Kampong Chhnang

Kampong Chhnang is easily reached from Phnom Penh as a day trip and offers an authentic view of life on the Tonle Sap — Southeast Asia’s largest freshwater lake. The floating villages here are genuine fishing communities, not tourist constructions, and a boat trip through the stilted houses and floating schools gives real insight into this extraordinary way of life.

Floating Villages

Several villages on the Tonle Sap system are accessible by boat from the main port. The lake swells dramatically in the green season (October is peak), when the floating village communities move further out onto the expanded water. Dry season reveals the skeletal stilts of houses stranded on exposed lake bed.

Pottery Tradition

Kampong Chhnang has been Cambodia’s pottery capital for centuries. Village workshops along the main road produce earthenware using traditional techniques — clay coiled and shaped by hand, fired in wood kilns. Roadside stalls sell the finished pots at very low prices. Watch craftspeople at work and buy direct from the makers.