There is an interesting background to the Cambodia gambling dens that sit just across the dividing line from next door Thailand, where gambling hall gaming is prohibited. Eight gambling halls are anchored in a relatively tiny space in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This band of Cambodia casinos is in an excellent spot, a three to 4 hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the two largest betting centers in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a huge business with Thai blue-collar workers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with just a few Westerners. The phenomenal income accrued from the casinos ranges from 7.5 million dollars to more than twelve and a half million dollars, and there are a number of controls requirements for gambling den ownership. Ownership is presumed to be mostly Thai; although, investment sources are ambiguous. The borders are formally open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and even though visas are allegedly necessary to cross, there are methods around this, as is accurate of many border crossings.

The initial Cambodia casinos opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were forced to close in the late nineties, leaving just a single casino in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a moored boat gambling den, contains one hundred and fifty slot machine games and sixty gaming tables. The Naga casino is open 24 hours with forty two tables of mini-baccarat, 4 tables of blackjack, ten of roulette, 2 of Caribbean Stud Poker, and one each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.

The 1st gambling den in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, premiered in the late nineties and the Golden Crown quickly followed. There are 150 one armed bandits and five table games at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four slots and 68 table games at the Holiday Palace. The newest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort contains 300 slot machines and seventy gaming tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has 166 slots and 96 table games, including 87 baccarat chemin de fer (the most beloved game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with one hundred and thirty five one armed bandits and 66 of the normal gaming tables, as well as one table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the eight gambling dens in Poipet, again in a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machines and ninety seven games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an international vacation and hotel compound that features a number of amenities in addition to the gambling hall, which offers ten thousand sq.ft. of 130 slot machine games and 88 gaming tables.