The Columns Kampot: Colonial Houses & Shops

The Columns occupies restored French colonial shop houses in Kampot’s old town – the hotel is run by a family couple who personally greet each guest.

Several French colonial shop houses in Kampot’s old town have been restored, preserving their wooden beams and original tilework — and transformed into a boutique hotel on a quiet, tree-lined street. The Columns is consistently ranked among the city’s best hotels by guests.

Briefly. The hotel occupies restored French colonial shop houses in Kampot’s old town, preserving their wooden beams and original tilework. It’s located on a quiet, tree-lined street in the historic center, within walking distance of the riverfront. Managed by a family couple who personally greet guests and help organize excursions around the region. Just a few rooms, no elevator — a detail important for guests with limited mobility or heavy luggage.

French Colonial Era Shop Houses

The buildings that house the hotel are authentic French colonial shop houses in Kampot’s old town, restored while preserving the wooden beams and original flooring tilework of that period. Kampot, like neighboring Battambang, remains one of the few Cambodian cities where colonial architecture has survived without large-scale postwar reconstruction — and the hotel is integrated into this preserved urban fabric, rather than a standalone reconstruction.

A Quiet Street in the Historic Center

The hotel stands on a quiet, tree-lined street in the old town — away from more bustling tourist spots, but still within walking distance of the Kampongbay Riverfront and the main attractions of the historic center. This location gives guests a combination of tranquility and practical convenience, rarely found simultaneously in small towns with significant tourism.

Family Management Instead of a Chain Service

The hotel is managed by a family couple who personally greet guests and assist with organizing local excursions — including tuk-tuk trips and car rentals for day trips to the region, particularly Bokor Mountain. This format of personal owner involvement in the daily life of the hotel is a direct contrast to an anonymous chain service and, according to reviews, one of the main reasons guests return here again.

A Fair Caveat About Scale

It’s worth stating plainly: this is a small hotel without an elevator, which may be inconvenient for guests with heavy luggage or limited mobility – a detail directly related to the building’s historical character, which simply wasn’t designed to modern accessibility requirements. Some rooms also don’t have a pool on the property, something to consider for those seeking a resort-style vacation rather than an urban boutique hotel.

What Guests Say

Guests in reviews call The Columns “charming and very pleasant,” specifically mentioning the couple running the establishment – Tavi and Kim, who one guest said were “very kind, friendly, and accommodating,” and a glass of wine on the balcony overlooking the sunset became one of the highlights of their trip. Another guest, arriving from Russia, noted that the entire staff learned several Russian phrases in one night to greet guests in the morning – a detail they called truly touching. There’s also a more restrained review: one guest mentioned ants in the room, the lack of an elevator and pool, and described the hotel as “a $30 place trying to be a $50 hotel” — honest criticism that is worth weighing alongside the prevailing enthusiastic impressions of most guests.