The Cambodia Coastal Visitors Guide 52nd

islands

39

There are also several affordable little local restaurants in M’Pay Bay village on the north side as well as a few foreign places. Select Restaurants & Bars... Big Moon A step up from the local places, this breezy little restaurant is located in M’Pay Bay village with a nice view overlooking the bay. Serving tasty Khmer and Western dishes prepared by a trained chef All foods fresh from Sihanoukville daily. Hygienic preparation. Koh Rong Sanloem, M’Pay Bay Village Leng Meng Beach Bungalows Breezy restaurant that serves up Khmer seafood specialties, pizza, burgers and cold beers. Every night there's a barbeque that features fresh-caught snapper and a seafood mixed grill. For $10 you can join their daily fishing tour and catch your own din- ner. Koh Rong Sanloem, Saracen Bay Mango Lounge Mango Lounge is now on Koh Rong Sanloem, right on the beach at M'Pay Bay. Fun bar and chill out lounge, serving good food 24 hours a day. Beautiful, sweeping unspoiled view of the surrounding islands. Pool table, sports TV, WiFi and live music. Koh Rong Sanloem, M’Pay Bay Village to/from the islands Several daily boats, both speed ferries and slow boat ‘backpacker ferries,’ run between Sihanoukville and the two big islands of Koh Rong (KR) and Koh Rong Sanloem (KRS.) All of the speed ferries depart Sihanoukville at the Serendipity Beach Pier. Most follow a triagular course, stopping at both Koh Rong and Koh Rong Samloem, and then returning to Sihanoukvlle. The ferries take 30-50 minutes from the mainland to the island and 15 minutes between islands. At Koh Rong all ferries stop at Koh Toch Beach. At Koh Rong Sanloem, all ferries stop at Saracen Bay, and some also stop at M’Pay Bay on the northern point. The price is $20 round trip with an open return. Shop around for special price deals. The ‘ backpacker ferry ’ takes 2.5 hours one way and offers a leisurely paced, budget price, local experience. $10 return, departing at 8:00AM and 2:00PM. The smaller islands usually have daily private boats arranged by the guesthouses. Another way to get to smaller islands is to take one of the island- hopping day cruises out of Sihanoukville for about $15, get off at the island and then just stay. If you let them know, most cruise boats will let you treat your ticket as open ended.

Further offshore are KOH TANG and KOH PRINS , only reachable by chartered boat, a trip that can take as much as eight hours. These islands offer some of the best diving opportunities in Cambodia. A boat to the islands is most easily arranged through one of the div- ing outfits in town.

koh rong sanloem

Koh Rong Sanloem (or Samloem) is the somewhat smaller and more tranquil of the big two islands. While offering a wide vari- ety of accommodations and restaurants, especially on Saracen Bay and M’Pay Bay, the island has a generally more tranquil and peaceful atmosphere than Koh Rong and Koh Toch Beach. Saracen Bay on the land side of Koh Rong Sanloem is the busiest beach, sporting several restaurants and accommodations from cheap and cheerful to upscale bungalows. Saracen Bay (and M’Pay Bay) is also where the Sihanoukville fer- ries docks, and is the place to pick up boats to other beaches on island and to Koh Rong. A few guesthouses dot the beaches on the west side of the island, which is a moderately easy 1km walk across the island from Saracen Bay. M’Pay Bay village on the northern corner of the island also has several guesthouses and a couple of good restaurants. Getting to Koh Rong Sanloem is easy. There are several daily speed ferries and slow boats from Sihanoukville and from Koh Rong. By speed ferry it is a 40-50 minutes ride from Sihanoukville and only about 10 minutes from Koh Rong. The slow boat takes about 2.5 hours from Sihanoukville. (See page 52.) Besides lounging in the sun there’s plenty to do on Koh Rong Sanloem - most of the usual island activ- ities - snorkeling, trekking, mountain biking, inex- pensive boat cruises, fishing and some pretty good scuba diving opportunities. There are a few foreign- run dive outfitters on the island that offer fun dive and certification, including The Dive Shop with an office on Saracen Bay. There are no banks or ATMs on Koh Rong Sanloem and very few places accept credit cards. Bring the money that you will need. And though there is phone and internet, it can be spotty. Dine & Drinking... Saracen Bay has the widest array of dining options. There are more than a dozen guesthous- es on the Bay. Each has its own restaurant, and they all offer beautiful panoramic views of the sea. Most of the guesthouses serve Western and Khmer dishes and feature fresh seafood caught by local fisherman.