Kampot River

About this place

Quiet Kampot sits on the Praek Tuek Chhu river about five kilometres from the sea, beneath the Elephant Mountains and Bokor. Under French rule it was Cambodia's main port, and unlike most Cambodian towns its centre keeps 19th-century colonial buildings with coloured façades and wooden shutters. A riverside walk lined with cafés and old houses runs to the old bridge, with Bokor's blue bulk rising beyond the water. At sunset it turns into a painting, the orange sky mirrored in the broad river as fishing boats return. The best experience is a sunset boat trip upriver between banks of mangrove and palms, returning after dark to watch fireflies blinking in the trees. You can also paddle small boats upstream towards the mountains. Kampot is known for its famous pepper and sea salt, and nearby pepper farms welcome visitors. The heat is fierce most of the year, so go out in the morning or before sunset, with water and a hat.