Murray Guesthouse

The owners gave us useful information about the paperwork for our Hang Chau Express trip into Cambodia, and breakfast was delicious. Before that, they'd also recommended a very good place for dinner. We found the staff accommodating, and liked the room, dining and lounge areas, in-room safe, and rooftop garden. We stayed ahead of our transit and would strongly recommend the place.

We stayed for a night after a Mekong cruise, before taking a bus to an island resort. The staff were thoughtful and generous, and helped us so much that we just made our bus. The room was clean and air-conditioned. We also liked the rooftop garden, pool table, and self-serve bar on an honour system. Water was available freely, rather than in little disposable plastic bottles, and the hot water came from solar power. In a hot climate, hot showers seem a bit silly anyway.

The host helped us plan onward travel and things to do in Chau Doc, which is a wonderful place. The room was comfortable, the bathroom clean, and the A/C worked. It's on a quiet street in a good neighborhood, within walking distance of the town center. You can have a beer on the roof balcony or play pool. Just know that it's cash only, despite what websites say about credit cards, and they no longer serve food or offer free breakfast. COVID changed a lot of places. I'd stay again.

The guesthouse was clean and central, and the mattress was comfortable enough for a night's rest. Still, the way our stay ended means we won't return. We'd arrived around 9pm on a Wednesday and left at 5am Thursday. We got along well with the owner and planned to stay there whenever we returned to Chaudok to source clothes for our store, around 3-4 times a year. After a long day shopping and picking items at the market, we came back for our belongings and asked to take a quick five-minute shower before catching the bus to Saigon. The owner firmly refused. There were no other guests staying there that day, as there had hardly been any since the end of COVID, and neither she nor the male staff member gave a reason beyond saying no and shaking his head. It felt like business wasn't a two-way street. That's why I changed my mind from the five-star review I'd first planned to leave and gave three stars instead.