| Sihanoukville
Perhaps beach is not what first comes to mind of most travelers who visit Cambodia. Many tourists know Cambodia through its magnificent temple ruins of Angkor, the Killing Field, and the sprawling capital of Phnom Penh. Indeed, the country boasts many pristine beaches on its southern coast. Among them is Sihanoukville, a small beach town about 3 hour drive south of Phnom Penh.
Sihanoukville was developed from the jungle into the country’s first and only deepwater port in late 1950s. The original name of the city, Kampong Som, was changed to the present one in honor of the king
Situated 230 km southwest of Phnom Penh, Sihanoukville is surrounded by palm-fringed sandy beaches and pristine tropical islands off its south and west coast. Beaches here lies on the west contour of the city, from north to south, namely Victory Beach, Lamherkay Beach, Koh Pos Beach, Independence Beach, Sokha beach, Serendipity Beach and Occheuteal Beach. The most popular beaches are Occheuteal, Sokha, Independence and Victory. From here, you can go island hopping, diving, snorkeling and game fishing at the islands nearby (it is recommended that you use the tour service from a reliable shop). To spice up the flavor of the trip, visitors here should not miss a wide selection of seafood at any fine seaside or hill top restaurants while enjoying the scenic view of the sun setting from the horizon.
Occheteal Beach and Serendipity Beach
 Occheteal Beach is the all-rounder with long and narrow strip of beach lined with pine trees, grass umbrellas, rental chairs and little drink huts. The sandy beach that stretches southwards is worth trekking down if any trippers want some privacy. At the northern end is Serendipity Beach,  which is a cool place for travelers to hang out. Serendipity beach also offers small guesthouse rooms right on the beach with occasional full-moon parties. However, the beach is filled with boulders that make it unfriendly for swimming.
Sokha Beach
Sokha Beach is located just west of Serendipity Beach. This beach is the most popular among local beach goers. It provides many facilities and wide white sandy beach, especially on the high tide season.
Independence Beach
Independence Beach is located next to Sokha Beach on its west. The beach was named after the old Independence Hotel. This beach offers a good stretch of clean sand. Situated at the northern end of the beach is Independence Hotel and Koh Pos Beach, the nice tiny island only 800m off the coast. Koh Pos offers cool shades but rocky waters.
Victory Beach
Victory beach is situated at the furthest north of the peninsula of Sihanoukville. It was the original backpacker beach and still popular with budget travelers. At the northern end of the beach is located the deep sea port. Thus, apart from white sand and blue sea, this beach offers a good spot to enjoy the scenes of sunset.
At the further south of Victory Beach is another small strand of sand called Lamherkey Beach where the Hawaii Seaview Restaurant is located. It is the place where a French/ Cambodian construction team laid groundwork for the construction of the new Port of Kampong Som during 1950s. At this beach, you can hire a boat to nearby islands.
Islands
There are more than a dozen islands off the coast of Sihanoukville for tourists to hop around. Most of them are yet to be more developed for an overnight stay. Many guesthouses, restaurants and cafes on shore cater trips and packages to these islands.
Koh Rong
Koh Rong is situated west of the Sihanoukville coast. It offers the fantastic strand of beach on its southwest, stretching about 5 km. It has fresh water resources on the island and a bustling fishing community on the southeast with basic supplies including fresh water, fish and crab.
Koh Rong Samlon
Koh Rong Samlon is a bit smaller than Koh Rong and situated on its south. Beautiful beaches are on the east coast, where a large heart-shaped bay with some shellfish cultivation is located, and on the north shoreline facing Koh Rong.
Koh Tang
Koh Tang is located quite far from the main shoreline of Sihanoukville. Going there needs trippers to stay overnight on board. It offers interesting diving spots most of which are not frequently explored. |
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