Sihanoukville

Sihanoukville also known as Kampong Som and its surroundings islands is a perfect stop for a beach holiday.

In a land with thousands of years of history, Sihanoukville is a colourful but tragic start. Fifty years ago, a French-Cambodian construction carved a camp out of the jungle and started building the first deep-sea port of a newly independent Cambodia. Named Sihanoukville in 1964 after the ruling prince of Cambodia, the booming port and its golden beaches soon drew Cambodia’s jetsetting elite, spawning the first Angkor Beer brewery and the modernist seven-story Independence Hotel which, claim locals, even played host to Jacqueline Kennedy on her whirlwind tour of Cambodia in 1967.

Distances between the beaches are a little too long to walk comfortably, but getting around is easy, as the roads are wide and bike taxis (motodop) are everywhere. The center of town itself doesn’t offer much to see. On the edge of town is Otres Marina situated on the Ou Tro jet river mangrove swamp and Otres temple can be visited.

The main reason to visit Sihanoukville is the beaches. They are not as crowded as many of those in Thailand, but can be cramped on weekends and holidays.

Scuba Diving: there are many islands off the Cambodian coast that have lots of coral and fish. All the dive boats in Cambodia leave from the Sihanoukville port area. The main scuba diving area is at Koh Rong Samloem Island located 14 miles offshore, as well as at Koh Tang Island 35 miles from Sihanoukville. Overnight trips are necessary in order to reach Koh Tang. There is also some shallow diving at Koh Tas some 6 miles from Sihanoukville, but it’s mostly reserved for when the weather is too rough to get all the way to Koh Rung Sanloem. The best diving Cambodia has to offer is the overnight trips to the Koh Tang Group, where large pelagic are seen regularly and visibility is double what you will find at the closer sites.