Sihanoukville

• Day 1: Visit Wat Leu Temple in the morning. Then head to Koh Thmei and Koh Pos beaches for watersports or relaxing. Shop at night in Otres market and enjoy seafood dinner at any of the beachside restaurants.
  
  
• Day 2: Head to Bamboo Island or Koh Russei during the day. Come back in the evening for shopping at the local Phsar Leu Market. Enjoy seafood for dinner in the bars along with some drinks.
  
  
• Day 3: Visit Ream National Park to explore all the attractions. In the evening head to Serendipity and Ochheuteal beaches for unwinding and enjoying the sunset.

• It is best to drink during the happy hour sessions offered by the bars and drink outlets. As drinks are cheap, one can get carried away and rack up a hefty bill.
• Most of the casinos in the town are forbidden for tourists as well as locals, admitting only the Chinese. It is best to check before entering to avoid any conflicts.
• Although there are plenty of shopping options along the beaches in Sihanoukville, the prices are higher compared to other cities. So avoid shopping if you plan to visit other towns in your itinerary.

Sihanoukville was set up as a port town in 1964 after Cambodia's independence, and the city got its name from the country's King Norodom Sihanouk. Relatively a new town, it developed into a beach destination with grand resorts, bars and rich coastline until the Khmer Rouge put an end to the golden era.

The city was almost shut down after thousands of civilians were killed and the buildings destroyed. One of the famous hotels was Independence hotel, which became abandoned. In 1993, peace returned to Sihanoukville, and from the late 1990s, the town turned into a backpacker's paradise, with plenty of cheap guesthouses, bars, cafes and restaurants lining up the clean white sand beaches.

From being Cambodia's famous beach town, it has now turned into a concrete jungle with construction sites. The city is home to more expats than the locals now, a majority of them Chinese, who have set up hundreds of huge casinos across all the beaches. This sizeable Chinese investment is sadly negatively changing the city, impacting the lives of the locals. The Chinese population has increased here dramatically with its continued settlement.