Sokha Beach Resort — Hotel in Khaet Preah Sihanouk

I stayed 3 nights at one of the original buildings just next to the reception hall.

Minuses: Due to some technical faults, I ended up in a twin room though it was clearly stated that there was only 1 guest and hence was given 2 coupons in the package.

The 1st receptionist suggested strongly that I had asked for/booked a twin room, but another was diplomatic enough to switch me to a double room albeit it faced the carpark and not the seaview I was paying for.

A chat with Agoda confirmed that my booking was for one but the package that I had selected was for 2 as single guest rooms were not offered on Agoda.

That I was treated as 2 persons came to light only when I used one of the breakfast vouchers that morning.

Agoda did not get back to me as the chat officer said he/she would. Instead, a hotel worker did. At first she said that the double room with breakfast for 2 was a packaged deal, but later retracted and said that I should have only 1 ticket. I told her to revert via 3rd party to Agoda.

Pluses: As I had breakfast early, I decided to use the other for brunch close to closing time. So on day 2 and 3, I had early breakfast then brunch after 10a.m.

Having missed 2 sunrises due to the mix-up and having to repeat my story to yet another Agoda , I decided to speak with the hotel manager. Within 3 sentences and 3 minutes, he offered to switch me back to a room with a seaview. The room had minor faults which I eradicated, and I had superb shots of sunrise on day 4.

I did not realise that Mr Touch Phalla was a night manager who had worked overtime to see to my comfort needs. Indeed, when he espied me after his duty on day 4, he hurried across the reception area to intercept me and ask if I had a good night, as well as apologise/thank me again for being understanding. His thoughtful and simple acts overwrote the errors of Agoda/day team of workers.

I would certainly return to the hotel again and hope I could accord 5 starts...

If you are European, I strongly advise against staying in Sihanoukville. The town has been completely transformed by Chinese investment, with high-rise casino hotels and Chinese restaurants replacing its original character.||Sokha hotel, once a peaceful retreat, is now surrounded by towering skyscrapers, and construction noise was a constant issue during our stay. Given the prime location, it seems only a matter of time before this hotel is also redeveloped.||That being said, the staff at Sokha were truly wonderful. Every member of the team was warm, welcoming, and went out of their way to provide the best service possible. They remained professional and attentive despite the challenges they face, which made our stay much more pleasant.||Breakfast, however, was disappointing. While there were plenty of chefs ready to cook fresh meals, the execution was lacking. My eggs were never quite right, and the omelette just didn’t taste as it should. Although the variety of food was reasonable, the overall quality was underwhelming. Additionally, having to pay extra for a simple latte seemed unnecessary for a hotel of this standard.||The hotel itself feels outdated, and it’s clear that investment in renovations is not a priority. More concerningly, I saw rats in both the children’s play area and the restaurant/bar area every day. Despite reporting this multiple times, no action was taken. While the open-air layout may make pest control challenging, I would have expected at least some effort to address the issue.||Overall, Sokha Hotel is doing its best in an increasingly difficult environment. If you want to avoid staying in a casino hotel, this may be one of your only options in Sihanoukville. However, unless you have no other choice, I would recommend staying away from...

We were here just for a day on a beach pass, $20 per person included towel and a beer or soft drink. There were very few other folks at the beach, it was just after Chinese New Year. So we had a lovely swim, used the palapa-protected loungers on the beach, enjoyed a poolside hot lunch and drinks, it was great! ||We came in part because our cruise ship said the Sokha Beach had no pedlars, and this was indeed true. Lots of coconut palms - loved the 'beware of falling coconut' signs!||The beach is quite nice. Very sandy and after a short, steep slope into the water is relatively flat at roughly 3-4' deep so you can swim or just hang out. Gentle waves. You can get pool bar/food items delivered.||Pool bar menu is pretty full - more like a cafe than "just" a pool bar. There are both western and khmer choices. There are stools at the bar in the pool, and poolside loungers, plus umbrella tables with chairs .||The provided towel was ok - clean and not super fancy. Looks like hotel guests get super large towels, beach day pass people regular beach towel sized ones. Changing rooms are single-occupancy bathrooms in the hotel wing nearest the pool (not strictly dedicated for the pool, but no one other than pool folks seemed to use them).||To get the beach pass you just walk in through the impressive hotel lobby right out to the pool, pay the guys at the pool bar. When we were waiting on our tuk-tuk driver to collect us from the lobby on our way out, the chef chatted us up - from Bali, worked cruise ships in the US for several years, just relocated from Vietnam. Nice guy and now we know why the...