| I Scobie |
12 March 2004 |
Stayed at Borei Angkor Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Angkor Cafe Restaurant at the west gate to Angkor Wat is a fantastic cafe for lunch or dinner. It is really clean & has friendly staff. Another great place to have a coffee around the old market area is Kokoon Cafe. Not only do they sell great coffee but they also sell sandwiches, cakes,pastries & wonderful home-made ice cream. The old market isn't much but is worth a visit to experience the ambience of everyday life.
We found it not necessary to organise a tour prior to arriving in Siem Reap as the hotels are more than able to do this for you at a cost of $20 a day for a driver & $20 a day for a english speaking guide. We organised a visa prior to travelling as it is easier & less hassle once you arrive at the airport. It is also worth taking an extra passport photo for your tour pass into Angkor Wat. The US$ is used at all times & it is a good idea to take along small notes. If you are looking for a very good quality artefact we suggest that you visit the Artisans D'Angkor.
Once at the hotel grab a copy of the current Angkor Guide available at all hotels. The guide list information about exploring temples & dinning out.It even has a small map of Siem Reap showing where the restaurants, temples & places of interest are located. We had trouble with Exotissimo travel company as once we arrived in Siem Reap we were expected to pay double the amount that was agreed to via email. The staff were rude & we were not off to a good start. Thankfully for us we had a wonderful staff at the Borei Anglor Hotel & Mr Mom arranged a english speaking guide & driver within an hour. Our guides name was Vanna Tan & his contact detail are (855)012866143 we would highly recommend him.
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| J Dahlheimer |
28 February 2004 |
Stayed at Angkor Diamond Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Siem Reap is the destination center for the Angkor temples and gets a heavy concentration of visitors. But it's not overcrowded (yet) and it still retains a small town flavor. Except at rush hour when traffic miraculously seems to flow despite the chaotic nature of the driving. Only real negative is that Cambodia uses US dollars as the de facto currency. A consequence is that prices denominated in dollars, especially for restaurants, seem unreasonably high. As one example, every restaurant we tried charged $1 for a can of Coke that is sold on the streets in Cambodian currency for the equivalent of 25 cents. Another example is that the starting point for moto taxi (back of a motorbike) and tuk tuk drivers seems to be either $1, $2 or $3 regardless of distance.
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| K Chong |
28 February 2004 |
Stayed at Borei Angkor Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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We booked a guide through the hotel for $20US, plus another $20 for a car and driver. It's certainly worth the money to get a detailed understanding of the temple complex and its history (and have airconditioned transport in the heat). Subsequent days were spent exploring on our own, armed with a guidebook bought from one of the kids outside Angkor Wat. Dawn Rooney's book seemed to be the best pick.
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| S Rose, |
27 February 2004 |
Stayed at Angkor Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Angkor Wat and the surrounding temples are magnificent. We hired a taxi for the day for $30 USD between 3 of us - good value. There are some good eating places down by the market. We used tuk tuks at night-$1 dollar for my son and I!
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| A Scott-watson |
22 February 2004 |
Stayed at Angkor Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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With 2 kids under the age of 5, one has to avoid temple "burn-out", so the 4 excursions below were nice diversions:
1. The highlight for us was a little boat trip on the Tonle Sap lake along the floating village: about $20 for a boat to ourselves, we left the hotel at 3:30pm and were there well in time for the sunset. There is a little floating bar/crocodile farm that serves cool beers with boiled shrimps...Magic.
2. Another winner for our kids was an elephant ride at the Bayon.
3. A trip to the local silk manufacture (near the Artisans d'Angkor) was also interesting for parents and children alike, and very friendly.
4. We also rented a small boat on the largest reservoir to reach the middle island and its ruined temple. Got a coconut drink there, away from the crowds.
Parents: go to Cambodia with children, the local people love kids and it is possible to enjoy the temples, with lots of drinking water and a bit of patience.
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| L Breeden |
12 February 2004 |
Stayed at Passaggio Boutique Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Cambodia is an amazing place with amazing people. Smiles and happiness, despite poverty and years of war. But it is a rough existance. Don't wear anything you hope to ever get clean again. But do experience the Cambodian service. Get a haircut (which includes a shave and ear-cleaning). Get massages. Hire a tour guide. You usually get more than your money's worth.
The temples are, of course, amazing. We also took a boat tour of Tonle Sap Lake. Quite an experience I'll never forget. (floating villages and smells of raw sewage/fish paste). We enjoyed the Soup Dragon Restaurant and had good massages at Dr. Feet. But beware of what you consume. It is a dirty place and my friend got sick for several days after eating a "bad" meal.
There are no ATMs in Cambodia, so we used only USD, which are widely excepted. But it was more expensive than I imagined... so take more than you think you'll need (entry visa, departure tax, temple entrance fees, tour guide & drivers, food = in 3 days I spent about $280 without hotel).
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| N Roberts |
10 February 2004 |
Stayed at Angkor Century Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Highly recommend visiting Siem Reap. Temples are magnificent--do with private guide--very reasonable with car and driver along with guide. Tuktuks are great fun for short rides around town. Recommend Bopha Angkor restaurant--good Khmer food. Also, see Artisans d'Angkor--both carving school and silk farm. Massages away from hotel $3/hr.
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| A Wargo |
29 January 2004 |
Stayed at Angkor Village Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Siem Reap is very tourist friendly. Rent a car with air conditioning (USD 20.00 per day) and take a break and have a swim from 12:00 to 14:00 as it gets too hot. Don't go to sunrise at Angkor Wat as it is too crowded. Best time of the day to see (almost alone) the monuments is at 7:30 am to 9:00 when all the sunrise people got back to get breakfast. Do go the 40 km. out to see the jungle-covered ruins to the east of town.
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| J Bowyer |
27 November 2003 |
Stayed at Angkor Village Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Great destination. Angkor Wat and surrounding historical sites are fascinating. Our only mistake was not allowing enough time to explore. Recommend at least three full days and preferably four.
Tours, including a driver, air-conditioned (recommended) van, and tour guide are available for only $55/day (inclusion of a tour guide added only $20 to the basic $35 fee for the van and driver). The use of a tour guide is highly recommended; our guide was extremely knowledgeable and provided a wealth of information beyond what could be found in several books that we had with us.
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| R Oliver |
12 November 2003 |
Stayed at Passaggio Boutique Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Best method to visit is taking a private driver for USD 20 per day. We got a driver from the hotel which could speak good english and was very helpful and knowledgeable. Donīt leave out the baloon ride with a fantastic view of Angkor Wat from a height of 200 meters.
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Traveller's Tales: Things to do in Cambodia
