Colonial heritage

A step back in time to the French colonial period in one of La Villa's bedrooms

Battambang's French colonial heritage is being spruced up and packaged for enjoyment by tourists visiting this laid-back city. As we drove through on our way back to Phnom Penh, we called in at a few hotels to have a gander and I also noticed a few of the riverside colonial buildings undergoing renovation. A great example of this is La Villa, Battambang's plushest boutique hotel, if you enjoy stepping back in time to enjoy the colonial splendour. Whilst the room rates aren't cheap, the accommodation is inspired by the French domination of Indochina and tiled floors, four-poster beds, wall maps and art deco accessories add up to an interesting 7-room accommodation, to which they've added a pool in recent months. We also popped into Ma Maison, the latest addition to the range of places to stay, but the owners of the 2-roomed restored colonial villa were out and a bee's nest on the front porch deterred me from investigating any further. The Rotanak resort looked as though it was in the process of changing hands, whilst the Stung Sangke hotel was pretty good value with a pool and 200 rooms.

The new pool at La Villa

The colonial restaurant at La Villa has a glass-topped roof

The recently restored colonial villa at Ma Maison, complete with bees

A colonial villa in disrepair, ripe for investment and restoration in Battambang