With the recent opening of the Xa Xia/Prek Chak Border between Cambodia and Vietnam, a new travellers’ route has opened in South-East Asia. Stringing together an eclectic journey aboard buses, ferries, share taxis and motorbikes, travellers can now explore little-visited islands and towns that until only recently involved long side trips down rutted, spine-crushing roads.

It is an excellent alternative journey for those who have done the busy Ho Chi Minh City to Bangkok track through central Cambodia, and want to avoid the banana-pancake hordes in places like Siem Reap. Escaping Ho Chi Minh City via the rich Mekong Delta, a short flight or ferry ride from Rach Gia takes you to Phu Quoc, where stunning beaches like Bai Sao await.

Rach Gia to Kep
Returning to Rach Gia, it is an easy two-hour Honda om drive or bus journey to the sleepy town of Ha Tien, where not one establishment caters to the Lonely Planet tribe. Locals in tiny cafés strung with Christmas lights whisper kind invitations to join them for a strong ca phe sua da, watching street life go by that is reminiscent of a Vietnam from 15 years ago. If you’re feeling energetic, climb up To Chau Mountain with its two pagodas and reverence for the town’s founder, Mac Cuu. Or head out to Mo So Caves close to Ba Hon, a former Viet Cong hideout that still boasts the clothing of soldiers killed during the war.

The tiny Xa Xia/Prek Chak border crossing, a fifteen-minute drive to the west, is manned with just a few fresh-faced immigration officials. The place buzzes with cross-border trade.

“Locals are excited to see more foreigners here, because before they only came to go to Phu Quoc,” says Cuong, a local Vietnamese xe om driver. An immigration official on the Cambodian side reports that less than 50 foreigners are crossing here each day.

Thirty minutes beyond the border brings you along the recently built highway to Kep. Once a crumbling road populated by smugglers and the remnants of Cambodia’s post Pol Pot war, now, except for the first two or three kilometres, the recently built road is properly paved. This is a journey that has been years in coming. Prior to the new road, travellers were effectively shuttled north to Chau Doc or Phnom Penh, missing out one of Vietnam and Cambodia’s most interesting areas. The change is set to open up a whole new area to tourism and even xe om drivers are set to benefit – those with documents saying they live in Ha Tien can take you all the way to Kep.

PHU QUOC ISLAND Only semi-developed, this island is one of the most beautiful
spots in Vietnam

Royal Kep
Formerly popular with the Khmer Royal Family who built a villa here, Kep is a sleepy seaside resort boasting ruined villas, a jungle-clad mountain and lots of monkeys. The only letdown is the sand, which seems to be composed more of mud than crushed shells. To make up for this, the colonial French of the last century shipped in sand from nearby Sihanoukville. These days, sand, sea and sun addicts should make the short trip to Rabbit Island. A 15-minute boat ride off the coast, this place offers simple accommodation, a nice beach and stunning sunsets.

Riding to the west through some of the most stunning Cambodian countryside takes you to the town of Kampot, the jumping off point for a trip to the abandoned Bokor Hill station. Sitting misty and mysterious at 1,000 metres above the town, the place evokes a palpable Stephen King vibe. Explore abandoned churches and casinos built for the French elite, and you could just get the sense that you’re in The Shining. Without the snow, though.

Sihanoukville and beyond
A share taxi to Sihanoukville connects travellers with Koh Kong on the Thai border by a daily ferry. From here, a quick border crossing across Had Lek offers travellers either an express bus to Bangkok via Trat or a local ferry to Ko Chang in the Gulf of Thailand, perfect for lazy days eating some of the best seafood in the country, before battling the beast that is Bangkok.
For those seeking a South-East Asia as it was several decades ago, this is the way to find it. For locals all along this trail, smiles and waves are the norm, and hassles and nuisances are rare, proving that even in this corner of Asia, well explored and wide open to travellers, there is always something new