The entire process of living in Zimbabwe is something of a gamble at the moment, so you might think that there would be little appetite for visiting Zimbabwe’s gambling dens. Actually, it seems to be operating the other way, with the critical economic conditions leading to a bigger eagerness to wager, to try and locate a fast win, a way from the difficulty.
For many of the locals surviving on the abysmal local wages, there are 2 popular types of gambling, the national lottery and Zimbet. Just as with most everywhere else in the world, there is a state lottery where the odds of succeeding are extremely tiny, but then the jackpots are also extremely large. It’s been said by economists who understand the situation that the lion’s share don’t buy a ticket with the rational belief of winning. Zimbet is built on either the national or the UK soccer divisions and involves predicting the outcomes of future games.
Zimbabwe’s casinos, on the other hand, look after the incredibly rich of the nation and vacationers. Up until a short while ago, there was a extremely big sightseeing industry, centered on nature trips and visits to Victoria Falls. The market woes and connected violence have cut into this trade.
Amongst Zimbabwe’s gambling dens, there are 2 in the capital, Harare, the Carribea Bay Resort and Casino, which has 5 gaming tables and slots, and the Plumtree Casino, which has just the slots. The Zambesi Valley Hotel and Entertainment Center in Kariba also has just slot machines. Mutare has the Monclair Hotel and Casino and the Leopard Rock Hotel and Casino, both of which have table games, one armed bandits and electronic poker machines, and Victoria Falls houses the Elephant Hills Hotel and Casino and the Makasa Sun Hotel and Casino, each of which has gaming machines and tables.
In addition to Zimbabwe’s gambling dens and the aforestated alluded to lottery and Zimbet (which is very like a parimutuel betting system), there is a total of 2 horse racing complexes in the state: the Matabeleland Turf Club in Bulawayo (the 2nd municipality) and the Borrowdale Park in Harare.
Since the market has deflated by beyond forty percent in recent years and with the connected poverty and conflict that has cropped up, it is not understood how healthy the vacationing business which is the foundation for Zimbabwe’s gambling dens will do in the next few years. How many of them will still be around until conditions get better is basically not known.