There is an appealing background to the Cambodia gambling halls that reside just across the dividing line from next door Thailand, in which casino gambling is not legal. Eight gambling dens are established in a generally tiny area in the metropolis of Poipet in Cambodia. This conclave of Cambodia gambling dens is in a perfect location, a three to 4 hour drive from Bangkok and Macao, the two most popular betting centers in Asia. Cambodia gambling halls do a thriving business with Thai workers and tourists from Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with only very couple of Westerners. The amazing income acquired from the gambling dens ranges from 7.5 million dollars to more than 12.5 million dollars, and there are a number of restrictions constraints for gambling hall ownership. Ownership is presumed to be mainly Thai; still, funding sources are cryptic. The borders are officially open from 9:00 a.m. to 1700, and even though visas are supposedly required to cross, there are ways around this, as is real of many border crossings.

The first Cambodia gambling halls opened in Phnom Penh in the mid nineties, but were forced to close in 1998, leaving only 1 gambling hall in the capital, the Naga Resort. The Naga, a moored bateau gambling hall, features one hundred and fifty one armed bandits and sixty table games. The Naga gambling hall is open all hours with 42 tables of mini-baccarat chemin de fer, 4 tables of chemin de fer, ten of roulette, two of Caribbean Stud Poker, and 1 each of Pai-Gow and Tai-Sai.

The original gambling hall in Poipet, the Holiday Palace, opened in 1999 and the Golden Crown quickly followed. A total of 150 slot machine games and five tables at the Golden Crown and one hundred and four one armed bandits and sixty eight table games at the Holiday Palace. The newer Holiday Palace Casino and Resort highlights three hundred 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 96 table games, including eighty seven punto banco (the most popular game), Fan Tan, and Pai Gow. In addition, there is the Casino Tropicana, with 135 slot machines and 66 of the normal tables, as well as a single table of Casino Stud Poker. Another one of the 8 gambling dens in Poipet, also a part of a hotel, is the Princess Casino with 166 slot machines and ninety seven games. The Star Vegas Casino is is located in an all-inclusive resort and hotel compound that features a number of amenities in addition to the casino, which houses 10,000 square feet of 130 one armed bandits and 88 tables.