The prospect of living in Zimbabwe is something of a risk at the current time, so you could think that there might be little appetite for visiting Zimbabwe’s gambling halls. Actually, it seems to be functioning the opposite way around, with the atrocious market conditions creating a bigger ambition to gamble, to attempt to discover a fast win, a way from the difficulty.
For most of the citizens living on the tiny nearby wages, there are 2 dominant forms of betting, the national lottery and Zimbet. As with practically everywhere else in the world, there is a national lotto where the odds of winning are remarkably low, but then the prizes are also unbelievably high. It’s been said by economists who look at the idea that the lion’s share don’t buy a ticket with an actual belief of profiting. Zimbet is centered on either the domestic or the British soccer divisions and involves predicting the outcomes of future matches.
Zimbabwe’s gambling dens, on the other foot, cater to the considerably rich of the state and sightseers. Up till recently, there was a considerably substantial tourist business, founded on nature trips and visits to Victoria Falls. The market woes and associated violence have carved into this trade.
Among Zimbabwe’s casinos, there are two in the capital, Harare, the Carribea Bay Resort and Casino, which has five gaming tables and slot machines, and the Plumtree gambling hall, which has just the slot machines. The Zambesi Valley Hotel and Entertainment Center in Kariba also has only slots. Mutare has the Monclair Hotel and Casino and the Leopard Rock Hotel and Casino, both of which offer gaming tables, one armed bandits and video machines, and Victoria Falls has the Elephant Hills Hotel and Casino and the Makasa Sun Hotel and Casino, both of which has slot machines and table games.
In addition to Zimbabwe’s gambling dens and the above mentioned lottery and Zimbet (which is quite like a parimutuel betting system), there are also two horse racing complexes in the nation: the Matabeleland Turf Club in Bulawayo (the 2nd city) and the Borrowdale Park in Harare.
Given that the economy has contracted by more than 40% in recent years and with the connected deprivation and conflict that has cropped up, it isn’t understood how well the tourist business which is the foundation for Zimbabwe’s casinos will do in the next few years. How many of the casinos will carry through until conditions improve is basically not known.