Cambodia Trip 1999
Bangkok - Poipet - Siem Reap - Phnom Penh - Kampong Cham - Kratie - Stung Treng - Phnom Penh - Kampot - Sihanoukville - Bangkok.
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12 hours overland trip from the Thai border to Siem Reap. Terribly bad road between Sisophon and Siem Reap after heavy rainfalls. Amazing Angkor Wat. Beautiful Siem Reap countryside, small villages at the river. Three days water festival (Bon Oumtouk) in Phnom Penh with hundred thousands of visitors. Party and good food everywhere. Boat races on the Mekong. Asian bellydance in a nightclub. Still dangerous streets at night. Rewarding boat trip up the Mekong to Stung Treng. Less travellers, more real Cambodia. Endless green ricefields south of Phnom Penh. Beautiful road from Kampot to Kep. Nice beaches in Sihanoukville. South route by boat via Ko Kong to Thailand. Hammocks and pooltables everywhere. The friendliest people with the warmest smiles I have ever seen. Thousands of beer girls and taxi girls. Mobilephones and radio equipment very popular. Many weddings, November seems to be the popular month.
Cambodia Trip 2002
Veun Kham (Laos) - Mekong - Stung Treng - Ban Lung - Sen Monorom - Phnom Penh - Kampot - Bokor - Sihanoukville - Phnom Penh - Battambang - Pailin - Poipet
Mekong Falls and Irrawaddy Dolphins. Bordercrossing on the Mekong coming from 4000 islands in Laos. Pickup to Ban Lung, road still in bad condition. Swimming in crystal clear water of crater lake. 13h motorbike ride through forests, rivers and ricefields to Sen Monorom. Charming nightlife in Phnom Penh. Alory (bamboo-train) ride to Udong. With the real train to Kampot, rail travel like 100 years ago. Dirtbike trip on Bokor mountain. Cambodian sweets on the nightmarket. Beaches and Fullmoon Party in Sihanoukville. Khmer disco with karaoke, beergirls, taxigirls... Christmas dinner at the riverfront in Phnom Penh and party in the Heart of Darkness. Shared Taxi to Battambang. Laid back city with colonial atmosphere. Trip to the Battambang Killing Fields (Phnom Sampeau) and to the Kamping Poy Dam. Sunset beer with our motodrivers. Bad road to ex Kmer Rouge stronghold Pailin. Trip to the gem mines. Motoride to Poipet along the Thai border on small roads. Most scenic places ever seen in Cambodia.
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Cambodia Trip 2003
Koh Kong - Sre Ambel - Phnom Penh - Kampong Thom - Siem Reap - Anlong Veng - Preah Vihear - Sisophon - Poipet
Used the new minibus service of Local Adventures from Koh Kong to Phnom Penh. Spent most of my time there, including Christmas in the Heart. Headed north with the bus to Siem Reap. Very touristy place at this time of year. Avoided Angkor and the package tourists masses there. Went to Preah Vihear instead. One day ride with motodop. We stayed overnight at the mountaintop. Sunrise next day and travel back. Great trip. See PV Infobox below for details.
For the whole story and photos see the Travelogue Page.
Road Travel
Modern, big aircon buses between PP and Sihanoukville and to Kampong Cham. Big buses also ply the roads to Siem Reap and Battambang now ($4 from PP). Road conditions are MUCH better now.
Older buses, pickups and shared taxis are used when the roads are worse. The Toyota Camry shared taxis are running almost all routes now, even on the Poipet / Battambang / Siem Reap route.
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last update Feb 2004 From Siem Reap I took a motorbike wih driver to check out the new road to Preah Vihear. The part from Banteay Srey to Anlong Veng (94 km) was really bumpy. After an delay of 1 hr (flat tyre) we reached the old Khmer Rouge stronghold at lunchtime. The new road is fantastic, all bridges are finished now. It was possible to do the 107 km to Preah Vihear in less than 3 hours!
It is now possible to access the mountain with a 4WD, but for or small bike it was to hard...We reached the mountaintop before sunset and had a quite evening there, after all the Thai tourists had already gone. Some Khmer who work there provided us with a simple room for the night. Except us and 6 young guys from Phnom Penh there were no overnight visitors. PV at sunrise is an incredible sight. I had the whole temple for myself for about 2 hours, until the first drink stalls opened. Time for us to go back. We reached Siem Reap at 5 pm. Here is the complete list of bigger villages that we passed: Siem Reap - Kobal Spien - Srenoi - Anlong Veng - Trapeang Phrasat - Trobnub Dach - Sra Aym - Preah Vihear. Click here for all the photos and more info about this trip. |
Motorbike taxi
Available everywhere and everytime. 500 Riel for short distance. 1000-4000 R for longer distances in Phnom Penh, a bit more at night. Drivers with good English (sometimes French) wait in front of guesthouses. Moderately bargaining is usual before you go. Going rate is PP is 4-6$ for whole day. In SR 6$ for a whole day with temple visits is the going rate, drivers ask for more when visiting remote places like Banteay Srey. Moto rides for long distances on bad roads (or no roads) can be very expensive. The trip from Ban Lung to Sen Monorom (more than 200 km, 13h) was 50 $. This route is really hardcore for bike and driver. He stays overnight and usually returns without passenger.
Train
Cheap, slow, dirty but romantic. Best places in a cargo car with wide open doors
or on the roof. Bring your hammock and enough time. Enjoy the scenery passing by slowly and walking on the roofs jumping from car to car. Regular passenger train service is suspended between PP and SHV. The buses are much faster and more comfortable.
Boat
Big speedboats or expressboats in service on most routes when water level is high on Tonle Sap and Mekong.
Often best choice to sit on the rooftop, even if sometimes getting a little bit wet when too much wind or waves. Slower cargoboats are often overloaded and seem less comfortable. Between Laos and Cambodia there are now speedboats for up to 8 passengers. For details see "bordercrossings" box below.
Accomodation
Guesthouses 2$ - 5$. Hotels 4$ - 10$ for a double room, often including bathroom, towels, TV. More expensive
hotels available in PP, Sihanoukville and SR.
Safety
Has dramatically improved. Every part of the country is accessible now, including route 7 between Kratie and Stung Treng and the road to Sen Monorom. Most dangerous place is still PP when walking alone in ill lit backstreets. Leave all valuables and passport in the guesthouse when walking around late at night. Better use a motodop, keep your eyes open.
Money
Bring US $, and change some to Riel at small shops in the street. Bigger amounts are usually paid in $.
Try to pay in Riel whenever possible.
1 U.S. $ = 4.000 Cambodian Riel = 40 Thai Baht (Dec 2003)
