Kep Beach

Kep Beach is the small but charming main beach of Kep, a former French colonial seaside resort town on the Gulf of Thailand coast in southern Cambodia. The beach is modest in size compared to those of Sihanoukville, stretching just a few hundred meters along a sheltered bay flanked by casuarina trees and backed by a pleasant promenade of restaurants and seafood shacks. The calm, shallow water makes it suitable for relaxed swimming, and fishing boats anchored just offshore add to the laid-back maritime character. Kep's greatest culinary claim is its famous fresh blue swimming crabs, and the beach promenade is lined with restaurants grilling them with the region's renowned Kampot pepper. The town's French-era villas crumbling in the surrounding hills create an evocative backdrop.