By air
Techo International, Phnom Penh (KTI), ~3 h by road
Southeast Asia · Cambodia
Kampot, Cambodia
A riverside town of pepper farms and old shophouses
Getting there
Best time to visit
November to April — dry season
Don't miss
Bokor Hill Station
The old French quarter
The salt fields
The riverside
Things to do
Pepper-farm visits
Kayaking the Praek Tuek Chhu river
Bokor Mountain
Sunset river cruises
Where to eat
What to pack
Light clothes, insect repellent
A quieter corner
The Secret Lake, a peaceful loop through pepper country
Questions travellers ask
How long is the trip from Phnom Penh to Kampot?
Fly into Techo International, Phnom Penh (KTI), then it's about 3 hours by road.
What is there to do in Kampot?
Visit a pepper farm, kayak the Praek Tuek Chhu river, head up Bokor Mountain and take a sunset river cruise.
What's on the plate in Kampot?
Kampot pepper with everything, and fresh river fish.
Is there a peaceful ride out of Kampot?
The Secret Lake makes a peaceful loop through pepper country.
About Kampot
- Riverside
Where it is
Kampot is a riverside town in southern Cambodia, on the Praek Tuek Chhu river a few kilometres from the Gulf of Thailand, beneath the forested Bokor Mountain of Preah Monivong National Park.
History
Kampot was one of Cambodia's main seaports until Sihanoukville took over its trade in the mid-20th century, and its centre is still largely made up of French colonial architecture. In the 1920s the French built a hill station with a grand hotel and a church on the summit of Bokor, which was abandoned during the years of war and has been partly restored in recent times.
People
Kampot's people are mainly Khmer, alongside a significant Cham community and Chinese-Cambodian families, and Khmer is the main language. Pepper, sea salt and durian are the province's best-known products.
Known for
- Kampot pepper farms
- Bokor Mountain and its old hill station
- Riverside sunsets and boat trips
- The salt fields near the coast
- French colonial shophouses
Did you know?
Kampot pepper was the first Cambodian product to gain geographical indication status, in 2010, and it has been protected in the European Union since 2016.
We haven't written a guide for this place yet — you can still plan a trip here.