Cambodia: idyllic island retreats, bustling markets and tranquil temples

Katie Law is enchanted by Cambodia
Katie Law @jkatielaw16 April 2018

If Robinson Crusoe had decided to build a luxury resort, it might well have looked like Song Saa. Situated on a four hectare island in the Koh Rong archipelago off the south west coast of Cambodia, this is an extraordinary little corner of paradise.

Arriving by speedboat, after a forty minute journey from Sihanoukville on the mainland, your first view is of a row of silvery grey driftwood villas with thatched palm leaf roofs. Perched on stilts above the water, they look authentically native but are kitted out with all mod cons, private plunge pools and four poster beds with hotel high thread-count bed linen.

Our jungle villa had its own rainforest garden at the back and views onto the bay out front. Standing under a shell encrusted outdoor shower, you can watch the green and blue painted wooden fishing boats go chugging gently by and imagine you are living in your own dream luxe treehouse.

Each morning guests wake up to find a message rolled up in twine, rather than in a bottle, tied to the front door, with suggestions for the day ahead. An early morning yoga session perhaps, followed by kayaking up the mangrove swamps on Koh Rong or a tour of the local village and an introduction to the Song Saa Foundation's conservation programme, which was set up by Song Saa's owners, Rory and Melita Hunter, to protect the local marine environment.

Lunch might be barracuda sashimi or crab amok by the pool, followed by a massage in the spa sanctuary or snorkelling along the coral reef, although brushing up against the ctenophore jellyfish (harmless but slimy) might put some people off.

A Song Saa villa

There is so much more to see and do in Cambodia that it’s worth travelling around. The bustling capital, Phnom Penh, is a must. Any trip should include a visit to The Killing Fields memorial at Choueng Ek on the capital's outskirts, where, between 1975-79, the Khmer Rouge killed thousands of Cambodians. Walking along the dusty paths between the mass graves - 86 have been uncovered – you can’t avoid seeing shredded remnants of red, khaki and blue clothing.

Similarly the Tuol Sleng genocide museum, originally built as a school but used by Pol Pot’s regime as a prison, gives further insights into this terrible chapter in the country’s history. Most people have personal experience of parents or other close relatives who were sent away to be “re-educated” and never seen again. Two million Cambodians, almost a quarter of its population, died in the genocide and today it's rare to see a middle-aged, let alone an old person. Yet there is a palpable new energy and optimism among its youthful population.

The young tour guides - some of whom are local architecture students - are full of enthusiasm for their hometown. Seeing the city by Cycle is a good starting point. After being collected from your hotel - Raffles Le Royal, the 1929 French Colonial gem is a wonderful choice - you ride in your own peddle-powered palanquin around some of the city's most interesting buildings, powered by a man who sits behind you. The tour takes in derelict hotels, post offices, Chinese temples and a former police station, and ends at the huge Central Market.

Built in 1937 and restored four years ago, this is where textile and fake gemstone sellers compete for your dollar next to stalls piled high with crunchy protein-rich insects, crayfish, dried prawns, pink eggs, exotic fruit and people crammed cheek by jowl at counters, heads down, eating bowls of noodle soup. The smells of rotting fish and aromatic spices, of lemongrass and coconut, of hot and sour and sweet are overwhelming, simultaneously delicious and repellent.

From Phnom Peng you can fly to Siem Reap, 320 kms north of the capital, to see some of the great temples of the Angkorian civilisation. Help in planning your itinerary and navigating the crowds is essential, so do invest in a copy of Andrew Booth’s The Angkor Guidebook, which contains detailed photographs and maps of many of the temples.To see the celebrated Angkor Wat bathed in moonlight with almost no one else around is well worth the 4.30am start.

The forest temples that have become romantic ruins are equally rewarding. At Beng Mealea, an hour’s drive from Siem Reap, the only sounds are of mynah birds singing high up in the spung trees. The ancient temple walls are covered by strangler fig trees that grip like tentacles and you can freely clamber over the tumbledown stone slabs, some half-buried in the earth, their carved details worn not quite smooth by almost a century of neglect. Another highlight is the small temple at Banteay Srei, from 967AD, where flowers and mythical creatures are deeply carved into almost every inch of the rose gold sandstone.

You could spend weeks temple-hopping but there's much else to enjoy too. A sunset gondola ride along the moat at Ta Prohm is magical; a helicopter ride offering aerial views of the original city layout is a revelation; a bicycle ride through paddy fields and temple ruins reveals remnants of the original irrigation system. A visit to the Landmine Museum, which shows how millions of unexploded land mines in the country have still not been cleared, is deeply affecting.

An extravaganza of gymnastics, juggling and acrobatics inspired by themes of Khmer Rouge domination performed by the Phare Circus offers a counterpoint to the traditional Apsara dancers at the Apsara theatre.

The food, whether hot pancakes at market stalls or the most delicate fish amok at the countryside Villa Chandara is fresh and moreish, often sweet, never too spicy.

There’s no shortage of luxury hotels in Siem Reap, from the sleek but cosy boutique Shinta Mani (which has the most courteous service ever) to the Amansara, set in a magnificent 1960s building once occupied by King Norodom Sihanouk. Wherever you stay, a pool for a cooling lunchtime dip is essential; Cambodia is a hot destination, in every sense.

What to see

King Norodom’s Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda in Phnom Penh, built in 1866, is a must with its immaculate lawns, clipped hedges and not a leaf out of place. You’ll feel as if you’re in a South East Asian version of The Truman Show.

What to read

Hunters in the Dark by Lawrence Osborne is a novel that tells the story of a lone Englishman travelling through Cambodia who wins some money gambling, only to find it brings him nothing but bad luck.

What to do

Watch gigantic silkworms hard at work, chomping their way through mountains of mulberry leaves to produce cocoons that are spun by hand into exquisite golden thread by local village women. The golden silk factory is on the outskirts of Siem Reap. (goldensilk.org)

Where to stay

Song Saa, a luxury resort on a private island in the Gulf of Thailand. (songsaa.com)

In Phnom Penh, raffles le royal is a French colonial gem of a hotel. (raffles.com)

Where to shop

Kandal Village along Hup Guan Street is Siem Reap’s Redchurch Street. Don’t miss Louise Loubatieres’ lifestyle store. She designs ceramics and textiles, and local craftsmen make them up. (louiseloubatieres.com)

Check in

A nine-day trip, including luxury accommodation in Song Saa, Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, international and domestic flights, transfers, guides and entrance fees, costs from £5,797pp based on two people sharing, organised by Jacada Travel, which specialises in bespoke luxury tours to Cambodia (jacadatravel.com; 020 3131 7413)

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