10 Best Hotels in Cambodia

Twelve Khmer-style villas, all with their own private verandas and charming open-roofed Balinese baths filled with plants and trees, fan around a large blue-tiled pool set amid peaceful gardens at this seafront resort. There's also a private mangrove hiking path just meters from Asian-fusion restaurant Chankiri, which serves a selection of Western and Khmer favorites. It's an ideal resort for families and romantic types who will love the private man-made beach and lengthy jetty, vantage points for impressive sunset views.

If you like the idea of a light-filled contemporary villa with your own private pool, this low-rise boutique resort is for you. Set on the riverbank on Fish Island, just across from Kampot's old French Quarter, the location is handy for visiting the salt flats. The one- and two-bedroom villas feature Khmer mid-century modernist-style furniture and floor-to-ceiling windows with tropical garden views. When you tire of your own pool, there's an infinity pool overlooking the river, and a private beach just upriver. Breakfast is served at the stylish riverside restaurant, but for dinner take the hotel's private boat taxi and venture into town.

This resort, between Siem Reap and Angkor Wat, offers guests who value their time and privacy a real sense of retreat from the rest of the world after a busy day of sightseeing. The cottages are laid out among atmospheric, verdant gardens rich with tropical flora, and the pool snakes its way around accommodations so that each guest has a private part of it. The classic Khmer style, with chic modern touches, creates a sense of comfort, enhanced by the service of polite, helpful staff. The resort organizes guided tours and will prepare a picnic hamper for guests exploring Angkor Wat for the day, or an afternoon tea featuring Khmer and international snacks on your return, followed, perhaps, by a restorative spa session.

While not as fancy as some of the other lodgings in the area, this intimate resort offers great value in lush tropical surrounds with sea views. There's a good restaurant and pizzeria, complimentary breakfast of Khmer and French favorites, a gorgeous pool, and a kids' playground.

Guests enjoy a surprisingly high level of service and care at this hotel school, which trains underprivileged young adults for the hospitality industry. Rooms are spacious and spotless, with all the customary amenities. The restaurant offers delicious Cambodian and international dishes, from a Cambodian curry to chicken Milanese. The main drawback is the location—2 km (1 mile) from the beach—but it's easy to grab a tuk-tuk.

Lining a pristine beach, this chic boutique resort has a swimming pool, a stunning bar, and an assortment of activities that include beach volleyball and snorkeling. Some beachfront bungalows have private pools. Breakfast is generous and staff are welcoming.

Located down a small lane off a quiet road, this immaculate little resort has a lovely pool, excellent service, and clean and comfortable traditional bungalows. As an added treat, the food is very good and they even sell craft beers.

Rana offers a one-of-a-kind, well-organized experiential homestay for adults or families in the Cambodian countryside. Run by an American and his Cambodian wife, Rana aims to colorfully inform visitors about the local culture, history, lifestyle, and cuisine through a two-night stay in a clean but basic rattan hut on stilts. In authentic Khmer village style, the hut has no running water (but fresh water is supplied for bathing using a bowl) and no electricity. Houseguests are fed delicious organic home-cooked meals, and escorted on guided walks, bicycle rides, and other tours of the area, where they get to meet locals and Khmer Rouge regime survivors, learning how rural Cambodians actually live.

Perched on a hill above Kep, this resort eschews the seaside to instead offer guests lofty ocean views and a nature-filled environment. Rooms are set between the lush foliage, with a series of shaded walkways that connects them with the main restaurant and the two slightly hidden pools.

One of the original riverside resorts in Kampot, Villa Vedici sprawls over its picturesque four hectares, with two swimming pools and a mix of accommodation options, including rooms upstairs in the main house as well as private villas. There's even a whole Khmer house if you're traveling with a few people. You can explore the river and farther afield on their kayaks and paddleboards.