Cambodias Riviera (Kampong Saom)

Member Name: ultras67

Product:	Kampong Saom
Date:	29/07/04 (818 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Quiet , Relaxing, Laid Back

Disadvantages: Becoming more developed, Agressive touts, not much to do in bad weather

This may sound quite strange but Sihanoukville ( also known as Konpong Som ) has been described as Cambodia?s? Riviera. Given the countrys? recent history this may sound a rather large stretch of the imagination. But..but..but, when you start to analyse it, it?s not too strange a comparison. They are both on the south coast of their respective countries, they are both home to the wealthy, rich, powerful and they are both beach areas. However, the differences are obviously too numerous to mention. This is quite a lengthy report but I hope that you get a lot out of it.

At present, the tourism industry in Cambodia in general and Sihanoukville is still in the raw, rugged stage where the majority of travellers are the adventurous or independent. But more ?improvements? are coming on line with at the time of writing a new five star hotel just opening and a 9 hole golf course. Like the majority of the country, the currency used is the US $, with local currency the Riel only used for small change. Current rates are about 4000Riel to the US$ and about £1 to US$1.70

Getting there and away
From Phnom Penh you have the option of bus, shared taxi, taxi, minibus or train.

All the road transport zooms down the most comfortable road in Cambodia ? National Road 4. It is one of the few that deserves the name as it is almost smooth and free of potholes. A cynical person might suggest it?s the most comfortable as all the countrys? high and mighty travel on it all the time.

My recommendation is to get a bus which runs from the central market in PP and costs US$3 for an air con seat to yourself. Shared and private taxi fares are fluid but expect to pay around US$3/5 dollars a person ( be warned, that doesn?t necessarily mean a seat to yourself ), a whole car may range from US$15-20, minibuses where the idea is to get as many people in as is ( sometimes the case ) inhumanly possible cost around US$2-3 - again near the central market or ar
ranged through your hotel. There is a joke amongst people who travel round Cambodia that goes something like this. How many people can fit into a minibus? One more. Travel time ranges from 3 hours in a taxi to maybe as many as 5 in a minibus which will stop everywhere and anywhere. If you have the time, you can always take the train at a leisurely 12 hours. Buses will arrive in Sihanoukville just behind the main road in town ? Ekareach St where you will be pounced upon by motorcycle and hotel touts of all kind and ferocity. Unless you are strong willed, some will literally block your way until you agree to go with them ? and they are not all Khmers either. The reason for this? Commission from the hotel and the fare of course.

From Thailand
From Bangkok, this is easy to do. Get a bus to Trat ( 190 baht ) and then a minibus to the border ( 100 baht ) at Had Lek which is open from 7 am to 5 pm and you are into Cambodia. My strong recommendation is to get the ferry from Koh Kong unless the weather is very very bad or you cant handle any sort of sea journey at all as the overland trip will be the most uncomfortable journey of your life, but there is only one ferry per day at 8am. You can get an overnight bus from Bangkok, stay in Trat or in Koh Kong overnight if you cross later and get the next days ferry. Several guesthouses in Trat will try to sell you tickets that take you direct from Trat to Sihanoukville or Phnom Penh that are linked to Mealy Chenda, all of which are too expensive and are only sold for the commission.

There are a number of scams you will come across from Cambodian immigration and the touts after you enter Cambodia ? see my reviews on Siem Reap & Koh Kong. The main points are, visas which cost US$20 are available to most nationalities on arrival, but Cambodian immigration are charging between 1100 baht -1300 Baht for a tourist visa (at 40baht to the dollar, you can work out the extra ?pay? they receive ) If you d
o arrive without a visa, try the have no Baht routine or only give them 1000B or ask for a receipt. But BE POLITE! After all, they don?t have to give you a visa! So, if you can get one from the embassy before you leave, do so. Once you have entered the country, walk past the ?duty free? cigarette and assorted food item people - whose branded goods almost certainly are fake and more expensive than in the rest of Cambodia ? to the waiting minibuses, cars and motorbikes to take you to Koh Kong, Sihanoukville and Phnom Phen.

