To finish off our month long jaunt around Vietnam and Cambodia, we decided to end with a week of rest and relaxation. I’d stayed at the Six Senses before (in Thailand), and whilst Krabey Island wasn’t quite as good, it was still absolutely incredible and the perfect way to end our trip before a long journey home.
Location of Six Senses Krabey Island
The hotel is located a short 10 minute speed boat ride away from Sihanoukville, a port town on Cambodia’s south coast. Sihanoukville itself is an interesting place, which over the last few years has been converted from sleepy fishing town to full on Chinese investment flashy town. The latest guides don’t recommend a stay there, and crime is on the rise, so we chose to just transit through.
- From Phnom Penh, the drive to Sihanoukville is around 3 hours down a newly built highway – very simple and straightforward.
- From Siem Reap, I would recommend flying to Sihanoukville airport (c.1hr flight vs a 10 hour drive).
The hotel can arrange airport transfers or pick ups for you across Cambodia. We were picked up from Phnom Penh – the car had WiFi, and we were presented with a jar of cookies and a coconut each, plus cold towels and headrests. Lovely.
Krabey (Khmer for Buffalo) Island itself is now all the Six Senses hotel, so there’s nothing beyond the hotel on the island. However, it lies within the Gulf of Thailand and island hopping around is one of the best things to do whilst staying at the hotel.
Important Note: The Six Senses Krabey Island is not an accessible hotel. The rooms are down (and up) dozens of steep stairs. If you have issues with mobility, I do not recommend staying at this hotel.
Accommodation at Six Senses Krabey Island
We stayed in an Ocean Pool Villa. Set down a really steep path with a LOT of steps (over 60, getting back up them was a challenge first thing every morning), our beautiful villa offered a large living area with a big sofa, chair and flatscreen TV, as well as a minibar and tea/coffee area.
The room had a huge comfortable bed, with light and blinds control from the headboard. There was also a separate desk area with loads of space to spread out, and a massive walk in wardrobe with 2 full size wardrobes.
The bathroom was perfectly formed, with a big sink area plenty enough for two, a separate toilet and a massive shower and huge soaking tub which was dreamy to sink in to at the end of a busy day doing nothing!
From the bathroom and living area were huge glass doors which opened up on to a private deck with a table and chairs, plus 2 sun loungers and an umbrella with a nice sized private pool. The view from the deck was a beautiful sweeping view out to sea, even better at sunset. We spent many a happy hour reading out here.
The room was beautiful, but had a few things that could have been improved. Firstly, when I spilt some water, I used a towel to mop it up and the towel was black with dirt, so I don’t think the floors are cleaned often. Secondly, the minibar only has water in it and offers no other drinks. And finally, the aircon is super noisy and the fan squeaked so it made sleeping at night a little tricky. It actually broke entirely on the final day, and we had to move room (this was sorted for us quickly and efficiently).
The hotel also offers the option for laundry, but for $79 per small bag we thought this was absolutely extortionate!!
Food & Drink at Six Senses Krabey Island
The food at the Six Senses Krabey Island was amazing quality. We didn’t have any bad meals and actually would say it was probably the best quality of food of our entire trip. On site there are 3 restaurants.
First is a laid back restaurant called The AHA Restaurant, which is where breakfast is served each morning. There is a small buffet area, plus a wide ranging menu. The breakfast wrap of eggs, avocado and hash brown was tasty. It also serves a lunch with a laid back vibe by the pool.
The AHA Restaurant is connected to the Double Dip Hangout ice-cream parlour & Deli. We chose to eat lunch in the Double Dip every day as the food was SO good. From traditional Cambodian food, to Vietnamese treats, to Thai dishes and pizza, everything was delicious! It also serves free ice-cream until 5pm each day so is one to stop by regardless.
AHA Restaurant serves dinner on various nights, alternating with the Tree Restaurant. AHA serves a wide variety of Asian and Western food, and the Tree Restaurant is entirely Khmer. Dinner is served in one of them each night (not both). Again, the quality was amazing.
In addition to the restaurants, there is a beautiful Sunset Bar which serves really tasty cocktails with lovely sea views out across the water. In Villa Dining, and Destination Dining (private dinners along the hotel’s boardwalk) are also available. Destination Dining is expensive, starting at $175, so we didn’t book this.
The service across the hotel, and particularly the restaurants, was incredible. The staff were kind, helpful and just an absolute joy. Whilst they do all speak some English, it is to varying degrees so please be patient – we heard one couple raise their voice at someone as they couldn’t understand them properly, which made me very angry!
Amenities & Experiences at Six Senses Krabey Island
The hotel has a wonderful 10m swimming pool overlooking the sea, with comfortable loungers and close to the bar for drinks (shoutout to the sunset smoothie).
The Six Senses spa is also absolutely incredible, offering a huge array of treatments. I had a deep tissue massage and felt like a new woman after it. It also offers a number of classes, so I attended a deep breathing and meditation class which I enjoyed. Guests also receive complimentary use of the sauna, steam room and indoor pools, and there’s even a workshop where you can blend your own botanicals to make your own oils.
The hotel also has its own beach, though it’s very small and man-made. Again there are some loungers looking out to sea, and you can swim out in the sea. It’s also home to a watersports centre where you can use the hotel’s kayaks and snorkelling equipment.
In addition, the hotel is set within the jungle, so there’s lots of wildlife to spot. The Double Dip Hangout has wildlife guides, and we saw multiple types of colourful birds, frogs, snakes and even a variable squirrel right up close. We even found a frog sheltering in our deck umbrella one day which was lovely.
The hotel also has a really lovely boardwalk around the island to take in all the views. We were lucky in that our villa descended directly on to the board walk so we were able to walk to breakfast via it every day – a definite highlight!
There is also daily yoga on offer, plus classes for cooking, plankton swimming, fishing experiences, farming, private blessings from Monks, boat charters, castaway picnics, soap making, insect repellant formulating, sound relaxation, body scrubs, sustainability tours, mushroom harvesting and loads more. I’m exhausted thinking about it all.
Away from the hotel, a number of excursions are also offered. There are many I would have loved to have done, such as taking a boat to explore Kep or Kampot or nearby islands. However, they were all at least $800 and at that kind of price, it’s just not justifiable, and felt really overpriced.
Finally, one of my favourite small features of the hotel was its App, enabling you to order room service, buggy transport, towels, suncream, basically anything you need 24/7, and a direct line to your own GEM (Guest Experience Manager). Our GEM, Bong Kumpheak, was always on hand for whatever we needed!
Our 6 nights were super enjoyable and it was the perfect way to round off an amazing trip.
So what do you think of Six Senses Krabey Island? For me, it didn’t meet the same standards as its sister in Thailand (especially for the activity and additional service charges it asks), but it was still absolutely incredible and without doubt one of the best hotels Cambodia has to offer. I feel incredibly lucky to have stayed in it and recommend it highly.
Stay safe and happy travelling!
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