Shanghai Resort

The people were so friendly and helpful, and we really enjoyed our stay!

Seems like this resort is aimed more at foreign visitors.

The food was the first thing that put us off. We tried the mall restaurants and found the meal below average and more expensive than anything else we paid for in Cambodia. The chicken was mostly bone and cartilage, and the rice was stodgy. We waited half an hour for two Coca-Colas. When my partner went to ask, Shanghai Restaurant Executive manager Loek Usa rudely shushed him and told him to sit back down. The food arrived, but we still had to ask again for our drinks. A staff member looked surprised and went to get them, asking the manager why they had not come. After the meal, the Executive manager asked for a service charge on top of the bill. We asked what service he had provided, but he could not speak English despite his badge saying he could. We were in Bavet Cambodia waiting for our visas before entering Vietnam, and chose Shanghai Resort because it was the cheapest place we could find nearby. It wasn’t worth it. The resort is about 30 minutes from the main town. It has bungalows, a shopping mall with only a couple of restaurants, a small mart, a pool and some bars. Reception staff were pleasant, but did not speak English, even though their badges said they did. We had to use Google Translate, and getting a query sorted could take a long time. At check-in they asked for a $20 deposit and our passports. First, they gave us a key to someone else’s room. We only realized when we walked in and found the occupants asleep, so reception gave us another room. We carried our two 20kg backpacks and rucksacks to the bungalow ourselves, while we saw other guests being offered the electric shuttle to and from their bungalows. We had to switch on the electricity ourselves when we got into the room. It was spacious and the beds were comfortable, but there were ants on the floor and in the bathroom, and even a few in the bed. After a shower, water started bursting out of the pipes, and we had to try to sleep with it running all night. There was no Wi-Fi in the room, the phone could not call reception, and the hairdryer only worked in some sockets, not the bathroom ones. The pool area is fairly large and nice, but entry costs $2 per person, or you can get a $50 fine. The resort does not take cards anywhere, and the nearest ATM is a 15-minute drive away. Without lots of cash or a motorbike, you’re stuck. We were glad to be leaving. We used Google Translate to ask reception how to get back to Bavet town, and they said there was a bus for $3 each. Staff took us in an electric shuttle, which we assumed would drop us at the bus stop, but it brought us to the main gates. Security stopped us there. The guard and shuttle driver photographed us, talked on the radio, and we heard the word “Bungalow.” They told us to get out. The guard asked to search my partner’s bags, but not mine. My partner asked through Google Translate why, but the guard only smiled and laughed nervously, then photographed the inside of my partner’s bag. We felt angry and confused because reception had cleared us to leave at checkout. Seeing local people come and go by bike and car without a second look made us feel targeted. I would not recommend this resort to anyone who isn’t local.

English was barely usable, even at reception. When paying for the room and deposit, ask for a receipt or you could end up having trouble with them, as I did. I think this hotel is usable only for Vietnamese people.