A tiny seaside town where you eat blue swimmer crab stir-fried with green Kampot pepper, sitting on a jetty over the water.
Kep was the Cambodian elite’s beach resort in the 1960s, and the hillsides are still dotted with the shells of abandoned modernist villas — some restored as boutique hotels, most beautifully derelict.
The reason most people come is the crab market: a row of wooden shacks where the crab is pulled from submerged baskets and cooked in front of you.
Kep National Park behind the town has an 8 km loop trail with sea views, and Koh Tonsay — Rabbit Island — is a 25-minute boat ride offshore.
Kep has almost no nightlife by design. Pair it with Kampot rather than treating it as a standalone base.
November to March. Kep is small and can feel deserted in the low season, which some travellers actively prefer.
25 km from Kampot (about 45 minutes) and 3–4 hours from Phnom Penh by minivan.
Blue swimmer crab with fresh green Kampot pepper. The dish the region is known for.
An 8 km circuit through forest above the town, best in the early morning.
Basic bungalows, one beach, no electricity for much of the day.
Scattered through the hills; several now restored as small hotels.