Home > Vietnam > Tourist Attractions Stung Treng > Stung Treng - General Information |
Stung Treng - General Information
Province: Stung Treng
Area: 11,092sq km
Population: 95,184
Density: 7
District: 5
Commune: 34
Village: 128
Stung Treng is a northern province of Cambodia. It was formerly called Xieng
Teng and was once a part of the vast Khmer Empire, then the Lao kingdom of Lan
Xang and later the Lao kingdom of Champassack. During the period of French
Indochina it was again ceded to Cambodia.
The provincial capital is also named Stung Treng and is an important trade hub
with a few hints of Lao influence scattered about, owing to the fact that the
Lao border is about 50 km away. It’s a friendly, quiet country town situated on
the confluence of the San River and the Mekong River. It actually sits on the
banks of the San River, with the mighty Mekong coming into the picture on the
northeastern outskirts of he town.
The San River goes by three names, depending on which of the locals you speak
to. Some call it the Kong River because the San and Kong Rivers merge together
about 10 km northeast of Stung Treng town, confusing people about which name the
river should bear. Others call it the Sekong River, which is the combined name
of these two rivers. Whatever name the fiver beside the town goes by, it’s
another one of Cambodia’s beautiful picture-postcard river towns. It’s a nice
place to kick back and chill out if you are on a circuit tour of the Northeast
River Scene, from here to Laos.
The San River is fronted in Stung Treng by a nice stretch of paved road. It’s
the centre of socializing (as in most Cambodian river towns) in the late
afternoon and early evening hours as the locals ride up and down the stretch
enjoying the view and each other. Drink and dessert stands spring up earlier to
serve the daily merrymaking crowd. It’s a nice spot for a walk or jog any time
of the day as the river road turns into a pleasant rural road that leads to the
airport 4 km north of town.
The river port area just in front of the small city park is fairly busy,
handling trade between Cambodia and Laos. The ferry across the San River to
where National Highway No 7 continues north to the Laos border is also at this
pier. The fare is 300 riel per head. We went for a ride on this stretch (2,000
riel for taking a big bike on the ferry), but there is not much to see along the
way besides light jungle and some remnants next to the road that was a target of
carpet bombing during the Vietnam War years (the road was recently overhauled
and is now one of the best in the country). The road works its way eastward so
it does not afford views of the Mekong River as one would hope. The few
residents we saw along the way were truly amazed to see the likes of us, who
would want to be there.
Source: Ministry of Tourism of the Kingdom of Cambodia |
High Quality Tour Service:
Roy, Spain
Fransesca, Netherlands
A member of Vietnam Travel Promotion Group (VTP Group)
Address: Room 509, 15T2 Building, 18 Tam Trinh Str., Hai Ba Trung District, Hanoi, Vietnam (See map)
Tel: +84.24.62768866 / mail[at]tuanlinhtravel.com
Visited: 1967