Where to stay
Cambodian hotels are good value and inconsistently rated. This page gives real nightly bands by town, and explains the two things that matter more than the star count.
What a Cambodian star rating means
Almost nothing, is the short answer. There is no enforced national classification, so a hotel calls itself four-star and the listing sites repeat it. Two things predict your experience far better.
Age of the building
A 2016 hotel and a 2004 hotel at the same price are different products. Cambodian humidity is hard on buildings and refurbishment is uneven.
Whether it is owner-run
The best value in Cambodia is consistently in owner-run boutiques of 10 to 30 rooms. Chain standards start to be worth paying for only above USD 200.
We name the actual hotel in every quotation. If a quote you are comparing says '4-star hotel or similar' without a name, that is the most important thing on the page and it is missing.
Real price bands, per room per night, two people
| Town | Simple | Comfortable | Excellent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Siem Reap | USD 25 - 45 | USD 60 - 120 | USD 180 - 500 |
| Phnom Penh | USD 30 - 50 | USD 70 - 130 | USD 190 - 450 |
| Battambang | USD 20 - 35 | USD 45 - 80 | USD 110 - 160 |
| Kampot | USD 20 - 40 | USD 55 - 110 | USD 150 - 300 |
| Kep | USD 25 - 45 | USD 60 - 120 | USD 160 - 350 |
| Kratie | USD 15 - 30 | USD 40 - 70 | Limited above this |
| Sen Monorom (Mondulkiri) | USD 15 - 30 | USD 40 - 75 | Not available |
Siem Reap has more hotel rooms per visitor than anywhere else in Southeast Asia, which is why the money goes further there than anywhere else on this list. In Mondulkiri and Kratie the top of the market simply does not exist, and no amount of budget will conjure it.
The same room in Siem Reap can be USD 70 in June and USD 190 between Christmas and New Year. Every price on this page is a shoulder-season figure. December and January run 40 to 100 percent higher.
Siem Reap: where in town, which matters more than which hotel
- The Old French Quarter and the riverside: walkable to the night market and Pub Street, noisy on the Pub Street side until 01:00. Good if you want to walk to dinner.
- Wat Bo and the east bank: five minutes from the centre by tuk-tuk, quiet, where most of the good mid-range boutiques are. This is where we book most often.
- Charles de Gaulle road, towards the temples: the large resorts, spread out, quiet, and dependent on a tuk-tuk for everything.
- Anywhere marketed as 'near the airport': 45 km from town now, and a mistake.
The temples are 6 to 8 km from the centre wherever you stay, so proximity to Angkor is not a real differentiator, whatever a listing implies.
Phnom Penh, Kampot, Kep and the rest
In Phnom Penh, riverside puts you among the bars and the traffic; BKK1 is the residential district where the good small hotels and most of the city's best food are, ten minutes from the Royal Palace and considerably calmer. Daun Penh, around the post office, is the most beautiful part of the city and thin on hotels.
Kampot's choice is between town, where you can walk to dinner, and the riverside places 3 to 6 km out, which are lovely and require a tuk-tuk for every meal. Kep has no town in the usual sense; the accommodation is spread along the coast road and around the hill, and you will use a driver or a rented scooter for everything.
In Kratie and Sen Monorom, book the best available and adjust expectations rather than budget. In both, a clean, friendly, family-run guesthouse at USD 30 is the honest top of the market and is perfectly pleasant.
Homestays, and being straight about them
Village homestays are offered around the Tonle Sap, in Mondulkiri, and near Battambang. The good ones are genuinely good: you eat with the family, the money stays in the village, and the evening is the most memorable of the trip.
They are also basic in ways that catch people out. Expect a mattress on a wooden floor under a mosquito net, a shared bathroom with a water scoop rather than a shower, no air conditioning, and a household that gets up at five. We include one only when you have told us you want it, never as a surprise, and never on the night before a long drive.
What we book, and what we will not
- We name every hotel in the quotation, with a link. If you dislike one, we swap it and show you the price difference.
- We do not book the large casino hotels in Sihanoukville, and we will explain why if you ask.
- We do not take a commission that varies by hotel, which is why we are able to say 'the cheaper one is better here' and mean it.
- We hold rooms for 72 hours while you decide, at no cost, outside the Christmas period.
Questions travellers ask most
How much should I budget for hotels?
USD 60 to USD 120 per room per night gets you a genuinely good hotel almost anywhere in Cambodia outside the Christmas fortnight. Below USD 45 you are in clean, simple, family-run places, which are often the friendliest part of the trip.
Is it worth paying for a five-star hotel in Siem Reap?
Only above about USD 200, where two or three genuinely excellent hotels start. Between USD 120 and USD 200 the owner-run boutiques are usually better than the branded options at the same price.
Do you book homestays?
Yes, when you ask for one. They are basic: a mattress under a net, a shared bathroom with a water scoop, and an early household. We never include one as a surprise.
Can I change hotels after booking?
Until the balance is paid, freely, and we will show you the price difference either way. After that it depends on the hotel's own terms, which we pass on unchanged.
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Tell us what you want out of Cambodia
Dates, party size and the places you care about are enough to start. You get a draft route and an indicative price, not a brochure.