6 Photos of Hotel & Guesthouse Rooms in Cambodia
Here's another part of my series of photos of hotel rooms and guesthouses. I started the series just because I don't like the pictures on booking sites and in travel guides. Too fake, horrible quality or sometimes just non existent... and as a photographer a like to see some personality in a photo, even when it's just a picture of a room. Now I'm taking a picture on every hotel or guesthouse we stay in. After India, Thailand and Laos; these were our rooms in Cambodia.
Our guesthouse in Koh Kong, Cambodia.
The kingdom of Cambodia surprised us in a good way. There's much more to see besides the temples of Angkor (which we didn't visit) and the people are super friendly with a good sense of humor. Also photographing was a joy because of the diverse landscapes, the Mekong river and the beautiful light every evening. That light got me some awesome shots.
We decided not to take the classic traveling route and went from Don Det in Laos via Kratie to the capital of Cambodia, Phnom Penh and then to Kampot and the beaches of Sihanoukville and finally the Thai border... The rooms we stayed in were pretty good keeping in mind that Cambodia is economically behind on its neighbor Thailand. We didn't have any weird surprises in any of our rooms and most importantly: they were cheap!
Stung Treng
Savet Phom Tmey Guesthouse • $8 / night
The first town after the Lao-Cambodian border and not really worth mentioning. From here everybody goes either to Kratie and Phnom Penh or straight to Angkor. We don't mind staying in small towns with nothing to see to break up a long journey by bus and the guesthouse was basic but clean. The girl at the reception was super nice. She went to get our diner and breakfast on her motorbike.
Kratie
Balcony Kratie • $13 / night
Kratie has a lot more to offer than Stung Treng and we did some cool things. Going in a boat on the Mekong river to spot the Irrawaddy dolphins being one of the most memorable experiences of our stay in Cambodia. Our guesthouse was also excellent. Spacious room with air conditioning, a snooker table functioning as a pool table and a restaurant that serves some delicious food.
Phnom Penh
RS Guesthouse • $11 / night
The capital of Cambodia has a bad reputation. Most people don't like to stay here for too long but we loved it. It's such a nice city to just explore by walking or tuktuk and it gave us a chance to learn about the country's genocide history. The hotel we stayed in had a great location. Close to the riverside and a bunch of good restaurants. The lobby is also a small supermarket. Convenient!
Kampot
Porky's Guesthouse • $12 / night
Porky's Guesthouse. Doesn't sound very appealing but we actually had a pretty cool room with a large balcony where we could sit and watch the thunderstorms in the evening. It doesn't get much better than that and Kampot is a nice and chill place to stay.
Sihanoukville
Otres Long Beach Sihanoukville 1 • $10.50 / night
A bungalow close to the beach, what's not to like about that. What we didn't like in Sihanoukville was the enormous concrete constructions and casinos that the Chinese are putting up everywhere. Sadly, it's happening everywhere in South East Asia and it doesn't look good for the future...
Koh Kong
99 Guesthouse • $13 / night
Not much to see in Koh Kong. A quiet town where people stay on their way from Cambodia to Thailand or vice versa. Ideal for visa runs too. The hotel where we stayed was excellent and the quiet nature of the town is something we appreciate.