slots and 68 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 166 slots and ninety six gaming tables, including 87 baccarat banque (the most dominant game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machine games and sixty six of the normal table games, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the 8 casinos in Poipet, again a part of a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slots and ninety seven games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in a multinational vacation and hotel complex that features many amenities aside from the casino, which contains 10,000 sq.ft. of 130 slot machines and eighty eight table games.