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Voykit pocket guide · Cambodia
Kep
កែប
Go for 2 nights: crab market lunch, a 2–3 h loop of Kep National Park, and a Rabbit Island morning boat. Skip if you want big beaches.
Kep is a small seaside town on a peninsula in southern Cambodia, about 25 km from Kampot. It was the country's elite beach resort until the 1960s, and ruined French villas still stand in the trees above the water. Today it is a Khmer weekend spot with a crab market, a hilltop national park and slow boat trips to Rabbit Island. Two nights covers it; three if you add Kampot or the pepper farms.
- Country
- Cambodia
- Local name
- កែប
- Best months
- Nov–Apr (dry season)
- Avoid
- May–Oct (rain, rough sea for boat trips)
- Stay
- 2 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- USD
- Money
- US dollars for hotels, tours and restaurants; riel (KHR, about 4,000 to the dollar) for change and small street purchases.
- Daily spend
- Budget US$25–40 excl. bed · Mid US$40–70 excl. bed · High US$70+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- Smart, Cellcard and Metfone sell tourist SIMs at the airports with passport registration; a week of data costs a few dollars.
- Emergency
- Police 117 · Fire 118 · Ambulance 119
- Plugs
- Types A, C, G · 230 V · 50 Hz · Most sockets take flat US and round European pins; newer hotels have UK-style type G.
- Tipping
- Street food: Nothing.; Sit-down restaurant: Round up or leave US$1–2 where no service charge is added.; Tuk-tuk: Round up; US$2–5 extra for a full Angkor day.; Guide day: US$5–10 per person.; Massage: US$1–2 per hour.
- Water
- Not drinkable from the tap. Bottled water everywhere; many hotels have refill stations.
- Toilets
- Western toilets in hotels, restaurants and at the Angkor ticket office and main temples; squat toilets with a hose or scoop on the road. Paper goes in the bin in older places.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Kilogram of crab at the crab market | 10,000–20,000 riel |
| Seafood restaurant main near the crab market | From US$3 |
| Coffee or cold drink | 4,000–8,000 riel |
| Beer: draught in a bar / can at a shop | US$0.75–1.50 |
| Tuk-tuk around town | US$1–2 |
| Motorbike rental, 125 cc, per day | About US$7 |
| Kep National Park entry | US$1 |
| Massage (Thai, oil or steam) | About US$7 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- KOS · Sihanoukville International
- About 2 h by road; limited scheduled flights, check before booking
- PNH · Phnom Penh International
- About 4 h by bus or 2.5–3 h by private taxi
Typical fares
- Kampot → Kep, bus
- about US$3, 30 min (check)
- Phnom Penh → Kep, bus
- US$5–6, about 4 h (check)
- Sihanoukville → Kep, minibus
- about US$7, 2 h (check)
- Kep → Rabbit Island, boat
- US$8–10 return on a tour, about 20 min
Get around
Tuk-tuks cover the town: US$1–2 for short hops, US$12–25 for a full day. Small motorbikes rent for about US$7 a day, 250 cc for about US$14. Bicycles are also available. The beach loop road is one-way and cars pay 2,500–5,000 riel to drive it; motorbikes and pedestrians are free.
See and do
Known for
- Crab market and fresh seafood
- Kep National Park loop trail
- Ruined colonial villas
- Rabbit Island boat trips
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Kampot | Bus or tuk-tuk on the paved road, 25 kmBus or tuk-tuk on the paved road, 16 mi | 30–45 min |
| Rabbit Island (Koh Tonsay) | Boat from Kep Beach pier, about 20 min | About 1 h |
| Kompong Trach caves | Tuk-tuk or motorbike east toward the Vietnam border | About 1 h |
| Angkaul Beach | Road east near the Vietnamese border | About 45 min |
Sleep
- Kep Beach area
- Walk to the sand, the pier and the crab market; guesthouses and mid-range hotels.
- Crab Market and seafront
- Seafood restaurants over the water; noisier, best for one night and early dinners.
- Kep Mountain hillside
- Bungalows with sea views below the national park; you need a tuk-tuk for everything.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | សួស្តីsuostei |
| Thank you | អរគុណaw kohn |
| How much is it? | ថ្លៃប៉ុន្មាន?thlai ponman |
| Too expensive | ថ្លៃពេកthlai pek |
| I don't want it | ខ្ញុំមិនចង់បានទេkhnhom min chong ban te |
| Where is the toilet? | បង្គន់នៅឯណា?bongkon nov ae na |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Sampeah (palms together, slight bow); higher hands for elders and monks; avoid: Firm handshakes with older women
- Head and feet: Keep feet down and pointed away from people and Buddha images; avoid: Touching heads, even children's
- Temples: Shoes and hat off inside, shoulders and knees covered; avoid: Sitting with feet toward the Buddha; women touching monks
- Keeping face: Stay calm and smile when things go wrong; avoid: Shouting or public anger
- Giving and receiving: Use the right hand or both hands; avoid: Tossing money or objects
- Photos: Ask first, especially of monks and at memorials; avoid: Selfies at Tuol Sleng and Choeung Ek
Scams and watch-outs
- Bargain before you agree: seafood and tuk-tuk prices are often quoted high for visitors.
- The beach loop road is one-way only; police do fine drivers who go the wrong way.
- Rabbit Island boats leave in the morning; there is no reliable afternoon return.
- May–Oct brings rain and choppy crossings; check the sea before booking a boat.
- There is one main ATM near the pharmacy; bring enough US dollars.
Kep is calm and low-rise; the real risks are motorbike rental without a licence, one-way road fines, and seafood bills that grow if you do not agree the price first.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Kep yet. Suggested stay: 2 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Crab market and fresh seafood
- Kep National Park loop trail
- Ruined colonial villas
- Rabbit Island boat trips
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Ministry of Tourism of Cambodia: www.tourismcambodia.com/
- Wikivoyage: Kep, revision 5286196 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5286196
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Kepកែប
សូមជូនខ្ញុំទៅអាសយដ្ឋាននេះ
Please take me to this address
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
No embassies in Kep; most are in Phnom Penh. The US embassy is in Phnom Penh (check the address).
Prices in US dollars; riel is used for change at about 4,000–4,100 per dollar.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/kep). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.