Kampot

Sleepy Kampot sits on the east bank of the Kampot River with spectacular views across to Bokor Mountain and the accompanying Elephant Mountains which make up the sizeable Bokor National Park.

The town was once a sizeable trading centre and until the establishment of a deep sea port at Sihanoukville in the 1950s, Kampot was Cambodia's primary port. While most of the larger vessels have moved on, there's still a smattering of small fishing boats that can be seen unloading every morning a short walk from town. Given Kampot's proximity to the Vietnamese border, fish often isn't the only catch being unloaded, with smuggling -- particularly of cigarettes -- a handy extra earner for the fishermen.

Today, Kampot is best known for its namesake Kampot pepper, which is truly excellent. Pepper aside, there's a few low-key sites that can be visited from town and it also forms in ideal base for trips up to Bokor, which is why the majority of foreign travellers find themselves here in the first place.

The town itself is both sleepy and pretty, in a rundown kind of way. There's plenty of villas and old shopfront trading houses, especially along the river road, that are pleasant to wander by -- thankfully Kampot hasn't lost too many of its older buildings to the glass and brass brigade. One hopes that given time and sufficient interest from travellers, many of these buildings will be retained.

 

Along with its relaxed ambience comes a host of friendly locals, an excellent selection of places to stay, from cheap backpacker-orientated guesthouses through to some fine flashpacker/mid-range hotels. There's also an excellent choice of places to eat and relax.

Within town, activities (aside from watching the sun set over Bokor) include taking a walk over the once-bombed but now repaired bridge for a view of the town, enjoying a sunset boat cruise up the Kampot River or just hiring a bicycle and meandering about.

A small but growing number of people are also attracted to Kampot to spend some time with a volunteer project. There's a range of options from teaching English to children through to longer-term projects working with disadvantaged groups within the community. Blissful Guesthouse and the Little Garden Bar Guesthouse are two good places to start with enquiries for more information.

Further afield, there's some caves located just off the road to Kep, some salt-fields, a small waterfall and, of course Bokor National Park -- a highlight of any visit to Cambodia's coast.

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