Main Cities

Phnom Penh: Capital of the Kingdom of Cambodia

Phnom Penh is situated at the confluence of the Tonle Sap and Bassac rivers with the Mekong. It was founded as a small monastery in 1372 by the rich Khmer woman Penh, after she had found four Buddha statues in a tree trunk on the banks of the Mekong. She set up the monastery on a hill near the bank of the Mekong. The Cambodian word for hill is Phnom. Therefore the name of the town correctly translates as Hill of Penh.

The establishment of Phnom Penh as the capital of Cambodia is, historically speaking, a relatively recent event. Yet the area has been central to Cambodia's economy and politics for almost 600 years. After King Ponhea Yat abandoned Angkor in 1422, he founded his new capital at Phnom Penh. The choice of this area at the confluence of three great rivers may have reflected a shift from an agrarian to a trade oriented economy. Later kings moved the capital several times and the city did not become the permanent seat of government until 1866. At the time, Phnom Penh was little more than a few huts lining the river. Beginning with earnest in the 1880s, French city planners built canals to control the wetlands, and constructed roads, buildings and a port. By the 1920s, Phnom Penh was reputed to be the most beautiful city in Indochina. Growth continued through the 1960s but the American/Vietnamese conflict slowed its progress. In the early 70s war reached Phnom Penh and the city was laid to siege. On April 17, 1975, Phnom Penh fell to the Khmer Rouge and was completely evacuated. People began to return in 1979 and have been rebuilding ever since.

Today a mixture of Asian exotica, Indochinese charm and Cambodian hospitality await the visitor to Phnom Penh. Situated at the confluence of three great rivers - the 'four arms' of the Mekong, Tonle Sap and Bassac - Phnom Penh is the commercial and political hub of Cambodia as well as home to nearly a million of the county's 13 million people. It is also the gateway to an exotic land...the temples of Angkor in the west, the beaches of the southern coastline, the ethnic minorities and jungles of the northeastern provinces.

The city offers several cultural and historical attractions including the Royal Palace, Silver Pagoda and the National Museum. There are also a wide variety of services including five star hotels and budget guest houses, fine international dining, sidewalk noodle shops, neighborhood pubs international discos and more.

Phnom Penh, like other Cambodian tourist destinations, is in the midst of rapid change. Over the past few years the number of and hotels has grown considerably and in the last year there has been a huge increase in the number of visitors. There are now direct daily flights from several Asian cities are more than a dozen overland border crossings have opened since 1998. Even travel within the country is easier with several new airlines flying domestic routes, additional flights to Siem Reap and the temples of Angkor, regular bus service to cities like Siem Reap, Sihanoukville, Battambang, Kampong Cham and Kampong Chhnang. Road conditions throughout the country continue to improve with most of the National Routes now in excellent condition.

Gateway to the Temples of Angkor

Nestled between rice paddies and stretched along the Siem Reap River, the small provincial capital of Siem Reap Town serves as the gateway to the millennium-old temple ruins of the Khmer Empire. Designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, the Angkor Archaeological Park encompasses dozens of temple ruins including Bayon, Banteay Srey and the legendary Angkor Wat whose artistic and archaeological significance and visual impact put it in a class with the Pyramids, Machu Pichu and the Taj Mahal. Unlike many other world class monuments, the ruins of Angkor are as yet unspoiled by over-development. This will not be true in a couple of years. Though the major temples are relatively well touristed these days, it is still possible get away from the crowds, to explore the area and discover Angkor.

Siem Reap Town is where you will stay during your visit to Angkor. The area has been receiving foreign visitors to the temples for over 100 years. The town is actually a cluster of old villages, which originally developed around individual pagodas, and later overlaid with an French colonial-era center. Note the colonial and Chinese style architecture in the town center and around the Old Market. Nowadays, Siem Reap offers a wide range of hotels, restaurants, pubs and shops including several upscale hotels and dozens of budget guesthouses. Often missed are the many opportunities to experience traditional Cambodia: 'Apsara' dance performances, craft shops and silk farms, road tours through rice-paddy countryside, boat trips on the great Tonle Sap Lake to fishing villages and bird sanctuary, and much more.

Battambang

Heart of Cambodia's 'rice bowl'
Sitting on the Sangker River just south west of the Tonle Sap Lake, Battambang town is at the heart of Cambodia's 'rice bowl', and even though it is the country's second biggest town, it still has a very local, untouristed, provincial atmosphere. Much of the architecture is French colonial and traditional Cambodian. Few buildings are over three stories, and the main streets are shared by cars and horse carts alike. Unlike more touristed towns, the local economy is truly local - based firmly in rice, wood, sapphires and food crops - and is reflected in the character of the town. Similarly, as you leave Battambang by road, the scene quickly becomes one of small villages, rice paddies, and farmland, offering an excellent opportunity for the visitor to see a bit of 'unspoiled' rural Cambodia. The nearby countryside also harbors old pagodas, Angkorian era ruins, caves, waterfalls, and even Khmer Rouge period killing fields. Battambang means 'disappearing stick', and is named after a powerful stick used by a legendary Khmer king to achieve and maintain power in the Battambang area. 