For the ferry to Sihanoukville, get a motorbike or seat in a shared taxi/pickup to Koh Kong ( about 50Baht or 200Baht for an entire car. ) The cost is between US$12-15 but you have space to relax, stretch out and the option of sitting on the roof getting a suntan ( beware of sunburn though ) and it will take a relaxing 4 hours.

If you do get a bus to Sihanoukville, this will again be US$12-15, takes around 6-8 hours once you leave and can lengthen depending on the weather. I say once you leave as they will always wait until the bus is full. Once it has left, no matter what they have told about being non stop, it will stop for 4 ferries, 1 food stop and for any locals that want on or off. The road condition varies from asphalt to hardened red clay and all of it is potholed apart from maybe 30 minutes of the journey. And of course the driver will ?encourage? you to stay at his guesthouse. For the full gory details, see my fully detailed report of the reverse journey in October last year http://www.talesofasia.com/cambodia-overland-bkkpp -reports1.htm titled ?Sihanoukville to Koh Kong by road and do you really want to book that 'tourist' van??

Accommodation
There are really 3 main areas to stay in Sihanoukville, the town centre, Victory Hill ( Weather Station ) area or Ochheuteal Beach. Only the first one is close enough to walk to from the bus stop. If you haven?t got anywhere booked just pretend you
have and walk down the hill to the right hand side road to the Angkor Arms and have a quiet drink and maybe something to eat. You will get lots of free independent and friendly advice there and then brave the motorcycle taxis.

After pushing my way through the touts, I made my way 5 minutes down the road and stayed in a couple of hotels that had been recommended to me, The Oasis and the Tradewinds hotels. Neither of which I can really recommend as the Oasis was overpriced at $15 for an air con room, was quite small, in desperate need of refurbishment and the staff were unhelpful in any request made. The Tradewinds at $6 for a fan room was basic and presented too many problems from a service perspective i.e. not changing sheets, the person holding the safe deposit key going missing for hours etc. Both of the hotels are on Ekareach St which gave me several advantages. If you are staying for only one night it is very central and very easy to walk to or arrange onward transport. Also most of the nightlife, such as it is, is either in the centre or is easier to reach from there. For excellent information, get a copy of the Canby guide or have a look at the website www.canbypublications.com for an exhaustive listing of for Sihanoukville - or to its visitors Snookyville ? accommodation, what?s on, travel and visa information. ( They also do guides for other towns in Cambodia )

Getting Around
You really have the usual Cambodian choices for getting around in Sihanoukville. Walking, hired motocycle or Motorcycle Taxi ( motodop ). Depending on where you stay or who you meet, you might be able to organise a driver as well but don?t rely on it. Walking is the most reliable as you can always guarantee you will get there but if for example you are wanting to go to the beach or Victory Hill from the centre you are looking at a 20-40 minute walk and in hot weather it is not recommended. Fares in town are between 1000 ? 3000Riel and 4000Riel - or more
if they can get it - to the ferry dock. Do not be afraid of haggling or walking away, there are plenty of bikes around in the day. Always, always negotiate the fare before getting on the bike as there are occasional reports of assaults on tourists who didn?t negotiate, got on and then didn?t pay what the driver thought was a fair price. Make sure you always have Riel to give, because as sure as fate the motodop?ahem.. ?won?t have change? Fares increase if there are two of you and of course at night. If you have any major problems, always report them to the Tourist Police. After all, your report may be the one that turns an ?isolated? incident into something worth looking into and the people who follow will thank you for solving a problem. Call them on (016) 942-502.

An alternative is to hire a guy and his bike for the day, at about US$4 or 5, a car and a driver will set you back US$20ish. To hire a motorcycle is relatively easy but suffers from a lot of the scams of lost / scratched bike variety -around US$3 or 4 a day. But given that the Cambodian health care is basic at its best, please make sure, if you hire a bike, you have very good insurance. Every guide book recommends you don?t hire one for a very good reason, it is not the place to learn with the Khmer lack of road sense and the ?bigger is right? rule of the road.

