Le Relais de Chhlong

I stayed in Room #2 with a view of the river. The whole hotel is beautifully gracious in its period design and decor. My room had a very large bathroom with both tub and walk in shower. It also had a private balcony space. I loved the simple but fresh breakfast here, outstanding coffee. And every dinner or lunch I had was also very good. Staff are friendly and supportive. The place is a quiet respite from the road and yet also has a gate to the riverfront dirt road which leads you to the wonderful old market place, under the crumbling facades of the old French colonial buildings. I think this hotel is a remarkable destination all its own.

Relais is a charming shabby chic hotel in the old French customs house on the banks of the Mekong River. A small driveway entrance is easy to miss. The old buildings have been sympathetically renovated, are well maintained and have an aire of faded grandeur. Outdoor pool, parking, pool table, large lounge, restaurant, bicycles, bar with cocktails and decent wine selection (for rural Cambodia). The staff are friendly and very capable. Breakfast is ordered with some simple choices around eggs and served with fresh bread, fruit and crepes. The restaurant offers local and western choices. We ate both nights choosing local cuisine and would recommend the Khmer Curry. Food was excellent.

Chhlong is about ½ hour south of Kratie, which is where most tourists stay. The town of Chhlong, while offering a good look at local rural life along the Mekong, doesn’t have much for travelers seeking notable archeological sites or vibrant night life. We used it as a stopover for two nights on our long trip by car from Phonm Pehn to the north, and it suited us very well. The Relais is a beautifully restored colonial building that was once a Mekong River customs house and residence. Photos on the walls of the public areas document the tremendous work that was done to bring it back from near ruin. The restoration presevered the rich architectural details and updated the infrastructure so that it is a charming, comfortable place to stay. The historic part of the Relais is actualy two adjacent buildings, one of which was probably the customs official’s residence and the other was the actual customs house. I didn’t confirm this with the manager, so it is only a hunch. Both have the same charming colonial style. There are guest rooms in both buildings, and several more in a newer building set in the gardens a short distance away.. The open air restaurant is in a third building. A very nice swimming pool with tables and lounge chairs is between the main buldings and restaurant. Our room (#5) was the 2nd floor of the old residence building. It was a suite consisting of a sitting area with a sofa, upholstered easy chair, desk, coffee table, and flat screen tv, The entrnce was from a pleasant veranda with ran the width of the building, which was a pleasant place to sit and relax The view is of the building closer to the river and to the garden off to the side. Rooms in the Customs building would have a view of the gardens, and probably of the river itself through trees and other foliage along the river bank.The sitting area was connected to a hallway that ran parallel to the veranda and contained a large vanity with plenty of counter space. Opposite the vanity was a very large tiled bathroom with a claw foot tub and a large pleasant shower. The hallway led to the separate bedroom, which was adequate sized and had shuttered windows on two sides. The double bed was comfortable and this room had its own ac unit, which was fairly quiet and effective. Storage was adequate, provided by an old armoire. Food in the restaurant was good, though perhaps not good enough to make the restaurant a destination place to eat. Service was friendly but perfunctory. We ate all of our meals there except for one lunch, when we drove to Kratie. All in all we very much enjoyed our quiet stay at Relais de Chhlong and we recommend it.