Set with picture perfection near the base of the Elephant Mountains on the Prek Kampong Bay River, the provincial capital of Kampot is quite different than the more popular southern town of Sihanoukville. Quiet streets, few tourists, French colonial and Chinese architecture, all serve to lend Kampot a quaint and much older small town ambiance. Visitors come to Kampot for a taste of provincial Cambodia, the inexpensive, fresh-from-the-ocean seafood, and to use it as a stepping stone to the Bokor Hill Station, Kep City, Kampong Trach and the rest of southeastern Cambodia.

Sihanoukville

Sihanoukville  is one of the most attractive seaside resorts in the South-East Asia. All the expected resort factors are present here: warm and gentle sea with white sand beaches, picturesque mountains, clean air. The outskirts of the town are extremely rich in tropical flora.

The natural landscaping of Sihanoukville is one of the most beautiful in Indochina.  The blue clear sea adds to the beauty of the coast and you can relax here all year long.  It’s really the perfect Cambodian fairy tale. 

The best beach weather begins with the end of the rains in November. The dry, warm, breezy weather that follows lasts through January. Night temperatures can get down to a chilly 20° but the days hover around 28°-30°. Many think December and January are best with their balmy temperatures and blue skies.At the end of January, Sihanoukville begins to warm and continues to get hotter through July (maximum 35°). After February, cool 'mango showers' occasionally blow in from the north. December through June is said by some local outfitters to be the best scuba weather with clearer (though cooler) waters than the rest of the year.

Sihanoukville is often called 'beach town', 'port community', 'fledgling resort destination' . It is Cambodian premier beach town. Sihanoukville's white sand beaches and warm Gulf of Thailand waters combine with a laid back, beach atmosphere to provide a great little tropical getaway. Sihanoukville is a place to unwind by the beach, enjoy the fresh from-the-ocean seafood, take in a snorkeling or scuba trip, and generally slow-down, lay back and relax.

Sihanoukville has a different look and feel than most Cambodian towns. Constructed as a port city in the late 1950s, the town is  more urban and cosmopolitan than most Cambodian provincial cities. Nowadays, Sihanoukville is as much a beach town as it is a port town, catering to beach-going weekenders from Phnom Penh as well as a steadily increasing number of foreign visitors. Still, the pace of life in Sihanoukville is very relaxed. 

Sihanoukville has a more than ample supply of accommodations, including a 5-star resort complex on Sokha Beach,  several mid-range places downtown and at the beaches, a few 'upscale' three-star hotels, and dozens of  guesthouses. Considering the moderate number of visitors to Sihanoukville, the town offers a surprising number and variety of restaurants and bars. Here you can always enjoy fresh seafood, especially crab, prawns and ocean fish and also  a wide variety of places offering foreign cuisines - Australian, French, Indian, German,  British, Italian, pizza places, a couple of western bakeries and even a espresso coffee shop. And these days Sihanoukville offers a pretty good night life as well with a wide variety of bars and clubs.

The history of Sihanoukville goes back only as far as 1955 when the area was known as Kampong Som. In August of that year, a French/Cambodian construction team cut a base camp into the unoccupied jungle where the Hawaii Seaview Restaurant now sits. They laid the groundwork for the construction of the new Port of Kampong Som - a project that had been set into motion by the 1954 dissolution of French Indochina.

Prior to 1954, Cambodia maintained international sea trade via the Mekong. But the end of Indochina meant the Mekong delta reverted to the control of Vietnam. Seeking unfettered access to the ocean, plans were made to construct a new ocean port. Kampong Som was selected for water depth and ease of access.  Construction of the port and Route 4 (the road to Phnom Penh) was carried out from 1955-1960. Funds for construction of the port came from France, and from the USA for the road. The town began as housing for workers just south of the port. Upon completion, the town was renamed Sihanoukville in honor of the King. 

Sihanoukville’s heyday came in the 1960s. Although Kep was more popular as a holiday destination, the commercial success of the port led to a flurry of construction and expansion including the construction of the Independence Hotel, the original Angkor Brewery (closed in 1975 and reopened in 1991), a Truck & Tractor Plant, Wat Chotynieng (aka Wat Leu), St Michael's Catholic Church (constructed in 1960, closed in 1975 and reopened in 1993), dozens of villas on Ochheuteal Beach (destroyed in the 1980s) and other structures. There was also a second phase of port construction, which began in 1965 and halted with the Lon Nol coup d'etat of 1970.

Sihanoukville entered the history of the American/Vietnam conflict when, during the late 1960’s and early 70’s, it served as a transit point for weapons bound for anti-American forces in Vietnam. During the UN sponsored elections in 1992 and 1993, Sihanoukville played host to the Australian, Belgian and French contingents of UNTAC (United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia). After the elections, foreign tourists started coming to Sihanoukville for the first time.