The prospect of living in Zimbabwe is something of a risk at the current time, so you might think that there would be very little desire for patronizing Zimbabwe’s gambling halls. In reality, it seems to be operating the opposite way, with the critical economic conditions creating a higher ambition to play, to try and discover a quick win, a way out of the problems.
For most of the people living on the abysmal local earnings, there are two dominant styles of wagering, the national lotto and Zimbet. Just as with practically everywhere else in the world, there is a national lotto where the odds of profiting are surprisingly small, but then the winnings are also surprisingly big. It’s been said by market analysts who understand the idea that most do not buy a ticket with an actual assumption of profiting. Zimbet is founded on one of the local or the United Kingston soccer divisions and involves determining the results of future matches.
Zimbabwe’s gambling halls, on the other foot, pander to the very rich of the country and travelers. Up until not long ago, there was a very big tourist business, built on safaris and visits to Victoria Falls. The economic collapse and connected conflict have carved into this trade.
Amongst Zimbabwe’s gambling halls, there are 2 in the capital, Harare, the Carribea Bay Resort and Casino, which has five gaming tables and slots, and the Plumtree gambling den, which has only slot machines. The Zambesi Valley Hotel and Entertainment Center in Kariba also has only slot machines. Mutare contains the Monclair Hotel and Casino and the Leopard Rock Hotel and Casino, both of which contain table games, slots and video poker machines, and Victoria Falls houses the Elephant Hills Hotel and Casino and the Makasa Sun Hotel and Casino, both of which offer video poker machines and tables.
In addition to Zimbabwe’s gambling dens and the aforementioned mentioned lottery and Zimbet (which is considerably like a parimutuel betting system), there are a total of two horse racing tracks in the country: the Matabeleland Turf Club in Bulawayo (the 2nd city) and the Borrowdale Park in Harare.
Given that the economy has deflated by more than 40% in the past few years and with the connected poverty and conflict that has resulted, it isn’t understood how well the tourist business which is the backbone of Zimbabwe’s gambling dens will do in the next few years. How many of the casinos will carry through until things improve is basically not known.
