Himawari Hotel Apartments sits at 313 Sisowath Quay, on the quiet southern run of the riverfront past the Royal Palace, and it is the closest thing central Phnom Penh has to a resort. It has been trading for decades under Japanese management, which shows in the way it is run: everything works, nothing is flashy, and the maintenance is visibly better than the city average.
The pool is the reason people book. It is a proper rectangle you can swim lengths in rather than the plunge-pool-with-a-view that most Phnom Penh hotels call a rooftop pool, and it is set in a garden facing the Tonle Sap. There is a tennis court, a gym, and a spa with sauna, steam room and jacuzzi that gets consistently good marks. Accommodation is mostly apartments rather than rooms — one- and two-bedroom units with kitchens, sitting areas and river views — which makes it a serious option for anyone staying two weeks or a month rather than four nights. Breakfast is well reviewed. Rates run from about $73 to $116 a night depending on the unit and the season, with monthly deals available.
The trade-off is distance. You are roughly 1.5 km south of Street 104 and the Riverside and a little further from Street 136: about twenty minutes on foot along the promenade, or five minutes and a dollar or two in a PassApp tuk-tuk. That is nothing in a city this small, but it does mean you will not be walking home from a bar. BKK1 is about ten minutes the other way.
The other thing to know is the visitor policy, and we would rather be straight about it than guess. Himawari appears on the specialist guest-friendly listings, but we have not found consistent first-hand guest reports confirming it, and it is a family- and business-oriented property rather than a nightlife hotel. Treat the policy as unknown, ask the question before you book by email, and read the guest-friendly hotels explainer first so you know what to ask. The rest of our picks are on the Phnom Penh hotels page.
| Tier | Upscale apartment hotel |
|---|---|
| From | About $73 a night, Aug 2026 |
| Walk to Street 136 | ~20 min, or 5 min and $1–2 by tuk-tuk |
| Pool | Large garden pool by the river, plus tennis court |
| Guest-friendly | Unconfirmed — listed by directories, ask before booking |
| Joiner fee | Unknown |
Pros
- + The best real swimming pool in central Phnom Penh
- + Apartments with kitchens — genuinely good for a month
- + Tennis court, gym, well-reviewed spa
- + Quiet riverfront position with river views
- + Long-standing, well-maintained, Japanese-managed
Cons
- − Visitor policy unconfirmed — ask before you book
- − Twenty minutes on foot from the bar streets
- − Priced well above the Street 136 hotels
- − Business-and-family atmosphere, not a nightlife hotel
