[ English ]

The act of living in Zimbabwe is somewhat of a gamble at the moment, so you may imagine that there might be very little affinity for visiting Zimbabwe’s gambling dens. Actually, it appears to be functioning the opposite way around, with the crucial economic circumstances leading to a bigger desire to gamble, to try and locate a fast win, a way from the crisis.

For many of the citizens subsisting on the abysmal local money, there are 2 common forms of wagering, the national lottery and Zimbet. Just as with most everywhere else in the world, there is a state lotto where the chances of profiting are extremely small, but then the jackpots are also unbelievably high. It’s been said by economists who look at the situation that most do not purchase a card with the rational belief of hitting. Zimbet is centered on either the national or the UK football divisions and involves determining the outcomes of future matches.

Zimbabwe’s casinos, on the other hand, mollycoddle the extremely rich of the society and tourists. Until recently, there was a incredibly substantial sightseeing business, founded on safaris and trips to Victoria Falls. The economic anxiety and associated conflict have cut into this trade.

Among Zimbabwe’s casinos, there are two in the capital, Harare, the Carribea Bay Resort and Casino, which has 5 gaming tables and one armed bandits, and the Plumtree gambling hall, which has just the slots. The Zambesi Valley Hotel and Entertainment Center in Kariba also has just slots. Mutare has the Monclair Hotel and Casino and the Leopard Rock Hotel and Casino, the two of which contain table games, 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 two of which have video poker machines and blackjack, roulette, and craps tables.

In addition to Zimbabwe’s casinos and the previously talked about lottery and Zimbet (which is quite like a pools system), there is a total of two horse racing tracks in the nation: the Matabeleland Turf Club in Bulawayo (the second metropolis) and the Borrowdale Park in Harare.

Since the market has diminished by beyond 40 percent in recent years and with the associated deprivation and crime that has resulted, it is not understood how well the sightseeing business which supports Zimbabwe’s casinos will do in the next few years. How many of them will carry through till conditions get better is basically unknown.