Kampot is a small town on the Tuk Chhou River, 5km inland from the sea. Fishing and farming are the main activities; durians and melons grow in abundance. To the south end of town is a large dusty traffic circle with three hotels arrayed around it – Phnom Kieu, Phnom Kamchay and Tuk Chhou. Each has its own restaurants; Tuk Chhou offers a seedy nightclub. Also on the circle is Prachummith Restaurant, close by is Amar Restaurant. To the south near the river is the GPO and telecommunications building. At the north end of town, about 1.5 km away, is the Central Market, with foodstalls. All Kampot transportation is concentrated within range of the market-cycle, motors, taxis, trucks, and buses. The railway station lies farther north.
There's zero of interest in Kampot except to walk around town and look at crumbling French-built blue-shuttered shop fronts. Previously Kampot was a stepping-stone to Bokor and Kep. You can reach Kampot by irregular plane service from Phnom Penh. It's not advisable to get there by car. It takes about 5 hours to cover the 150 km from Phnom Penh to Kampot.
From Sihanoukville it's 105 km to Kampot by a jumping and dirt road. The train from Phnom Penh to Kampot takes seven hours. It used to be a frequent target of the Khmer Rouge - in a 1994 ambush, three foreigners were captured by them. Tourist attraction:
Teuk Chhu Resort Is the natural resort locating at Snom Prompi Village, Mak Prang Commune, Kampot District in eight- Kilometer distance, north of the provincial town. The resort has water flowing from Phnom Dam Rey – Phnom Kam Chay. The water is cool and clear flowing down over the big rocks for year round. At Teuk Chhu resort, there are valuable and delicious fruit like Durian, Mangostreen, Rambutan, Mak Prang, Pineapple, Grape fruit, Custard apple, coconut etc. Prek Ampil Resort is the beach rich in white sand, mangrove and coconut trees, and locates at Koh Touch Commune, Kampot by the National Road No 3. At the resort, we can enjoy the fresh seafood like crabs, cuttlefish, lobster, snail, and varied sea fish.
Make sure you get an early start. The summit of Bokor (1,080 meters high) is reached at the end of one of the worst roads in Cambodia and the journey (about 30km) takes a lot longer than you would think. Heavily potholed and scattered with reefs of the original asphalt surface, it is best traveled by 4WD or motorbike. Spectacular views of the Gulf of Thailand glimpsed through the lush jungle and the abandoned buildings that dot the roadside grab your interest, and the journey is forgotten the moment you experience the summit's extraordinary atmosphere.At once beautiful and sinis-ter, the hill station buildings include a Catholic church and an old hotel, the aptly named and monumentally proportioned Bokor Palace, as well as a number of other crumbling dwellings. The view out to a sapphire sea across a vertiginous drop to dense emerald green jungle from what was the terrace of the Palace is remarkable.
It's easy to see the strategic significance of Bokor Hill Station, and even easier to see the scars of the many battles that have been fought there. Even on a sunny day it has a sinister aspect, redolent with mystery, as though the buildings, covered with red-pig-mented lichen, are steeped in the blood of their violent past.
Possibly the best known of these battles had the Khmer Rouge holed up in the Catholic church shooting it out with the Vietnamese in the Bokor Palace. It is only too possible to imagine this scene as you gaze across the windswept plains from the upstairs windows of the Palace, or wander through its echoing and cavernous ruins. But this only increases the fascination of the place.
The 15-minute drive from the hill station to the crystal clear waters of the popular Popokvil ('Swirling Clouds') Waterfall takes you past the abandoned and decaying grass huts of the Khmer Rouge families who once lived here. A 20-minute walk down a dirt track from the car park brings you to the first and more accessible of the waterfall's two spectacular tiers. But it's worth making the effort to get to the sec¬ond tier. It's here that you find out why the falls are so named. Clouds of the finest mist hover over the falls to magical effect. And so, back to Kampot and an evening at one of the guesthouses lining the river-bank; drink in hand you watch yet another spectacular tropical sunset over the brood¬ing hills of Bokor. It is as richly exotic and intensely satisfying a way to conclude a traveler's day as any I've experienced. You should try it.
Kampong Trach Resort is the rocky mountain having caves and natural wells where arranged and worshipped by the tradition of Cambodia, China and Vietnam. The resort locates in 38Km distance, East of Kampot town by the National Road No 16. There is a natural well having 30m diameter and other small natural wells having four-meter stair and artistic stone look like animal or object shape. From these natural wells, there is along cave that we can go through to the La Ang Viel Sre 100 and La Ang Thmar Dos.
At these natural wells, there are some evidences remain which prove that the wells were the main filming place before the 70th decade. At the front valley, there is a pagoda of Chinese and Vietnamese. In front of the cave, there is a Cambodian pagoda, which has been now maintained and arranged by the pagoda committee permanently. Among the above four resorts excepted Teuk Chhu have not been renovated and well organized yet. However there are tourists and researchers visit the resorts.
Rabbit Island is a small tropical island located about 20-40 minutes south of Kep by local boat. The island is blessedly undeveloped and lacks most services except for some rustic bungalows and a couple of rudimentary beach shack restaurants.
Secluded white sand beaches dot the edges of the island, backed by a hilly coconut palm interior. Most services are near the west side beach. The surrounding waters are relatively clear and warm, offering some snorkeling opportunities around the rocks. Coral is scarce but colorful fish abound. You can stay on the island or make a day trip of it - go in the morning, lounge on the beach and return to Kep in the afternoon. Rooms/bungalows on the island run $10 or less. Arrange a boat trip to the island through your guesthouse in Kampot or Kep or just go to the Koh Tunsay Boat Dock in Kep town next to the Long Villa Restaurant (see Kep map on page 113.) Boats are almost always available. A round-trip trip to the island and back runs $20 for the whole boat, so bring some friends to split the cost. The round-trip price is the same whether you stay a few hours or a few days. Tour operators and guesthouses in Kep offer day packages starting at about $7/person inclusive.
.jpg "Independent Monument")
.jpg "Royal Palace")
.jpg "Angkor Wat")
.jpg "Bayern")
.jpg "Ochheuteal Beach")
.jpg "Sokha Beach")
.jpg "Rabbit Island")
.jpg "Kep Beach")
