There is a fascinating background to the Cambodia gambling halls that sit just across the dividing line from next door Thailand, where gambling den betting is not legal. Eight casinos are situated in a relatively small location in the municipality of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia gambling dens is in a perfect spot, a 3 to four hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the two largest gaming locations in Asia. Cambodia casinos do a thriving business with Thai workers and visitors from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very few Westerners. The phenomenal capital accrued from the gambling halls ranges from seven and a half million dollars to over 12.5 million, and there are a couple of controls constraints for gambling den ownership. Ownership is assumed to be mainly Thai; however, funding sources are vague. The borders are officially open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and though visas are apparently required to pass, there are methods and means around this, as is accurate of many borders.

The initial Cambodia gambling dens opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were required to close in the late nineties, leaving only a single gambling den in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a docked boat gambling hall, contains 150 slots and sixty gaming tables. The Naga gambling hall is open 24 hours with 42 tables of mini-baccarat, 4 tables of vingt-et-un, 10 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 before long followed. A total of 150 slots and five table games at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four one armed bandits and sixty eight gaming tables at the Holiday Palace. The latest Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights 300 slot machine games and 70 tables and the Princess Hotel and Casino, also in Poipet, has one hundred and sixty six slots and 96 table games, including 87 punto banco (the most beloved game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. Additionally, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machines and 66 of the common gaming tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. One more of the eight gambling dens in Poipet, again in a motel, is the Princess Casino with 166 one armed bandits and ninety seven table games. The Star Vegas Casino is part of an international resort and hotel complex that contains numerous comforts in addition to the gambling hall, which contains 10,000 square feet of 130 one armed bandits and 88 table games.