What to do.
One thing to remember is that the beaches are not as good as good as any of the Thai islands, so try not to compare them. Accept that and with a bit of good weather you will have a good time. Ochheuteal Beach at high tide is quite narrow with at most only 5 yards of sand before the sea. The rest of the foreshore is made up of concrete stands for parasols, seating areas and deck chairs and further back basic snack bars and restaurants. At weekends it can be quite busy as most people on weekend trips from Phnom Penh come to this one. At various times through the month there are evening/night beach
parties, you need to check dates and times when you get there.

Other beaches to consider are Victory Beach, which is the main one for people staying at Victory Hill funnily enough but for me unless that is where you are staying, I wouldn?t recommend the trip as it is too commercialised.
Independence Beach has the feature of a long abandoned hotel which makes it a little bit creepy for some. The last main beach is Sokha Beach which is supposedly the least visited. And since I never went there maybe confirms that. One slightly further away that you have to get a motorbike to is Otres Beach, which is supposedly the best looking of them all. It?s a further 2km beyond Ochheuteal.

If it rains or are fed up with the beach, in the town itself there is not a lot to do, visit the Golden Lion roundabout, visit the market in 7 Makara Street, sit in a bar, sleep and er? that?s it really. Shopping is not yet a big thing in Sihanoukville and there are only small local shops for souvenirs. For more things to do, you need transport of some sort. For glorious sunsets go to Wat Leu at the top of Sihanoukville Mountain. This will give you the excuse to drop in for a tour of Cambrew the Angkor Brewery. But, tours are by arrangement only and casual visitors will be turned away. You could always go down to the port and watch the big container ships coming in or go slightly further north and watch the fishing boats leave in the evening. Be warned, like many towns around the world it is also near the large red-light districts in town, and is the location of the town's largest ?disco? Biba. After that you probably feel like visiting the Catholic Church on Boray Kamakor St, quite an architectural oddity in Sihanoukville.

From The Fishermans Den, you will not be surprised to learn they also run fishing trips out to sea and are recommended. If you want to go diving there is also a PADI dive centre Scuba Nation (www.cambodiadivers.com) and a couple
of others as well.

Internet and Photography.
There isn?t yet a wide range of places to buy your film and or digital memory cards, so buy before you arrive. As yet, there are only a couple of places that will transfer your pictures onto CD Rom. There are more and more internet shops springing up promising ISDN but don?t count on a fast connection - usually from $1 an hour up.

EATING AND DRINKING
There are a few bars and bar / restaurants in Sihanoukville that I liked and went to and a few that I had one drink in and then left as soon as possible. The ones I liked are Red Snapper, Fishermens? Den ( if you can put up with the opinionated owner ), Mick & Craigs all nice food and cheap drinks and a couple of local restaurants that are really good value but as they don?t have signs in English I cant give any names but look for one on Ekareach St. with plastic chairs outside just along from the Angkor Arms. Excellent. Personally I would avoid the Angkor Arms. What?s the point of travelling round the world to sit in a mock English Bar that charges more than others? There are also Indian, Sri Lankan, Vietnamese, Thai, French, Western and of course Khmer restaurants around. One place in particular I recommend is the Starfish Bakery Cafe, which is behind Samudera Market. For those that can?t live without, a large English style breakfast costs US$1.75 while the rest of the menu is great value as well. The Cafe is run by disabled Khmers and gives much needed employment and training for people that otherwise would be thrown onto the scrapheap.

What to avoid.
The beaches - The usual warnings apply to belongings at the beach as thefts are not uncommon. Drugs ? despite what you might think or are told, drugs of all sort are illegal in Cambodia. It is not unknown for someone to sell drugs and then tell the police who then arrest you or it could be a policeman. Of course a release can be obtained for a certain ?fine? which is the
whole point. Motodops ? as mentioned above they can be very aggressive especially if you are a single woman. Health Issues - Don?t drink the water, full stop. Depending on your stomach brushing your teeth will be ok though. There is plenty of pure bottled water around in the shops to drink.

Summary
I had a nice time there when I stayed for a few days as it let me just relax and de-stress. Unfortunately, if the weather is bad, you might end up cabin crazy with a lack of things to do and depending on where you go, it can be a little sleazy.

Summary: