Knai Bang Chatt in Kep: The Story of Three Villas Saved from Oblivion
- Kep West
- Aug 25
- 5 min read
By the sea, three old villas built for a governor, a relative of the king and a senior customs official tell, between them, the whole fate of Kep: colonial splendour, the war that swallowed everything, then a patient rebirth carried by lovers of Khmer heritage. This is the story of Knai Bang Chatt.
Picture Kep in the 1960s: a seaside town built for the elite, where senior officials and relatives of the royal family had modernist villas built facing the sea. It was in this setting that what would, decades later, become Knai Bang Chatt was born.
Three Villas for Three Prominent Families
Between 1962 and 1965, three villas rose on this stretch of coastline, designed by young architects trained under Vann Molyvann, the father of modern Khmer architecture and himself a student of Le Corbusier in Paris. Each belonged to a different owner: the Blue Villa went to the governor of Kep, the Grey Villa to a relative of King Norodom Sihanouk, and the Red Villa to the province's head of customs. Their clean lines, terraces open to the sea and geometric volumes illustrate what would later be called New Khmer Architecture, championed with fervour by Prince Sihanouk over the two decades following independence.
War, Abandonment, Silence
The turn of the 1970s brought this golden age to a brutal end. Like the rest of Kep, the three villas were abandoned, looted and left to the vegetation and the elements for nearly thirty years. The architectural style that had given rise to them vanished along with them: its leading figures went into exile or were silenced, and the whole town sank into oblivion, becoming a ghost town of gutted villas.
A Revival from Belgium and France
In the mid-2000s, two Belgians, Jef Moons and Boris Vervoordt, bought the abandoned villas as a group. They partnered with French architect Françoise Lavielle to restore the buildings in keeping with their original lines, without trying to erase the marks of time. A fourth villa, the Brown Villa, completed the ensemble, followed later by a fifth building faithful to the spirit of New Khmer Architecture. The property reopened under the name Knai Bang Chatt, with 18 rooms spread across the different villas, each furnished with Khmer crafts and antiques.
A Name That Protects
Knai Bang Chatt means, in Khmer, the rainbow that encircles the sun: in Buddhist tradition, this halo is linked to the one that surrounds the Buddha's head, a symbol of protection. A name the owners chose as a kind of wish — to make the property a sheltered place, oriented toward calm as much as toward the sea.
From the Sailing Club to the Discovery Center
What these photos still show under the name Sailing Club is today part of Kep West's Discovery Center: the property's water-sports hub, where catamarans, kayaks, jet skis, foils, kitesurfing boards, Optimist dinghies and paddleboards are offered to guests. A wooden sign planted in the sand once pointed the way, while a board displayed the day's sailing conditions, wind strength and tide times. The Discovery Center now sits closer to the main Kep West building, and offers an even wider range of water sports and nautical activities than before.
A Lounge Facing the Horizon
Under a red-tinted wooden roof, grey, red and orange cushions dressed long woven-rattan benches, open to the beach and the sea. This was where guests gathered at the end of the day, between a drink at the bar and the view of the horizon.
Today, the preferred lounge is at The Wave, one of Kep West's restaurants, where guests can settle in close to the sea, enjoy a cocktail, and take a moment for selfies out on the pier.
A Social Commitment Recognised by International Audits
Behind the front desk and the bar, much of Knai Bang Chatt's staff has always been recruited from the surrounding villages. This link with the local community took shape, over the years, around the “Hand in Hand” programme: a multi-year community project that notably provided university scholarships and developed local training — in tour guiding or organic farming, for instance — benefiting several hundred families across the province.
This commitment was audited and recognised on several occasions by Green Growth 2050, a sustainable tourism standard endorsed by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC). After several years at Gold level, Knai Bang Chatt achieved Platinum, the standard's highest tier, following an independent audit covering more than 430 social and environmental responsibility indicators — health and safety, human rights, environmental management, community development. At the time of that distinction, only two other properties worldwide had reached that level.
Today, Part of the Wider Kep West Estate
Since then, Knai Bang Chatt has continued to evolve. The property is now part of a larger whole, Kep West, which brings together several complementary addresses along this same stretch of coast: the historic Knai Bang Chatt villas for accommodation, the Crab & Co restaurant, the Kep West Wellness space, the Discovery Center for water sports and the Art for Kep artist residency. The original villas remain the historic heart of the ensemble, the thread linking this new chapter to Kep's history.
Visiting Knai Bang Chatt and Kep West
The estate sits on Kep's seafront, just minutes from the town centre and about 25 kilometres from Kampot. In just a few years, Kep West has become one of the region's top culinary destinations, drawing visitors as much for its table as for its history. Beyond a stay in the historic villas, a visit offers a chance to discover the history of New Khmer Architecture, enjoy the different addresses gathered under the Kep West banner, and extend the exploration of the region with a trip to the Psar Kdam crab market or a walk through nearby Kep National Park. The Discovery Center brings together the full range of activities and excursions on offer, from watersports to guided tours of the surrounding countryside.
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