Best Central Point Hotel

I spent 10 nights at Best Central Point Hotel and had a wonderful, quiet stay right in the middle of everything. The room was clean, spacious, and well appointed, with good air conditioning, a fridge, and a safe. It was great value, and I'd definitely stay again on my next trip to Phnom Penh. The staff were consistently polite and helpful. Whatever I asked for, they handled it kindly and with a smile. The hotel is in an older, charming riverside area, within a short walk of the Royal Palace and National Museum. There's a lively bar and party scene on the nearby main street, but my room faced the other side of the building, so I had no noise trouble day or night and slept deeply all 10 days.

The location is the one real plus: National Museum of Cambodia and the river walk are nearby, and the Royal Palace is within walking distance. We stayed in a clean, comfortable triple room on the third floor, with a spacious bathroom, but that was about all it offered. We had booked breakfast, then found on arrival that it wasn't listed in our booking. The hotel is very basic, with a tiny reception area that also serves as the dining room. There's a lift, but for the price it didn't feel worth it. Our room had no window or view. Like a clean one-star hotel with a lift.

The location is hard to beat for the price, and the rooms, mattresses included, were very clean. It’s one of my top three places to stay in this part of Phnom Penh. You’re close to the national museum, Royal Palace, 7-Eleven, smile Mart grocery store, a local Cambodian wet market, and the river. Pick a north-facing room if you can. Most face that way and are quiet, while the few south-facing ones get a lot of street noise.

The best thing here is the location. Street 172 has plenty of bars, restaurants, convenience shops and laundries, with 24 hour Smile just 100 metres away on the corner. I’d consider staying again for a night because of that, though not for a longer visit. Noise was the biggest problem. I could hear people in the communal seating areas on each floor chatting in groups or talking loudly on their phones, sometimes after midnight and into the early morning. External sounds also came through the windows, whether open or closed, since they weren’t well sealed. On top of that, a room above mine was being repaired or renovated for over a week. There was banging, tools being dropped and furniture dragged around all night. Complaining didn’t stop it, and management said the work had finished even though it hadn’t. If you’re an insomniac, maybe this place is paradise. My first room, 401, was a disaster because the air-conditioner barely worked and they gave me a fan. I moved the next day to a lower-grade room, 208, where the air-conditioner was great. It had a firm queen bed that was comfortable enough that I didn’t need my foam mattress topper, plus a private bathroom. The room and bathroom were passable in cleanliness, and the furnishings were modest. The TV had about 10 English channels, including some movie channels, but the aerial connection and reception were poor, with a fuzzy picture and some channels unmatchable. I fixed the aerial connection myself, which helped a little but didn’t solve it. The bathroom worked, and the separate electric hot water system was okay as long as I didn’t turn the water on full. Staff were friendly and helpful. There’s footpath parking for motorbikes outside, and they chain the bikes up at night. Don’t leave anything else outside, though, as it will be stolen. Someone even took my PVC poncho. There’s one elevator, but it doesn’t go to the 5th floor. The hotel also has a restaurant. My friend ate there regularly and said it was okay; I ate elsewhere. Ask reception if you want your room cleaned, as it seems best to make sure they know. Pets are accepted for USD5 per night, supposedly for “special” cleaning, but I stayed nearly 3 weeks and saw no special cleaning done. I even watched them clean my first room and saw none then either. In my opinion, the fee is just greed by the owners or management. Another adult could stay for only USD2 extra, despite using more complimentary products and electricity and making more mess. It makes me wonder why a pet, who uses nothing and is cleaner than me, costs USD5. Room 401 warning: if its air-conditioner doesn’t look brand new, reject the room and insist on moving, or go elsewhere.