Farmhouse Smiling Gecko
Farmhouse Smiling Gecko
Samaki Meanchey District, Kampong Chhnang Provinz, Kambodscha
T: +855 (0) 11 67 95 95
“We currently provide more than 40 employees with a secure job, with humane working conditions and fair income, enabling them to earn a living for themselves and their families. At Farmhouse we are constantly working to become even more socially, ecologically and economically sustainable.” Farmhouse Smiling Gecko
Description
In the countryside of Cambodia, the Farmhouse Smiling Gecko is situated between rice fields. The boutique-bungalow resort is about 65 km away from Phnom Penh. As a training hotel of the social project Smiling Gecko it makes an important contribution to the support of the local people - 95% of the staff are from Cambodia. The stilt houses and bungalows are built in the traditional Cambodian style and blend in with the green surroundings with lots of wood. Read more
Highlights
- Experience a unique combination of country life and luxury resort.
- Support the Smiling Gecko Project with your stay and gain insights into authentic Cambodia.
- Enjoy newly interpreted local specialties of the Smiling Gecko cuisine and taste the food of the "farm-to-table" principle.
- Exclusive tours offered by the hotel
environmental protection
being local - authentic experiences
giving back
cultural commitment
Rooms & Amenities
- 34 rooms located in 17 houses and bungalows based on local models
- 3 categories: Bungalow Superior, Bungalow Comfort and Khmer House
The bungalows are equipped with terraces, the simpler stilt houses have seats under the houses. The bungalows also have their own coffee machine and rain showers. Read more
History & Philosophy
The Farmhouse Smiling Gecko has been developed by the Smiling Gecko Project and the associated farms. In 2015 the guesthouse and restaurant were built on the property. In this way, tourists and students involved in the project can be accommodated comfortably onsite. In recent years, the facility has been enlarged and extended with many recreational areas. The Farmhouse’s hospitality industry provides a sustainability training and employment facility for local people.
Culinary delights
The Smiling Gecko restaurant was opened in 2015 and since then has been offering local specialties combined with European cuisine. Enjoy the unique cooking skills of the young chef Mariya Un Noun, who grew up in the slums of Phnom Penh.
With the help of the Smiling Gecko Project, she was able to be trained as a cook and even learn from top chefs in Switzerland. Read more
The Smiling Gecko Project
The effects of the Vietnam War and the Khmer Rouge reign of terror are still being felt in Cambodia. As large parts of the infrastructure and state organizations were disrupted, the population suffered from poverty and lack of education. Cambodia is one of the poorest countries in the world. Especially children are directly affected, they live on the streets, starve and are exposed to abuse.
The holistic designed project Smiling Gecko helps children and their families with sustainable aid measures. The principle of “helping people to help themselves” empowers them to shape their own lives and thus to contribute to a life of dignity.
The four elements of the cluster projects are: Education, agriculture, crafts / production and tourism / gastronomy. Read more
Green Initiatives
- Architecture
- Organic Garden
- Water
- Energy
- Waste
- Food
- Social Engagement
- The houses have been constructed with local and preferably environmentally friendly materials from local companies.
- The hotel is built in traditional Cambodian style.
- The resort is located in the middle of agricultural fields, which are also part of the project area.
- Thousands of trees and plants have been planted
- Organic garden where fruit and vegetables are grown for use in the kitchen. This ensures the use of fresh food according to the farm-to-table principle.
- A decentralized sewage system serves as a natural treatment plant for the resort and protects the environment and the health of guests and employees in the farmhouse.
- Rainwater is used for the fields and the garden.
- The resort uses energy-saving LED bulbs.
- The main path to the bungalows is illuminated with solar lamps.
- A solar panel system is planned and contracts have already been signed.
- The waste produced is separated and passed on to external companies for recycling.
- The employees are trained to separate waste and sensitized to produce as little waste as possible.
- If possible, plastic-free packaging and materials are chosen.
- In the hotel kitchen, mainly food from the hotel’s own cultivation is used or purchased from local producers.
- Bread and pastries are produced in the project’s own bakery.
- The meat used comes from the project’s own animals and is processed in the Smiling Gecko butchery.
- Where necessary, the food is served in packaging made of compostable materials.
- 95% of the employees are locals and benefit from fair income and humane working conditions.
- The team members are constantly trained and receive English lessons in their own classes.
- There are a kindergarten and a Smiling Gecko School for the children of the employees.
- In this way, the families of the employees also benefit from the project. This is to create an independent community in the future.
- For the own school and kindergarten, Smiling Gecko has a canteen kitchen, the Food Processing Center, where both the children and employees are provided with healthy food and safe jobs are created.