Bokor Mountain

Bokor Mountain: Cambodia’s Ghostly Hill Station

Bokor Mountain sits in Preah Monivong National Park, rising to 1,080 meters along Cambodia’s southern coast about 37 kilometers from Kampot. This was a French colonial hill station built in the 1920s where colonials escaped coastal heat. The buildings were abandoned after independence, damaged during the Khmer Rouge era, and left to decay in the jungle for decades. Now it’s a bizarre hybrid: crumbling colonial ruins mixed with massive Chinese-funded casino resort development, creating one of Cambodia’s strangest and most controversial destinations.

Understanding what Bokor is now versus what it was matters before you visit. This isn’t pristine heritage preservation. It’s abandoned history colliding with aggressive modern development in ways that fascinate some travelers and appall others.

The History

The French built Bokor Hill Station starting in 1921. The construction used forced labor, and hundreds (possibly thousands) of Khmer workers died building roads and structures in harsh mountain conditions.

At its peak, Bokor contained a grand hotel (Bokor Palace), Catholic church, post office, royal residence, and various administrative buildings. French colonials came here for cooler climate, gambling at the casino, and mountain views.

After independence in 1953, Bokor declined. The Khmer Rouge used it as a military position. Vietnamese forces occupied it in the 1980s. By the 1990s, the buildings were ruins: roofless, overgrown, and atmospheric. Adventurous travelers trekked up to photograph the decaying colonial architecture shrouded in mist.

In 2008, a Cambodian company (Sokimex) partnered with Chinese investors to develop Bokor. They built a massive casino resort complex, paved the road to the summit, and began “restoring” some historic structures. What emerged is architecturally confused and spiritually empty: a fake colonial town next to a huge casino, with actual ruins scattered around.

What You’ll See Now

Bokor Palace Hotel: The original French hotel stands as a ruin: walls intact, roof gone, jungle growing through windows. It’s atmospheric and photogenic, the image most people associate with Bokor. You can walk through freely, though be careful on unstable floors. The mist that frequently shrouds the mountain creates eerie conditions perfect for photography.

The Old Casino Building: Next to the hotel, this smaller structure is similarly ruined. It’s less impressive than the hotel but adds to the abandoned compound feel.

Catholic Church: The small church remains structurally sound. It’s been partially restored, somewhat crudely, but the bell tower and facade show the original character. Mass occasionally occurs here, adding surreal element to the ghost town atmosphere.

Thansur Bokor Highland Resort: This enormous Chinese-built development dominates the mountain now. A sprawling casino, luxury hotel, and manufactured “old town” with shops and restaurants styled to look colonial but built entirely new. It’s garish, incongruous, and fundamentally changes Bokor’s character from atmospheric ruin to commercialized resort mountain.

The resort itself is surprisingly empty. Despite massive investment, it hasn’t attracted the casino tourism developers anticipated. Walking through feels post-apocalyptic in different way: brand new but largely abandoned buildings rather than century-old ruins.

Popokvil Waterfall: About 4 kilometers past the main development, this two-tier waterfall is Bokor’s natural attraction. During rainy season (May-October), water flow is impressive. Dry season reduces it significantly. A viewing platform looks down on the upper falls. Stairs lead to the lower level where swimming is possible when water levels allow.

The falls are pleasant but not spectacular compared to other Cambodian waterfalls. The appeal is combining them with the rest of Bokor’s oddities.

Black Palace (Damnak Sla Khmao): King Sihanouk’s former residence sits along the road up the mountain (not at the summit). It’s a modest structure, now empty, that you can explore briefly. More historically interesting than visually impressive.

The Views: On clear days, the mountain offers spectacular views across the coast toward Vietnam and inland across Cambodia’s southern plains. But Bokor is frequently shrouded in mist and low clouds, which creates atmosphere but eliminates visibility. Weather is completely unpredictable. You might arrive to stunning panoramas or see nothing beyond 20 meters.

The Development Controversy

Bokor’s transformation from atmospheric ruins to casino resort development is deeply controversial. Critics argue:

• Historic structures were damaged or poorly restored during development
• The national park status means little when massive construction is permitted
• Forced relocations impacted local communities
• Environmental damage from construction is significant
• The development destroys exactly what made Bokor special: haunting colonial ruins in jungle setting

Supporters (primarily the Cambodian government and developers) argue the development brings economic opportunity, makes Bokor accessible to all Cambodians (not just adventure travelers), and preserves some structures that would otherwise collapse entirely.

