06.15
Cambodia Gambling Dens
There is an interesting story to the Cambodia casinos that lie just across the border from nearby Thailand, where gambling den gambling is banned. Eight gambling halls are situated in a relatively tiny space in the city of Poipet in Cambodia. This band of Cambodia gambling halls is in a perfect spot, a three to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 biggest wagering centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a huge business with Thai blue-collar workers and travelers from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The astonishing income accrued from the gambling halls ranges from seven and a half million dollars to more than 12.5 million, and there are a couple of limitations requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is presumed to be mostly Thai; although, funding sources are ambiguous. The borders are ceremoniously open from 9:00 a.m. to 17:00, and despite the fact visas are allegedly needed to cross, there are ways around this, as is correct of most border crossings.
The first Cambodia gambling halls opened in Phnom Penh in 1994, but were required to close in 1998, leaving just 1 gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a moored barge casino, contains 150 slots and 60 tables. The Naga casino never closes with forty two tables of mini-baccarat banque, 4 tables of 21, 10 of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and a single table each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.
The original gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown soon followed. A total of one hundred and fifty slot machines and five tables at the Golden Crown and 104 slots and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort features three hundred slot machine games and seventy table games and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slot machines and ninety six gaming tables, including eighty seven baccarat chemin de fer (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slots and 66 of the familiar tables, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the eight casinos in Poipet, again in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with one hundred and sixty six slots and 97 table games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an all-around resort and hotel complex that features many conveniences on top of the casino, which has 10,000 sq.ft. of 130 slot machine games and 88 table games.