Best Hostels in Phnom Penh: Picks by Area & Traveler

Featured image: Photogoddle, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Quick answer: the best Phnom Penh hostels by traveler type

Pick the hostel for the night you want, not for a star score. Every pick below comes with a reason to skip it. This guide covers real dorm hostels. Some listings labelled hostels are hotels or guesthouses with private rooms only, and those appear in the step-up section instead.

• Party and social: Mad Monkey Phnom Penh. Skip it if you want early nights.
• Solo first-timer: Onederz Phnom Penh on the riverfront. Skip it if a pool matters.
• Quiet with a garden: THE PLACE Hostel, which describes itself as not a party hostel.
• Pool and BKK1 base: Bliss & Beats Hostel. Skip it if stairs bother you, since it has no elevator.
• Vegan or food-focused: Sacred Lotus, a vegan café hostel.
• Cheapest private room near a market: Bake & Bake near Russian Market, though it has very few reviews.

Phnom Penh hostels at a glance

Use this table to narrow the shortlist before reading the area notes. Vibe and watch-out columns reflect what reviewers and the hostels' own descriptions say, so treat them as tendencies rather than guarantees.

Where to stay: riverside, BKK1, Daun Penh and Russian Market

Riverside suits first visits. Onederz sits on Preah Ang Duong St. (110), and reviewers report a five-minute walk to the night market. The Big Easy is at 4 Street 172, and The Local - Riverside is on Street 144. Travelers who want a river view without sharing a room can read about Phnom Penh Riverside Hotels: Where to Stay on Sisowath Quay. For a wider area comparison, see 5 Best Areas to Stay in Phnom Penh (2026 Guide).

BKK1 trades walkability for calm. Bliss & Beats stands on Street 302 in BKK1. Expect a short ride to the riverfront rather than a stroll. Daun Penh, around Wat Phnom, holds Mad Monkey on Street 242, Pooltop on Street 90 and The Eighty8 on Street 88. One reviewer calls The Eighty8 walkable to Wat Phnom and the night market.

For Russian Market, Bake & Bake sits a couple of minutes' walk away. Few hostels cluster there, so options are thin. Beoung Kak Lake once drew backpackers, but only a few places remain there.

Sights are easiest from Daun Penh. National Museum of Cambodia sits on Street 13 beside the Royal Palace. It opens 8:00am to 5:00pm daily, and last tickets sell at 4:30pm. Foreign adults pay $10. Independence Monument is about 10 minutes' walk behind the Royal Palace, per Tourism of Cambodia. It stands in a roundabout at Norodom and Sihanouk Boulevards, and you cannot enter it.

Best for social and party travelers

Mad Monkey Phnom Penh, at No. 32 Street 242, packs a pool, bar and restaurant into one address. Its daily activity plan includes sunset riverside tours, pub crawls and Mekong cruises. Reviewers describe a young crowd and loud music. One guest in their mid-40s still felt welcome. Choose it if you want company on arrival. Skip it if you need quiet by 10pm.

The Big Easy, at 4 Street 172, is more pub than party hostel. Reviewers praise its food, pool table and expat crowd. Opinions on rooms are split. One guest in a 12-bed dorm found the three-bunk layout cramped and the air conditioning set low. Another found a private room dirty. One reviewer called the street a bit dicey yet felt safe at night. Choose it for the pub and the price. Skip it if cool, comfortable dorm sleep is your priority.

Best for solo travelers and first-timers

Onederz Phnom Penh is the easiest first stay. It has a social lounge, a rooftop terrace with river views and a supermarket directly opposite, per guest reviews. Sights and the night market sit within walking distance. Reviewers also describe it as calm enough to rest between outings.

The Local - Riverside, on Street 144, suits travelers who want a smaller riverside option. Its review count is modest, so read recent comments before booking. Skip Onederz if you want a pool, and skip The Local if you want a big social room.

Best quiet, pool and garden hostels

THE PLACE Hostel sits at Hidden Garden, 2 Norodom Boulevard, Street 310. It has an outdoor pool, a garden bar and a garden workspace with fast Wi-Fi. Its own description says it is not a party hostel. Guests call the garden peaceful. Skip it if you want organized nightlife.

Bliss & Beats on Street 302 has a pool, garden, pool table and 24-hour front desk. ActivateC3 lists a pool, garden and terrace in Chrouy Changvar, so check the map before booking. Pooltop on Chivapol (St. 90) has a rooftop terrace and a restaurant that one reviewer praises. Some platforms list it as a guesthouse, so confirm dorm beds exist.

For a rooftop pool beyond a hostel plunge pool, browse Phnom Penh hotels with a rooftop pool.

Budget and niche picks

Sacred Lotus runs a vegan café alongside its hostel. One reviewer says it beats The Big Easy at the same price. Villa Martial Arts Gym & Hostel on St 476 occupies a colonial-era villa with a rooftop gym and Khun Khmer training. It is a short stroll from Independence Monument. Bake & Bake has five air-conditioned private rooms near Russian Market, but its review count is in single digits.

Some older listings are stale. Map listings mark Sla Boutique Hostel, Feliz Hostel Cafe & Bar and B52 Hostel as permanently closed. Bona is labelled a hotel on some platforms, so treat it as a step-up stay.

Dorm or private room: costs and trade-offs

Prices and hours checked November 2026. Budget Your Trip lists private rooms from $12.50 up to $40 across Phnom Penh hostel-style properties. At Mad Monkey, its listing shows a dorm bed from $9.11 and a private room from $12.37. Two friends booking two dorm beds would pay about $18.22 for beds against $12.37 for a private room. In that case the private room wins on cost and privacy. Solo travelers save with a dorm. Rates shift by season, so read each listing's dates.

Before you book: a pre-arrival checklist

A few details separate a good dorm from a bad night. Run through these before paying.

• Dorms or private-only: confirm beds exist, since some listings are guesthouses.
• Review depth: skip scores built on fewer than 10 reviews, such as Bake & Bake's.
• Check-in: one reviewer reports a one-hour wait for an early arrival at The Big Easy, so ask about luggage storage.
• Air conditioning: ask whether dorm AC runs overnight.
• Bunks and lockers: ask about three-bunk layouts, privacy curtains and locker size.
• Water: Onederz refills a liter for ៛1,000, per a guest review.
• Noise: expect loud music at Mad Monkey and a pub downstairs at The Big Easy.

Getting around and arriving safely

Ask your hostel to arrange an airport transfer so you arrive with a fixed price and an address. Arrive in daylight if you can. At night, use the hostel's recommended tuk-tuk or ride-hail pickup rather than hailing at random.

For onward trips, Central Market has a taxi stand at its northwest corner for cars to Battambang, Siem Reap, Kampong Cham and Kratie. A bus stand sits at the southwest corner. Hours run from early morning to early evening. City-wide notices appear on the Phnom Penh Capital Administration site.

Plan a visit to Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum on Street 113 as its own half day. It is a former prison and a solemn site, so check its official page for hours and entry before you go.

Hostel, guesthouse or hotel? When to step up

Step up when you need silence, a private bathroom or a longer stay. Couples and anyone who wants a design-led room can browse Phnom Penh Boutique Hotels: Best Picks by Area. Keep hostels for solo budgets, group activities and short stays. Stay clear of listings that call themselves hostels but offer no dorms unless a private room is what you want.