[Closed] Cambodia - advice needed

Defo recommend you see Angkor, so a trip to SR is probably best for this. PP is a great city - we enjoyed it, so worth a couple of days at least. Mekong Delta was amazing 15 years ago and I'm guessing it's more touristy now but still a cool place to visit, so defo recommend you try to fit in a trip. My general tip for all of SE Asia is try to get off the beaten track if you can, even if it's just for a day or an overnight somewhere off the well-trodden routes. The people are great, and the real holiday gems are often those experiences you have away from the crowds, even if it's just exploring a little-known part of a city. Fantastic part of the world - have a great trip.

A mate of mine runs a travel blog for that neck of the woods, perhaps have a look here -

http://www.ibackpackertravel.com/

Try http://www.travelfish.org/ as well.

Thanks for the links guys.

wl, definitely agree about getting off the beaten trail. Spent just shy of a month in vietnam last year and each time we arrived somewhere new we bought or hired scooters/motorbikes (other than in HCMC and Hanoi) and just got lost for a couple of days. Some of the best parts of the trip were ending up in backwater villages at sunset highfiving a load of kids who wondered who the white dudes were outside their houses. Someone even made us dinner while another fixed my bike (headlight had gone and we had a 2 hour ride back to the hotel in the dark, on dubious "roads" through jungle), before ensuring we'd had enough beer before getting back on the bikes :).

I gather getting bikes in SR is a no go, but PP seems fair game. Would quite like to get a guide and head into the hills from PP.

stay in the $1 dorm! http://utopia-cambodia.com/accommodation.html

Siem Reap - yes you can spend 4 days there. Town is a bit touristy as you'd expect but worth looking round. For the temples I would highly recommend hiring a guide as otherwise its easy to get "templed out" and there is much you will miss / won't understand. We went the route of guide and private (air conditioned car) as the temples are spread out over large area and the heat/humidity does sap you. You can do a tuk-tuk version. There is a 3-day ticket for the temples. We did he classic sunrise tourist thing and took a trip out to the red temple and stopped at land mine museum. We also stayed in a nice hotel (Victoria Resorts who we sued in Vietnam) but there are lots of options. It is worth trying to work out how to go at times with less tourists as it's better when it's quiet.

You are right in that exploring is the way to go, please do not venture off the beaten track too much as unexploded landmines are still a major issue.

A trip to Cambodia with the OP's user name sounds a bit fishy to me! 😉

I know nothing about Cambodia apart from I saw this pic last month, and it looks lush.

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-[url= http://www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/2c8ce7/im_vacationing_in_cambodia_heres_my_hotel_at/ ]Sauce[/url]

We also stayed in a nice hotel (Victoria Resorts who we sued in Vietnam)

You sound like a dream guest 😉

Just remebered something from jambalaya's post. When I was there I went to see sunrise at Ankor Wat (it's very touristy but pretty impressive) but unlike the other 5000 people that were there we didn't go back to the hotel for breakfast, we stayed at the temple and had some breakfast there from a local vendor. Nothing special just bread, jam, cheese, instant coffee but for two hours after that there were maybe a dozen people at the temple so we got to see everything in a really relaxed way and take some fantastic photos. We then hooked up with a guide later that day and had a proper tour.

Yep - bikes or motorbikes are the best route to a more satisfying/adventurous trip, IMO.
And I forgot to say, try eating the fried crickets - they're good with a beer - like ready-salted crisps. I drew the line at the deep-fried tarantulas though.

there is not much in Phnom Penh, islands in the south would be better use of 4 days, we got bored within a few days. Siem reap is mega, favourite place out of places I visited in Thailand, Cambodia & vietnam

@Jamie the ride fields are an amazing green, they seem to be unlike anything I saw elsewhere in Asia.

@gonefishing has a top tip there for crowd avoidance. For sunrise I would also add we paid something like a $1 for a seat by the side of the lake with a coffee, get's you in prime position and no one can get in front of you.

there is not much in Phnom Penh, islands in the south would be better use of 4 days, we got bored within a few days. Siem reap is mega, favourite place out of places I visited in Thailand, Cambodia & vietnam

Would you say a couple of days/nights would be enough? If so, it would be pretty useful because it would free up a couple of days for a motorbike tour before heading south.

Has anyone been to Sihanoukville? It doesn't sound too appealing but would open up the islands. Do you think the ride from PP would be treacherous on a motorbike? To be honest, I'm minded to head back over to Phu Quoc anyway since it fits in nicely travel wise.

Siem reap is mega, favourite place out of places I visited in Thailand, Cambodia & vietnam

This is good news 🙂 I've wanted to visit for quite some time now....

2 Days would be plenty, can't remember what we did there, bamboo railway I think. I didn't make it to Sihanoukville.

I made it there but it was only two nights and it was ten years ago. I quite enjoyed it but it was off season so was pretty quiet and we did a trip out to an island so we didn't spend much time there. Great seafood.

In PP one place that I recommend is S-21. It won't be a fun visit but very informative and the closest place I've ever seen to the Ministry of Love.

spent three weeks there on my honeymoon. best holiday I've ever had.

Looking at your itinary I'd reduce the time in Phonm to a couple of days/couple of nights and extend Siem Reap and the beach by a day.

Transport down from Siem Reap is by road and will take a half day and you'll be tired as the roads are slow and rough in places. Something to do with them being built by the Chinese and only tarmacced to where they wanted them to go. Siem Reap itself is great, lots aside from Angkor to do and see. Hire a mountain bike and a guide and get out of the town. Explore some of the smaller temples, hit the markets, get yer feet chewed by fish, see the living temples, theres lots to kill time with.

EDIT: cambodia air run small flights down to the beach but they only run at certain times of year and are small, you may be sitting with chickens, but if they run might be worth it for the time you'd save.

Did an organised cycle tour there last year. Sihanoukville is definitely best missed, modern, resorty, backpacker type place (probably THE place for travellers to enjoy a cheap hotel, beach and get laid outside the confines of a hostel). The sea is too filthy to entertain going in too.
My pick is Kampot if you're considering heading to the south - beautiful little town, very quiet/chilled old French colonial town. Really would be a fantastic finish to a holiday if you started in Siem Reap (most tourist bustle), then on to Phnom Penh for a bit more city tourism (2-3 days is easily enough I reckon), and then Kampot would be the final chill out in a nice hotel, get (legit) massages, OD on sea food...

Ooooh Kampot would work wonderfully!

HCMC for 2 nights (then fly to Siem Reap)
Siem Reap for 4 nights (then fly to PP)
PP for 2 nights (then taxi to Kampot)
Kampot for 3 nights (then taxi and speedboat to Phu Quoc)
Phu Quoc for 3 nights (then fly to HCMC)

How does that look? Looks pretty well balanced to me!

Was there exactly 10 years ago. +1 for Angkor Wat, actually some of the smaller more overgrown temples are more atmospheric. Go for a tuk-tuk guide at Angkor over an aircon taxi, they are slower and allow you to take in the sights, smells etc. rather than wizzing round in a car. I'm sure you could also hire bikes there too. Make sure you visit the tuol sleng museum and killing fields when you are in PP

I quite enjoyed Phnom Penh. Maybe partly because Cambodians walk to their own beat and it's fascinating wherever you are. But maybe it was something to do with the guest house we stayed in too, down some ropey back street. It was built over the lake, and it was the most chilled out place on a night. The feint sound of music bouncing across the lake from the other side, amidst the nightly lightening storms. I loved it.

Definitely go to S21. It's macabre. Pretty sickening really. But it's Cambodia and it's a massive part of their history. Never went to the Killing Fields myself...was ill that day.

Siem Reap is awesome. If you like creepy crawlies! I swear they have bugs nearly the size of people. Obviously Angkor Watt is a must see. Worth visiting one of the floating villages there too.

If you do hire a vehicle of any kind, be very, very careful. In Cambodia, there appears to be no rules on the road... Aside from one. If there's traffic in front of you, dodge it.

Thanks for the help guys. Flights are now booked and current itinerary is looking like this:

Fly to HCMC for 2 nights to catch up with some friends.
Fly to Siem Reap for 4 nights.
Boat down to Battambang for 2 nights
Overland to Phnom Penh for 1 night
Overland to Kampot for 2 nights
Overland to Vietnamese border at Ha Tien then boat to Phu Quoc for 3 nights
Fly back into HCMC

Anyone in the know have any thoughts? Has anyone tried to get across the border at Ha Tien? I'm just trying to work out timings and how much time to leave for getting through (seems a few hours might be best to be on the safe side).

I'm going to need a multiple entry visa for Vietnam, which is a pain because it's now over £100. Apparently Ha Tien was pretty relaxed in the past, but is now the same as all other border crossings and no VOA is available.

I'm going to need a multiple entry visa for Vietnam, which is a pain because it's now over £100.

Re the temples at Angkor. We hired bikes to visit the temples near Siem Reap, and a Tuk-tuk for the day to get to the ones further out. You negotiate an all-day rate with a driver and they'll wait for you when you're looking round. Cycling is much nicer than being on a guided tour - the moment we saw a large crowd we headed in the opposite direction, so we mostly had the temples to ourselves.

Cycling on Cambodian roads was a little hairy, but not quite as bad as you might imagine. It was stupidly hot though - we had booked a B&B with a swimming pool, and enjoyed the chance to cool off. Make sure you start early so you can be finished when the day really warms up.

Oh and S21/ Killing Fields are a must if you want to understand anything at all about the country.

thanks for the tips ransos.

Blimey it used to be $25 a visit ! At the major airports you can get a visa on entry (with a supporting letter from your hotel) but it will be easier to have one in advance, depends how easy it is to come to London. When we did them it took two separate visits and its not open all day. I think these days there are plenty of backpackers and business travelers so border crossings should not be an issue.

You can't get a visa at Ha Tien, I'd already need to be in possession of a multiple entry visa or I wouldn't be able to get back into Vietnam at that point.

I just sent mine off the embassy last year and they returned it in 4 days which I thought was pretty good! Glad I did, the queue at HCMC for VOA was easily 200+ people long.

Don't forget to check the seasonal level of the water before going on the boat ride... Even if the water is really low you the trip will take place you will just get stuck a lot and it will take forever.
Watch out for exit taxes from the airports as these bite if you don't think of them.
Oh and if you are going to eat the street food be prepared for the consequences! It won't get you all the time but will in the end...

If you need a new visa to Vietnam you can just drop off your passport at the embassy in PP in the morning if you are doing S21/Killing Fields and collect it later. If you are in a real rush you can give it to the guard outside with a fist full of dollars and get any visa you want...

Is street food in Cambodia particularly bad? I'd heard the opposite? Or do you just mean asian street food is risky in general?

The street food is good and I ate a lot of it. Street food in general is probably considered risky. I only had one emergency in three months of south east asia and it happened a day before Angkor Wat. If you expect to spend a day walking round temples it is not a concern you want to have. Mind you by the time I went to bed I don't think there was even air left inside me so the next day was fine!

Aye, I'm happy eating street food (with a sensible dose of common sense though!), just worried for a moment there that you meant Cambodian in particular was a no no!

Had one similar experience that began on a 4 hour bus ride 🙁 The bus had a toilet (well a dark, stinking cupboard I could poo in), so small mercies and all that.

stay at mango bay in phi quoc. our favourite place for weekend trip when we lived in hcmc. 3 days of temples is enough in, we had the same tuk tuk driver for the stay and he waited for us. even did the sunset and sunrise trips

Ha! We stayed at Mango Bay and La Veranda last year! 🙂

Agreed, great place. La Veranda is incredible too.

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Stayed in the Du Hung Hotel 2 in Ha Tien just before Christmas - very reasonably priced, and perfectly OK for an overnight stop.

I'm literally just off of the plane from Siem Reap having taken my kids to visit, some 15 years after my last trip there.

Given the time you've got around Angkor, I'd strongly recommend making the effort to get out to Beng Mealea. Same footprint as Angkor Wat, but under the influence of the jungle. Great spot. Hire one of the local "guides" for US$2 and they'll take you scrambling through the ruins, rather than following the wooden walkway. Was the highlight of my kids holiday!

I would agree with cutting down the time you spend in PP and extra time in SR. The Angkor site is ruddy enormous and totally worth all the time you can spend. I never made it out to Bang melea but from what I have read you should. Also Kbal Spean is a jungle stream full of carvings, worth a trip and Bantey Srei, one of the further out temples has some of the best carvings you will see.

I would agree with cutting down the time you spend in PP and extra time in SR.

I'm up to 4 nights/5 days in Siem Reap and 1 night/1.5 days in PP...does that seem like a reasonable balance?

I'd say so. We had 3 full days in Siem Reap and saw most, if not all, of what we wanted to. Of course with the kids in tow I was probably a little quicker around things than I might have been by myself; didn't want them to suffer from temple burnout!

