This guide is a session-three seed, wired in to exercise the guide template end to end — sticky TOC on desktop, a collapsible contents accordion on mobile, and the MDX components the editorial staff will lean on. When the production visitor guide lands it slots into exactly this shape.

When to come

Kampot sits on Cambodia’s southern coast, inland from the Gulf of Thailand. The climate is tropical; the year divides cleanly into a dry half and a wet half. The shoulder weeks at the edges of each are, predictably, the best times to be here — quieter, cheaper, cooler.

November through February is the cooler dry season. Days are warm without being punishing, nights cool enough to sleep with the window open. This is peak visitor season and you’ll feel it on the riverfront.

March and April are the hot dry months. Daytime heat can reach 38°C. The karsts shimmer. The town empties. If you can handle the heat there are bargains to be had and the pace slows pleasantly.

How to get here

Most visitors arrive overland. The options in descending comfort:

  1. Private taxi from Phnom Penh or Sihanoukville — 3 and 2 hours respectively. Around $50–80 depending on negotiation.
  2. Bus from Phnom Penh — multiple operators, 4 hours, $8–12. Giant Ibis is the civilised choice.
  3. Train from Phnom Penh — the heritage Royal Railway runs weekends only. 6 hours, but the ride is the point.

How to spend three days

A light rhythm for first-time visitors. Scale up or down as energy allows.

Day one — arrive slow

Check in, walk the old quarter, find an early dinner on the riverfront. Don’t over-plan the first evening; the town reveals itself faster if you sit still for a bit.

Day two — the countryside

A half-day tour of the pepper plantations east of town, then down to the salt fields near Kep. Back in time for a late lunch and a nap through the hot hours. Sunset on the river.

Day three — the karst country

Phnom Chhngok caves in the morning; bicycle back through the villages; long lunch. Pack quietly for departure or decide to stay longer (it happens often).

Money and practicalities

Cambodia runs on two currencies in parallel — US dollars and Khmer riel — at a fixed 4,000-to-one peg. Dollars are accepted everywhere; change comes in riel. ATMs dispense both.

Further reading

This is the index guide for first-time visitors. Once you’ve been, the “Living Here” section has the longer-stay material.