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There is a fascinating background to the Cambodia gambling dens that sit just across the dividing line from neighboring Thailand, in which casino betting is banned. Eight casinos are situated in a relatively tiny space in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This collection of Cambodia casinos is in a perfect location, a 3 to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the 2 most popular gambling centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling dens do a thriving business with Thai workers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very few Westerners. The amazing capital acquired from the casinos ranges from $7.5 million to more than 12.5 million, and there are a couple of controls requirements for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mostly Thai; although, financing sources are cryptic. The borders are formally open from 09:00 to 5:00 p.m., and even though visas are supposedly required to pass, there are ways around this, as is correct of most border crossings.

The original Cambodia gambling dens opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were forced to close in 1998, leaving just a single casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, an anchored boat casino, contains 150 slot machines and 60 tables. The Naga casino never closes with 42 tables of mini-punto banco, four tables of twenty-one, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.

The first gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in the late nineties and the Golden Crown quickly opened. There are one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and five table games at the Golden Crown and 104 slot machines and sixty eight tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains 300 one armed bandits and seventy 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 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 gaming tables, as well as 1 table of Casino Stud Poker. An additional of the eight gambling dens in Poipet, also in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slots and 97 games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an all-around vacation and hotel building that features a number of conveniences accompanying the gambling hall, which houses 10,000 sq.ft. of one hundred and thirty slot machines and eighty eight tables.