14 Best Hotels in Siem Reap, Cambodia

The jewel in the crown of Siem Reap hotels, Amansara offers exceptional service, atmosphere, and accommodations in surroundings of understated luxury. The tastefully renovated former guesthouse of King Norodom Sihanouk has become a resort that exudes an old-fashioned grace, where guests enjoy the quiet and me-time comfort of being at home while being indulgently pampered in a hundred small ways. Noteworthy cultural initiatives such as performances and movie screenings supporting the disadvantaged local community are organized regularly, and the resort offers exclusive tours to the Angkor temples, where guests can even arrange a personal yoga or meditation class. The Spa offers an exemplary (by international standards) range of therapies for mind, body, and soul, administered by expert professionals, and the two lovely pools are a haven of highly catered relaxation. The simple yet sophisticated restaurant menu changes daily.

In a quiet neighborhood, close to the town center and river, this iconic boutique hotel charms with its understated luxury and discrete attention to detail. From the minute you step into the vintage limo sent to pick you up from the airport, you're made to feel welcome and at ease. Refurbished and redecorated in late 2018, the open-plan suites feature teak floors, heavy curtains, marble baths, and all have a private steam room. The main pool and poolside yoga deck in the gardens conjure a calm ambience, and the in-house Heritage Restaurant offers stylish and innovative dining.

This boutique hotel is located on one of Siem Reap's most charming laneways in Wat Damnak neighborhood, home to the historic pagoda with tranquil gardens and great street food eateries. Rambutan has loads of charm, with rooms (most have balconies and outdoor bathtubs) set around a gorgeous saltwater pool lined with sunbeds and tropical plants. The resort has Urban Residencies upstairs—sleek contemporary apartments with industrial-chic touches, kitchens, and dining-living rooms that are ideal for longer stays.

Not only will you sleep and eat in serious style here, your money will also help support community projects bringing clean water, transportation, and jobs to underprivileged communities via the Shinta Mani Foundation. The sumptuous hotel has stunning swimming pools, a great spa, good restaurants, and a cozy bar. Co-owner and star architect Bill Bensley is responsible for the flamboyant design of this property, which features a resort, hotel, and ultra-luxurious pool villas with butler service under the banner of the Bensley Collection.

The layout of these villas, each with a pool or garden view, offers privacy and relaxation in lovingly maintained verdant grounds, and your stay will help the owners' ongoing support for underprivileged locals. The bright, spacious interiors feature modern furnishings made from local wood in a minimalist style, and fresh, colorful splashes with silk cushions and throws. The bathrooms are large, modern, and serene. But Sojourn is a 15-minute drive from central Siem Reap. Its owners also run Beyond Unique Escapes, a socially responsible agency that devises innovative programs for interacting with, and helping the welcoming local community.

This oasis of Khmer-style wooden buildings, lush gardens, and pools filled with lotus blossoms lies along a stone path a couple of blocks from the river in a green neighborhood. Standard rooms are small, while superior rooms are bigger and brighter, overlooking the water and well-tended gardens. All are decorated with traditional Khmer handicrafts such as raw-silk curtains and teak four-poster beds. The open-air restaurant, in the middle of a pond, serves French and Khmer cuisine. The cultural show performed in the hotel's gorgeous theater, designed like a temple, is a must-see. A sister property, Angkor Village Resort, is farther from the city and quieter. Thirty days advance online bookings get a 35% discount.

This resort, between Siem Reap and Angkor Wat, offers guests who value their time and privacy a real sense of retreat from the rest of the world after a busy day of sightseeing. The cottages are laid out among atmospheric, verdant gardens rich with tropical flora, and the pool snakes its way around accommodations so that each guest has a private part of it. The classic Khmer style, with chic modern touches, creates a sense of comfort, enhanced by the service of polite, helpful staff. The resort organizes guided tours and will prepare a picnic hamper for guests exploring Angkor Wat for the day, or an afternoon tea featuring Khmer and international snacks on your return, followed, perhaps, by a restorative spa session.

The accommodations are attractive and the rates reliable at this tranquil, small hotel, a couple of blocks east of the river behind La Noria. Khmer handicrafts and antiques fill the rooms, which have high ceilings and tile floors. Each one has a large porch or balcony overlooking a nicely planted yard, which holds a pool and open-air thatched restaurant. Large bathrooms with stone floors have both a shower and the traditional Cambodian bathing option of scooping water out of a giant ceramic urn, which sounds archaic but is thoroughly refreshing after a hot day at the temples.

Just behind the Royal Residence, this stunning mid-century colonial building was the former French Governor's residence before it was transformed into an inviting riverside boutique hotel. Remodeled and relaunched as an Avani at the start of the pandemic, it now has an on-site gallery with regular exhibition openings. Rooms and suites are in a minimalist contemporary design with gleaming hardwood floors and local art on the walls. There's an additional wing across the road with suites.

As one of the best backpacker's options, the Ivy offers cheap accommodations a short walking distance to most central spots. Guests can relax with a drink in the courtyard or play some pool. The friendly restaurant serves Western and Khmer dishes, including numerous healthy and vegetarian options and a popular Tapas Night on Friday, and the bar has a happy hour with $2 cocktails.

Welcoming and relaxed, this affordable boutique hotel would be the closest thing Siem Reap has to a B&B, if it wasn’t also the site of two restaurants helmed by one of the city’s finest chefs, Mengly Mork. Owned and operated by a French-speaking Malagasy couple, the hotel is beautifully decorated in colonial style and has two swimming pools. As for dining options, there’s a casual eatery in the courtyard and an intimate fine dining restaurant inside, offering a multi-course tasting menu of contemporary Cambodian cuisine. The location is unbeatable with a nearby French patisserie, Siem Reap’s oldest theater around the corner, and plenty of cafés, restaurants, and bars within a minute’s stroll.

Built in 1932 and still featuring the original cage elevator from that year in the sumptuous lobby, this grande dame was restored and reopened after near destruction by occupying Khmer Rouge guerrillas. "The Grand," as Cambodians still call it, is a fine remnant of the colonial days, combining French sensibilities and Cambodian art with Oriental carpets and wicker furniture. Rooms are large and elegant, with balconies that overlook the extensive gardens and the monumental swimming pool. The Elephant Bar is a must for pre-dinner cocktails.

This unique boutique accommodation consists of just eleven traditional Khmer wooden houses set amidst tropical gardens. The owners transported the ramshackle old homes from different parts of Cambodia to Siem Reap where they restored them into spacious, stand-alone suites, with stories of the buildings and their original owners included in each room. In some ways, the property is like a living museum, the architecture of each house representative of their region. The décor features bamboo furniture, handmade quilts, and rocking chairs. The shaded verandas overlook the garden or stunning pool. The main restaurant, Ma Om, is a breezy space serving outstanding Cambodian food, while the airy Long Table bar in the garden is the spot for sundowners.

The design of this stylish, award-winning French-Cambodian owned boutique hotel seamlessly melds Khmer mid-century modernism to the contemporary eco-friendly style that Viroth’s helped to establish in Siem Reap. The airy spaces are cooled by ceiling fans, the flow of air helped along by retro breeze-blocks, while tropical plants drip from balconies. The light-filled rooms and suites boast long terraces, are decorated with local art, antiques, and bric-a-brac. Bathrooms feature black terrazzo tiles and big baths with rain showers. There’s a striking swimming pool at the center of the hotel, lined with plenty of sun-beds and umbrellas. The staff, who greet guests with icy towels and chilled lemongrass beverages, are some of the best in Siem Reap.