Sihanoukville Beaches

The coastline runs for roughly 30 km along the Gulf of Thailand, divided into distinct beach zones that range from the built-up Serendipity and Ochheuteal beaches near the town centre to the quieter Otres I and Otres II to the east, each with its own character and crowd.

At Sokha Beach the sand is pale and fine, the water shallow for a long distance from the shore, and the private resort sections are offset by the public beach area where local food vendors set up bamboo stalls serving grilled squid, coconut and Khmer red curry on banana leaves.

The bay at Otres is the most relaxed of the developed beaches, with a resident community of long-stay travellers, small guesthouses and the Otres Marina providing a base for fishing boats and the occasional dive charter heading to the offshore islands of Koh Rong and Koh Rong Samloem.

Offshore, the islands of Koh Rong and Koh Rong Samloem are reached by a 40-minute speedboat from the Sihanoukville port; Koh Rong is known for its bioluminescent plankton that glow blue at night in the water, while Koh Rong Samloem offers a quieter pace with Saracen Bay as its main settlement.

The deep-water port that gives Sihanoukville its economic importance has always coexisted with the tourism trade, and the contrast is visible when cargo ships are loading at the main wharf while holidaymakers swim a few hundred metres away on a beach that is simultaneously a working port.

Sunset views from the hill at Wat Phnom mean that even visitors who find the main beaches too built-up have a scenic option that costs nothing and involves no boat ride; the hilltop pagoda is also one of the oldest in the region.

The dry season northeast monsoon from November to February produces the calmest water and clearest skies; the southwest monsoon from May to October brings higher waves that are popular with surfers but can make small boat trips uncomfortable.

Sihanoukville has undergone rapid development since 2015, particularly along the coast road, with new hotels and entertainment complexes changing the character of some beaches; Otres and the islands have so far remained somewhat insulated from the most intense development pressure.

The fishing port at the southern end of the city is worth visiting for its early morning activity: wooden fishing boats return with the night catch and the fish market operates before sunrise, providing a window into the livelihoods of the local Cham and Khmer fishing communities that predate the tourism economy.

It is Cambodia's only significant coastal resort area, offering the closest thing to a beach holiday within the country.

The offshore islands provide a substantially different experience — quieter, more natural and with excellent snorkelling — within a short boat ride.

The bioluminescent plankton at Koh Rong is one of the few reliably visible bioluminescent bay phenomena in Southeast Asia.