Fully agree getting off beaten track is the way to go. Cycled through it last year and found the people wonderfully welcoming and warm, especially so in remote areas. Worth getting boat from Siam Reap - Battambang takes you past river communities living on house boats.

That sounds pretty good to be honest. When your in PP go to the foreign correspondents club (Pub/bar) for a sundowner overlooking the river. Get some pretty stoking sunsets if your lucky.

The street food is good and I ate a lot of it. Street food in general is probably considered risky.

My experience of India and SE Asia is that street food is fine - it's hotel and restaurant food that gives you trouble.

Guys, for those who have been to battambang, did you bother with anti malarials?

It's a high risk area, but apparently "[i]Battambang province is noteworthy for the fact that within its borders are the most highly drug resistant forms of malaria in the world[/i]"....so perhaps not much point in bothering?

I never tend to bother, just adopt the usual prevention strategies, but Battambang is making me thing a wee bit.

Guys, for those who have been to battambang, did you bother with anti malarials?

We used Malarone, as supposedly it's less susceptible to resistance. Its two big advantages are the lack of side effects and you only have to take it for a few days after you come home - some of the others are 4 weeks IIRC. It's expensive though...

I used chloroquine in India and it just made me feel sick the whole time. Mefloquine may make you go mad...

thanks ransos. Aye, I'm ok on Malarone too. Nurse has said she's happy to get it for me if my travel plans are sensible (ie I'm not going to high risk areas 2 weeks apart and therefore having to take a total of 3 weeks worth), due to the cost.

Malarones not even THAT expensive if you want a private prescription for more.

Take some 100 percent DEET and lightweight long shirts and trousers.

Take some 100 percent DEET

No chance 🙂

Take some 100 percent DEET and lightweight long shirts and trousers.

Shirts need to be the closely woven travelling type - I had a mosquito bite me through an ordinary cotton t-shirt. 100% DEET is horrible stuff - it took the dye out of my water bottle and turned my hand blue - but it does seem to work.

Just returned. Thanks to all those who offered advice.

Wow. Cambodia is a pretty special place, still trying to put it all together in my head.

Beautiful people, beautiful scenery, incredible and at times upsetting history. If Cambodia doesn't stir [i]something[/i] inside you then you're probably dead.

We got off the beaten track, sometimes a biting off more than we could chew, which has left me with some amazing memories but a few hairy moments too. In our group we managed:

An electrocution (Khmer electrical work isn't the best!)
A dog bite necessitating a quick trip to Phnom Penh for a rabies shot
A cobra in our bungalow on Koh Rong that didn't want to leave
Crashing off a bamboo bridge into a ravine resulting in a sprained ankle and a 12 hour effort to rescue rider and motorbike
A poisonous spider bite that is still oozing something
Being robbed in the middle of the night as we slept
Getting caught in a storm at sea and the boat taking on water. All hands on deck moment until we eventually got to shore
A rear wheel puncture at 65mph with the rider miraculously staying upright
Being detained for 6 hours at a land border with Vietnam due to "irregularities" with our travel docs
Getting completely lost more times than I can remember
Having to step over a poor man in the street whose head had been taken off in an traffic accident, moments before we were due to start a long ride.

But...the people...it's all about the people. Even some of the smallest interactions I had will stay with me.

Despite the "exciting" moments, I can honestly say I wouldn't change anything and Cambodia has totally won me over.

If you've never been....go now.

Sounds like you got just what you were after, and then some.

I'll always be a little annoyed that I never quite made it there, during the years when [i]that[/i] sort of trip was a possibility.

Any pics, just to make us all marginally sicker?

peterfile +1 mate, we had quite simply a great trip, will return one the mini me's are older.

Still to sort through the photos, but the other morning I was having trouble sleeping on Koh Rong due to the stifling humidity, so I headed to the beach to sleep in a hammock and take advantage of the breeze.

I woke up to this just after sunrise, whipped my phone out of my pocket while still in the hammock and took a quick picture before lying back again and enjoying just being there, listening to the waves and knowing that I didn't need to move for hours 🙂

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peterfile - Member

Having to step over a poor man in the street whose head had been taken off in an traffic accident, moments before we were due to start a long ride.

Pic please ... 😯

I was at the border town in Laos this summer. We just crossed over from Thailand but what paper check? Where are the immigration? 😆

Pic please ...

