The prospect of living in Zimbabwe is something of a gamble at the moment, so you may think that there might be little affinity for supporting Zimbabwe’s casinos. Actually, it seems to be working the other way, with the desperate economic conditions leading to a greater ambition to wager, to try and locate a quick win, a way from the problems.
For nearly all of the people living on the tiny local money, there are two common forms of gaming, the national lottery and Zimbet. As with most everywhere else on the globe, there is a state lotto where the chances of hitting are surprisingly tiny, but then the jackpots are also unbelievably big. It’s been said by market analysts who look at the concept that the lion’s share don’t buy a card with the rational expectation of profiting. Zimbet is founded on one of the national or the English soccer divisions and involves determining the outcomes of future matches.
Zimbabwe’s casinos, on the other shoe, look after the very rich of the state and vacationers. Up till recently, there was a very substantial tourist industry, based on nature trips and visits to Victoria Falls. The market collapse and associated conflict have cut into this trade.
Among Zimbabwe’s gambling dens, 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 den, which has only slot machine games. The Zambesi Valley Hotel and Entertainment Center in Kariba also has only slot machines. Mutare contains the Monclair Hotel and Casino and the Leopard Rock Hotel and Casino, both of which have gaming tables, slots and video machines, and Victoria Falls has the Elephant Hills Hotel and Casino and the Makasa Sun Hotel and Casino, both of which offer slot machines and tables.
In addition to Zimbabwe’s gambling halls and the aforestated talked about lottery and Zimbet (which is very like a parimutuel betting system), there are also 2 horse racing complexes in the state: the Matabeleland Turf Club in Bulawayo (the 2nd municipality) and the Borrowdale Park in Harare.
Given that the market has deflated by more than forty percent in recent years and with the connected deprivation and crime that has come about, it isn’t understood how healthy the sightseeing industry which is the foundation for Zimbabwe’s gambling dens will do in the next few years. How many of them will carry through until things improve is basically not known.