An online system launched this week will allow hotels in Cambodia to apply for a star rating, which classifies hotels according to their quality, amenities and creature comforts.

Sam Seng, deputy director of the tourism industry department at the Ministry of Tourism, said yesterday that the internet-based hotel-rating application platform would improve the efficiency of the paper-based system it replaced.

“The new system will speed up our work when rating the hotel,” he said. “It will save time and money for applicants so that all of us can do our work more efficiently.”

The application form involves questions on a hotel’s location, architecture, room capacity, food and beverage services, facilities and parking availability. Upon review and site inspections by Tourism Ministry officials, the hotel is assigned a star rating from one star, for basic lodging, through a maximum of five stars, for luxury accommodation.

A 2015 study by Bonna Realty Group identified 317 hotels with 15,000 rooms in Phnom Penh, and 417 hotels with 17,000 rooms in Siem Reap. The report also revealed that there are 133 hotels with 4,000 rooms in Sihanoukville, while Battambang province has 45 hotels with 1,600 rooms.