Garden Guest House — Hotel in Kampong Chhnang

Note: this rating of 3 stars is in relation to Cambodian, not western, standards. And really, it’s more like 3.5 stars.||||A cosy enough stay with a decent location. We booked last-minute through booking.com and was most grateful when Channy, the guesthouse’s driver, greeted our bus as it pulled to a stop along the main road in Kampong Chhnang on its way to Phnom Penh.||||The property itself is quite large, though deceivingly so from the front. Maybe 50 rooms in total, extending far, far back. Our room was big, airy and very clean. Blankets kept us warm and the beds were super comfy. We were in Room #49 - maybe this is the only triple room in the guesthouse – at the very front of the property and right next to the road and the restaurant, so it as quite noisy.||||After one night’s stay, we asked for a back room (further down the driveway) if possible, as my friend didn’t sleep well because of the late night and then early morning noise. That morning we were moved to Room #25, at the back of the property (2 x double beds for $18/night) without a fan (our first room had a fan) but with air-con. This was definitely a downgrade from our original room, but also much quieter. The only main issue was that the WiFi didn’t reach this new room and the shower wasn’t working at first – I had to approach reception and have someone fix it. Once fixed I had a quick shower, which then tripped the circuit for the hot water and air-con. Lots of fun and games here!||||This aside, each room has lovely bamboo décor and the little touches like a travel toothbrush and toothpaste, shampoo, comb and soap make a difference! It is a bit more expensive in KC compared to other parts of the country, but staff were super lovely and helped us to organize a full-day tour of the area with Channy – superb guide and driver! The tour was $30 for about 9.5 hours, plus a tip for his services – a great guy! Staff also helped us book a shared taxi to PP ($5 each - we were two of only three people onboard the brand new Korean van!).||||WiFi was a bit spotty and very slow throughout the property, but there is a great outside eating area with lovely staff. There is also a fantastic salon directly opposite the guesthouse. My friend and I got pedicures and manicures and our eyebrows done by the sweetest ladies ever (one of whom spoke excellent English)! All for...

I'm giving Garden Guest House five stars because we had a great stay, but it's not the Ritz-Carlton. I can't imagine a better accommodation in this area. This is the Cambodian outback. The people working here are all super friendly. The older woman and one of the younger women speak good English. Good breakfast omelets.

The whole grounds are an extended garden, which is beautiful, but with gardens come bugs. The room we rented for four days was spotless clean when we checked in but eventually we had company in the form of a flying cockroach and a fairly large centipede. Didn't bother me but my wife would have preferred they didn't come to visit.

Power outages are common though most are fixed within seconds or minutes. One lasted a couple of hours.

We got lucky and stumbled upon the tuk tuk driver Vanny! He took good care of us for a fair price. We called upon him for three outings. You must go to the floating village. Vanny will introduce you to a Vietnamese small boat owner who can show you around. Careful because she gave us a price for a three hour boat ride that lasted barely over two hours. We stood our ground and she gave us some money back. It was the best thing we did while here.

I'd definitely stay at the Garden Guest House again. They helped us get bus tickets out to a small, less travel town. That would have been difficult to do on our own.

Side note: DO NOT GO TO PARIS RESTAURANT next door. The crazy woman running the place started yelling at us when we told her one of our beers was flat. She said it was our fault as we somehow broke the beer bottle then she yelled at us and started talking to all the other tables in French about us (the other diners were French speaking). I'm 49 years old from New York City and I've traveled to 48 countries, living in quite a few of them, and I've never had this happen to me. The food is mediocre and over priced. Vann Sokleap in the opposite direction is better food at a better price. Much nicer...

The place is beautiful and the room clean but a few things left us disappointed. The standard fan room does not have hot water. When we asked, we were told the hot water works only if the A/C is on, so we were left without. Also, we trusted the driver of the guesthouse to take us to the pier to see the floating villages, but he was never clear about how much we had to pay for transport or for the slow boat. Turned out we paid more than what we expected. The guesthouse arranged our transfer to Phnom Penh, we paid the same amount we’d have paid with a bus company, just to find ourselves in a 7-seater car packed with people over capacity. Also, after we left the lady called us claiming we had forgotten to pay the room. I had to send her a picture of the receipt to convince her. She later called back...