The act of living in Zimbabwe is somewhat of a gamble at the current time, so you could envision that there would be little affinity for supporting Zimbabwe’s casinos. In fact, it seems to be functioning the opposite way around, with the critical economic conditions leading to a higher desire to play, to attempt to locate a fast win, a way from the problems.
For nearly all of the people surviving on the meager local money, there are two common types of gambling, the state lotto and Zimbet. As with practically everywhere else on the planet, there is a state lotto where the probabilities of succeeding are extremely low, but then the prizes are also remarkably high. It’s been said by economists who study the situation that the majority do not purchase a card with the rational expectation of winning. Zimbet is based on one of the local or the UK football leagues and involves determining the outcomes of future matches.
Zimbabwe’s gambling halls, on the other foot, mollycoddle the extremely rich of the country and tourists. Up till not long ago, there was a extremely substantial sightseeing business, centered on nature trips and visits to Victoria Falls. The market collapse and connected conflict have cut into this trade.
Amongst Zimbabwe’s gambling halls, there are two in the capital, Harare, the Carribea Bay Resort and Casino, which has 5 gaming tables and slots, and the Plumtree gambling hall, which has only slot machines. The Zambesi Valley Hotel and Entertainment Center in Kariba also has just slot machines. Mutare contains the Monclair Hotel and Casino and the Leopard Rock Hotel and Casino, both of which offer gaming tables, slots 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 has gaming machines and tables.
In addition to Zimbabwe’s gambling dens and the above alluded to lottery and Zimbet (which is quite like a parimutuel betting system), there is a total of 2 horse racing tracks in the state: the Matabeleland Turf Club in Bulawayo (the 2nd municipality) and the Borrowdale Park in Harare.
Since the market has diminished by beyond forty percent in recent years and with the connected deprivation and violence that has arisen, it is not understood how well the sightseeing business which supports Zimbabwe’s casinos will do in the near future. How many of the casinos will carry through till things get better is basically not known.