[ English ]

The act of living in Zimbabwe is somewhat of a risk at the moment, so you may imagine that there would be little appetite for visiting Zimbabwe’s gambling halls. In fact, it appears to be operating the opposite way, with the crucial economic conditions leading to a larger eagerness to bet, to try and discover a fast win, a way from the difficulty.

For the majority of the citizens living on the meager nearby money, there are 2 dominant styles of gambling, the national lotto and Zimbet. Just as with most everywhere else in the world, there is a state lottery where the chances of winning are surprisingly small, but then the winnings are also surprisingly big. It’s been said by market analysts who understand the situation that most do not buy a ticket with a real expectation of hitting. Zimbet is founded on either the national or the UK football leagues and involves predicting the outcomes of future games.

Zimbabwe’s gambling halls, on the other foot, pander to the considerably rich of the state and tourists. Until a short time ago, there was a incredibly big vacationing business, based on safaris and trips to Victoria Falls. The market collapse and connected crime have carved into this market.

Amongst Zimbabwe’s gambling halls, there are two in the capital, Harare, the Carribea Bay Resort and Casino, which has five gaming tables and slot machines, and the Plumtree Casino, which has only slot machines. The Zambesi Valley Hotel and Entertainment Center in Kariba also has just slots. Mutare contains the Monclair Hotel and Casino and the Leopard Rock Hotel and Casino, the pair of which contain gaming tables, one armed bandits and video poker machines, and Victoria Falls has the Elephant Hills Hotel and Casino and the Makasa Sun Hotel and Casino, the pair of which have slot machines and table games.

In addition to Zimbabwe’s gambling dens and the above talked about lottery and Zimbet (which is quite like a parimutuel betting system), there is a total of two horse racing complexes in the country: the Matabeleland Turf Club in Bulawayo (the second city) and the Borrowdale Park in Harare.

Given that the economy has shrunk by beyond forty percent in the past few years and with the connected poverty and conflict that has arisen, it is not known how healthy the sightseeing industry which is the backbone of Zimbabwe’s casinos will do in the next few years. How many of the casinos will carry through till conditions get better is basically unknown.