Visiting Bokor now means accepting this complicated reality. You’re seeing both: genuine colonial ruins with historical weight and tasteless casino development that undermines that history.

Getting There

The road from Kampot to Bokor’s summit is now fully paved, a dramatic improvement from the dirt track that once required 4×4 vehicles and took hours to navigate.

Private car or motorbike: The most common approach. The 32-kilometer road from Kampot climbs through tight switchbacks, gaining over 1,000 meters elevation. Motorbikes work if you’re confident with mountain roads and have a bike with sufficient power (not a small scooter). The road is steep with sharp curves but well-maintained.

The drive takes 60-90 minutes depending on vehicle and stops. Views along the ascent are excellent on clear days.

Organized tours: Many Kampot guesthouses and tour operators offer day trips to Bokor. These typically cost $15-25 USD including transport, guide, and entrance fees. Tours cover the main sites with 3-4 hours on the mountain.

Entrance fees: The national park charges $5 USD for foreigners, plus vehicle fees. The casino resort area is free to enter.

When to Go

Dry season (November-April): Better chance of clear views, though Bokor creates its own weather and mist is possible any time. Roads are in best condition.

Rainy season (May-October): Popokvil Waterfall is more impressive, the landscape is greener, but visibility is often limited by clouds and rain. The mist adds atmosphere to the ruins but eliminates scenic views.

Early morning visits (leaving Kampot by 7:00-8:00 AM) offer the best chance of clarity before afternoon clouds build. But this isn’t guaranteed.

The mountain is noticeably cooler than Kampot (typically 5-10°C lower). Bring a light jacket if visiting early morning or during cooler months.

Combining with Kampot

Most visitors do Bokor as a day trip from Kampot town, which sits at the mountain’s base. Kampot itself is worth 2-3 days: riverside town, pepper farms, Kampot pepper, colonial architecture, and relaxed atmosphere.

The combination works well: Kampot for multiple nights with Bokor as a day excursion, then continuing to beaches at Kep (30 kilometers) or Sihanoukville.

Some travelers stay overnight at Thansur Bokor Resort. Rooms are surprisingly cheap (often $40-60 USD) given the luxury design, probably because occupancy is low. Staying overnight means you experience Bokor at dawn and dusk when day-trippers are gone, but you’re supporting the development that arguably destroyed what made Bokor special.

What to Bring

Water and snacks. Options on the mountain are limited to the resort restaurants (which are overpriced and average quality).

Light jacket or long sleeves. The elevation and frequent mist make it cooler than the coast.

Camera and weatherproofing. The ruins are photogenic, and Bokor’s mist creates atmospheric conditions. But rain and moisture can damage equipment.

Proper footwear for exploring ruins. Floors can be unstable, surfaces slippery when wet.

The Reality

Bokor is deeply strange and spiritually confused. The atmospheric colonial ruins that made it famous still exist, but they’re now surrounded by tasteless casino resort development that fundamentally undermines the site’s character.

Some travelers find this juxtaposition fascinating: ruin and development, colonial past and Chinese-funded present, all colliding on a mist-shrouded mountain. Others find it depressing and wish they’d visited before the development.

We’re honest with clients about what Bokor is now. If they want pristine colonial ruins in atmospheric jungle setting, that no longer exists. If they can appreciate the ruins while accepting the resort development as unfortunate context, and if they’re spending time in Kampot anyway, Bokor is worth a day.

The ruins themselves remain photogenic and historically significant. Walking through the roofless Bokor Palace as mist swirls through empty windows is genuinely atmospheric. The colonial history is real, and the architecture shows the ambition (and human cost) of French hill station construction.

But you’ll also see the casino looming nearby, fake colonial buildings housing souvenir shops, and all the elements that represent development-driven tourism at its most crass.

It’s Cambodia in microcosm: beautiful and historically rich, compromised by poorly planned development, caught between preservation and progress. That complexity might frustrate or fascinate depending on your perspective.

Visit Bokor understanding it’s complicated, contradictory, and changed. What remains is still worth seeing, but it’s no longer the undiscovered atmospheric ruin it was 20 years ago. It’s now a strange hybrid that tells its own story about heritage, development, and tourism in modern Cambodia.

Just don’t expect the romantic lost city that older photos and stories describe. That Bokor is gone, replaced by something messier, stranger, and harder to categorize.