The first Cambodian town after the Lao border, where the Sekong meets the Mekong. To the north, the river disappears into a flooded forest listed as a wetland of international importance.
Photo by Christian Pirkl on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by Adriaan Castermans on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo by Christian Pirkl on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by Adam Jones on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
Photo by Wikirictor on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by Christian Pirkl on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by Adam Jones on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
Photo by Adam Jones on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
Photo by Christian Pirkl on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by Christian Pirkl on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by Christian Pirkl on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by AgiPatagi on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by Adam Jones on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
Photo by Adam Jones on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
Photo by Adriaan Castermans on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo by Adam Jones on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
Photo by Adam Jones on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
Photo by Christian Pirkl on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Stung Treng is the first Cambodian town after Laos: a small provincial capital where the Sekong meets the Mekong, easy to cross on foot in twenty minutes, with its market a short walk from the bank. To the north, for some forty kilometres up to the border, the river splits between wooded islands that the flood covers: a flooded forest listed as a Ramsar site in 1999, which local communities show visitors by boat and kayak.
Photo by Christian Pirkl on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
14,600 ha listed as a Ramsar site in 1999: islands covered in trees that shed their leaves under water, pools more than 70 m deep, white-shouldered ibis and at least 130 fish species. The Koh Han and O'Svay communities hire out boats, from 70,000 to 150,000 riel.
Photo by Adam Jones on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
The town stands where the Sekong meets the Mekong; the Sesan and Srepok join a little further down. These three rivers bring about 22% of the Mekong's flow, and the Sekong is the only one still flowing freely since the Lower Sesan 2 dam.
Photo by Adam Jones on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
The central market, a few streets from the bank, lives on Mekong fish and village produce; in the evening, people watch the sun go down over the river.
Photo by Christian Pirkl on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
The Cambodian side of the Khone falls, on the Lao border: tiered cascades over 26 m of rock, near Preah Rumkel commune. Reached by road.
Photo by Christian Pirkl on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Opened in 2015, the 1.73 km bridge links the town with the west bank. Across the river, Thala Barivat, a pre-Angkorian city on the river route between Champasak and Sambor Prei Kuk, of which little remains.
Dolphins, further south: the Preah Rumkel pool, on the border, lost its last dolphin in 2022, and the commune, which lived from dolphin watching, now relies on kayaking and an annual festival. Cambodia counted 112 dolphins in December 2025; two of the calves born in 2025 were in Stung Treng province. The Kratie stop →
A simple guesthouse in the centre, a hotel with balconies over the Mekong, and a forest lodge in Siem Pang district.
Photo: Savet Guesthouse
A simple, central guesthouse: rooms with private bathrooms, some for families, and a terrace; English and Khmer spoken.
≈ $14 a night
Photo: Mekong Bird Resort & Hotel
Rooms with river-view balconies, a garden, restaurant and bar; 24-hour front desk, bikes for hire.
≈ $154 a night
Photo: Siempang Forest Lodge
A forest lodge with a pool, sauna, garden and an Asian and European restaurant, in Siem Pang district, in the north-east of the province.
≈ $1,400 a night
Booking affiliate links · average nightly price checked in October 2026
Minibus · 1.5 to 3 hours, border included
Departures from Don Det between 9 and 11 am, €9 to €22; some stop at the Trapeang Kriel post. Cambodian visa on arrival, paid in dollars, or e-Visa, accepted at this crossing.
Tickets and times on 12Go Affiliate linkMinibus or night bus · 5.5 to 9 hours
Daytime minibuses between 7 am and 3:30 pm, sleeper buses in the evening, €10 to €21. About 450 km on National Road 7, which runs through Kratie.
Tickets and times on 12Go Affiliate linkMinibus or bus · 2 to 3 hours, 140 km
Departures from 7:30 am to 9:30 pm, €5 to €15.
Tickets and times on 12Go Affiliate linkBus · 5 to 7 hours, or 2.5 to 3 hours
Siem Reap in 5 to 7 hours, Banlung in Ratanakiri in 2.5 to 3 hours. No scheduled flights: the Stung Treng airfield has no commercial route.
Times and prices checked on October 11, 2026 on 12Go, for an October 12 departure: check again before you travel.
December and January are the coolest: 31 to 33 °C in the afternoon, 22 °C at night. March and April top 35 °C. The monsoon runs from May to October, peaking in September (327 mm); in flood season the flooded forest lives up to its name.
| Month | J (current month) | F (current month) | M (current month) | A (current month) | M (current month) | J (current month) | J (current month) | A (current month) | S (current month) | O (current month) | N (current month) | D (current month) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airhigh / low | ||||||||||||
| Rainmm | ||||||||||||
| Daysof rain | 1 | 1 | 6 | 14 | 25 | 26 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 21 | 8 | 2 |
| Mekonglevel | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Rising | High | High | High | Falling | Low |
| Our take | Ideal | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Difficult | Difficult | Difficult | Fair | Good | Ideal |
| Month | Low – high | mm | River |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan (current month) | 5 | Low | |
| Feb (current month) | 6 | Low | |
| Mar (current month) | 43 | Low | |
| Apr (current month) | 99 | Low | |
| May (current month) | 218 | Low | |
| Jun (current month) | 244 | Low | |
| Jul (current month) | 296 | Rising | |
| Aug (current month) | 308 | High | |
| Sep (current month) | 327 | High | |
| Oct (current month) | 191 | High | |
| Nov (current month) | 65 | Falling | |
| Dec (current month) | 15 | Low |
3 tours to book in Stung Treng
Affiliate links GetYourGuide · Prices checked October 11, 2026
from$40
Availabilityfrom$125
Availabilityfrom$400
AvailabilitySources: climate, Open-Meteo (ERA5 archive, 1991-2020 averages); flooded forest, Ramsar information sheet for site 999 (2012); communities and boats, Phnom Penh Post (2024) and Mekong Tourism (2024); dolphins, CambodgeMag and FISHBIO (2025); Lower Sesan 2 dam, Human Rights Watch and Mongabay (2021-2022); Sopheakmit falls, Phnom Penh Post (2019); bridge, People's Daily (2015); safety, FCDO and France Diplomatie (2026); banks, ABA Bank and Wikivoyage; transport, 12Go (checked October 11, 2026); activities, GetYourGuide (checked October 11, 2026). Updated on October 12, 2026 by Pierre-Marie Coupry.
