Villa Amalia

We’d booked a week, but left without staying the night. The bed was so hard that my spouse and I looked at each other and decided to find somewhere else. We also found the welcome snappy, and after we explained that we were unhappy with the accommodation, communicating with the owners became difficult and excessive. We arrived in the evening, and even with the AC blasting, the room hadn’t cooled after 20 minutes. Mosquitoes were coming in through a crack in the outside door.

The room was huge, and having a ground-floor villa with an outdoor terrace was nice. WiFi worked fine for checking email, and the hotel could arrange tuk-tuks to the temples for $15-$20. I chose the Premier Villa with Private Garden mostly for its central location, but it wasn’t as close to the town centre as I expected. At night, with the heat and unlit road, you’ll need a tuk-tuk. The airport pickup was included, though it was a tuk-tuk, and the 7 km ride with my suitcases was a bit of a white-knuckle trip. A few things fell short: there was no complimentary water in the room, cobwebs near the ceiling, and it took five minutes for the hot water to come through. The pool was nice, but its four sunbeds filled up quickly, and the pool shower wasn’t working. Breakfast was basic and limited. I only found out at checkout that a can of Coke from the minibar cost $2, which seems expensive for Cambodia. For a four-star hotel at £57/$85 a night, I expected more. It felt overpriced for Cambodia, especially after I paid much less for much better accommodation in Thailand.

The villas and pool are lovely. It’s a small, beautiful boutique hotel, tucked away from the main shopping area but still close enough to walk. Bring insect repellent, there are lots of mosquitoes.

This was the worst hotel experience I’ve had. The staff didn’t speak English or understand what I was saying, and it made me so angry. I sent several messages through Agoda and called the hotel twice to confirm my reservation, but when I arrived around 1 a.m. the room still wasn’t ready. I waited more than 30 minutes. Now I’m heading to the airport by tuk-tuk even though I’d already told them we needed a car because of our luggage. There was dust everywhere, and I’d just showered but still had to handle my bags.