Victory Beach, Sihanoukville."I left home to do a little travel Victory beach is at the Northern end of the Sihanoukville Peninsula and thus offers the best views of the sunrise and sunset. The first time I came to Sihanoukville, the busses dropped everyone off at Weather Station Hill (Krong Road), which overlooks Victory Beach. Back in 2001 (My first visit), this was the backpacker designated area. This was probably because there were very few other options for budget accommodation in Sihanoukville back then. Now, there are so many other better options that there really is no reason to stay near Victory Beach. For some reason they have not invested any upkeep and thus the quality of accommodations pale in comparison to the Guesthouses and rooms on some of the other beaches. If you really want to stay in this area, then there are a few decent Guesthouses. You'll have to walk down the hill, away from the Independence Monument on the top of Weather Station Hill to find them. Krong Road runs parallel to the beach up on Weather Station hill. I stayed at Sakal Bungalows on Weather Station Hill. It overlooks the Beach and offers some cheap and pleasant huts above the bar with sea views. The menu is brief but the food is excellent. The bar has a 61 inch TV for sports and films, and stays open as long as it needs to. Even now (2007) the room rates go as low as $5USD a night up to $9USD for aircon. Walk South along Victory Beach until you run into a small length of sand called Lamherkey Beach. Here you'll find the Hawaii Seaview Restaurant. The food is good and it is worth the effort. Just make sure to do the walk back at night under the stars, drunk on the plentiful and cheap booze at the restaurant. Those were my best nights on this Beach. The beach here is so narrow and so near the the deep sea port at the northern end of the beach, that it doesn't make for a great place to play in the water. It is, however, a good place to hire a boat to take you out to any of the nearby islands. Budget and backpacker places dominate the side of Weather Station Hill. It overlooks the ocean and there are several tourist-oriented business on top of the Hill. There are budget and mid-range Guesthouses and hotels, a variety of restaurants and bars, internet, CD shops, and lots more. The top of the Hill also has one of the fastest growing bar and nightlife scenes in town. The main entrance road to the hilltop from Ekareach Street sports several hostess bars and other drinking venues, many staying open into the early morning hours. Just 50 meters up from the Beach are several little beach-side seafood restaurants offering beach chairs and umbrellas, inner tubes, cold drinks and snacks. A bit further north along the Beach, there are a couple of upscale oceanside seafood restaurants and the Holiday Palace Casino and Resort. Leave Victory Beach and learn about Occheuteal Beach.
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