The sooner I can get the image out of my head, the better 🙁

I found flying into the domestic terminal at Phnom Penh quite amusing...we just got off the plane, walked across the tarmac and all of a sudden we were in the street! We had to walk back under a little shelter to collect our bags, but you could pass freely between the city, baggage collection and runway!!!! 🙂

peterfile - Member

Pic please ...

The sooner I can get the image out of my head, the better

Ya, I guess I was in another part of SE Asia where people usually gather around simply to take a snap of the accident with their mobile phone ...

I found flying into Phnom Penh quite amusing...we just got off the plane, walked across the tarmac and all of a sudden we were in the street! We had to walk back under a little shelter to collect our bags, but you could pass freely between the city, baggage collection and runway!!!!

That's freedom for you.

I was stopped by the custom officers in M'sia coming back from Thailand with Thai machetes. Apparently they considered them weapons but upon hearing that I came from the same region/state they let me off. I left my "weapons" in Borneo so perhaps I will bring it back to GeordieLand next trip. 😆

People are generally friendly but never piss them off ...

Oh ya ... post some pics of you trip please.

Pics!

Loved my trip to Cambodia. Laos is next on the list.

A few snaps for those who want to reminisce and for those who are considering going....

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Loving the photos. You must have been at Angkor really early for those.

It takes me back to 2010/11 when I did a month long trip with 2 weeks in Laos and 2 in Cambodia.

It looks like you covered similar ground with Siem Reap, Phnom Penh, Kampot, Kep, Rabbit Island?

Top stuff! Glad you enjoyed it. Although it would have been hard not to.

Edit: Realise now you went further west too. Would have liked to have done that if we had the time

Edit: Did anyone else want to buy a 50-125cc plastic Honda/Yamaha scooter upon their return?

Loving the photos. You must have been at Angkor really early for those.

Believe it or not, we did the opposite. We were recommended a proper guide (one of the official ones who some sort of Angkor Wat course at college/university) who was worth his weight in gold. We hit all the temples at off peak times (ie breakfast, lunch, hottest part of the day etc), when all the large groups were back at their hotels. Was a little unbearable in the heat, but worth it because we had the places almost to ourselves.

We did....Saigon -> Siem Reap -> Phnom Penh -> Sihanoukville -> Koh Rong -> Kampot -> Bokor Mountain/Kep -> Ha Tien -> Phu Quoc -> Saigon.

We managed to bag some 250cc bikes. Mine even had a working speedo...70mph+ on Bokor Mountain was fun!

dude, this makes me want to go back, two years since my 3 weeks there. fabulous place, fabulous people. hope tourism doesn't ruin it anytime soon. sigh.

We managed to bag some 250cc bikes. Mine even had a working speedo...70mph+ on Bokor Mountain was fun!

Made all the more special by wearing nothing but shorts, shades and an ill fitting horse riding helmet no doubt 🙂

Very jealous. It's a great part of the world.

Made all the more special by wearing nothing but shorts, shades and an ill fitting horse riding helmet no doubt

I had factor 50 sun cream on, so felt pretty safe to be honest 🙂

There's a bit on Bokor on the way back down where you come out of a few tight turns and the jungle opens up to a HUGE (2 mile+) straight and the natural reaction is to just open up. I did exactly that and hit about 75mph before my heart stopped as I suddenly remembered I'd crossed railway tracks on the way up 🙁 Hit the tracks flat out. Both feet were kicked off and the bike was all over the place. No idea how I didn't come off. Took it quite a bit easier after that.

But that mountain road...jeez....60km+ of racetrack....couldn't stop smiling

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Haha! What was it Missy Giove said? Sometimes it's worse afterwards reliving the near crash than actually getting through it. Or something like that.

Serious question - was anything said about the water being drained out from under Angkor Wat? I read an article a few years ago about the new larger hotels, as well as Siem Reap becoming a more popular destination, using so much water that the table was dropping in the sandy soil, causing temples to sink.

There's obviously some 'must-take' shots at Angkor. 😉

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I love Cambodia. I've been twice, first time by boat from Vietnam and the second time by air from KL.
The temples at Siem Reap and also the awe inspiring barays are incredible.
I've also spent time in PP (which was nice) and Battambang.
Good to see Beng Mealea mentioned. Fantastic temple. Good hotels can beg found for very little. The food is delicious. The people are some of the friendliest I have met.
Enjoy.

You account of it is exactly how I felt. It's a crazy but special place. All about the people. Would love to go back one day.

don't spend $20 to chuck a hand granade into a dirty pond, it's crap!