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 Traveller's Tales: Places to go and see in Cambodia
Take a tour of the top places to go in Cambodia. You may read about must see places and activities in the area. Also, you might want to read our
Angkor / Siem Reap city guide,
and Phnom Penh city guide.
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| D Mills |
10 August 2005 |
Stayed at Pacific - Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
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The museum has a beautiful collection, particularly the stuff from the Ankor area. The palace is okay. The markets are horribly hot, smelly and crowded. The people were always friendly and helpful. The chef at the FCC does great food and it's a fantastic location to watch the world and the rivers go by.
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| G Proske |
10 August 2005 |
Stayed at Inter-Continental Phnom Penh - Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
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You always need taxis in Phnom Penh, so the location is not really a problem. Go to the Russian Market and see one of the most nicest tourist markets in Asia. Very cheap souvenirs.
Silver Pagoda, King's Palace an National Museum are average. Not to compare with temples in Bangkok. Two days are enough for sightseeing in Phnom Penh.
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| L Ly |
31 May 2005 |
Stayed at Angkor Saphir Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Siem Reap is much more westernized than I thought it would be. One could go and never eat Cambodian food because of the number of American/Western options. Pub Street is an area that has only western bars/restaurants, which is nice. But tourists should try and avoid spending all their time there as they would miss the real Cambodia.
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| C Evans |
24 May 2005 |
Stayed at Cambodiana Hotel - Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
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Booked taxi driver who took me from airport, to go to Killing Fields and Tuol Sleng Prison -- dirt road to Killing Fields VERY potholed, so would recommend car. Haunting experience, to be in such places -- but essential for any visit to Cambodia. Read a book called 'Stay Alive My Son' to get the full picture of the horror of the Pol Pot years! After that, hired a tuk-tuk from outside Hotel Cambodiana to take me around for 2 days -- ask for a driver called Bhu, who is brilliant. In tuk-tuk you get the 'feel' of Phnom Penh in a way you don't in a car -- but be careful with possessions. I was warned all the time to hang on to my bag. Must-do's are Russian Market, Wat Phnom, cocktails in Elephant Bar of Le Royal, lunch at Friends restaurant and Le Rits (both helping disadvantaged Phnom Penhois), shopping at Centre for Disabled Persons (Norodom Boulevard, near Wat Phnom), lunch / sundowners at Foreign Correspondents' Club. Khmer Surin restaurant (street 57) offers great food for dinner in lovely old Khmer house with lots of atmosphere -- also surprisingly cheap! Take plenty of dollars, as money flies through your hands in Phnom Penh! I loved it there (you can still see lots of raw Indochina, rather than the sanitised version available in Asian cities such as Bangkok) and will certainly be going back.
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| I Baroni |
17 May 2005 |
Stayed at Borei Angkor Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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To visit all the temples you need to buy a pass: US$20 one day, US$40 3 days, US$60 6 days. You need a passport picture! The must see: Angkor Wat, Bayon, TaProhn, the rest you can skip if you don't have lots of time. Take 1/2 day for the Floating Village (US$13 pp)1 1/2h tour. Rent a Tuk-Tuk (US$6 1/2day) to visit the town. The open air war museum is a nice change from all the temples. AngkorWeb, opposite Provincial Hospital, for $l 1hr internet. Go to the Old market for local souvenirs. You can pay everywhere in US$, but have small notes ready. If you can, visit Siem Reap in the low season, when there are less tourists and looks less commeercial!
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| B Arabian |
03 May 2005 |
Stayed at Raffles Hotel Le Royal - Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
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Visits to the Royal Palace and of the Silver Pagoda are of course indispensable. If you look for decor items and beautiful silk, Russian market is the place to go. Shopping at NGO-supported shops also helps these organizations in their much-needed actions; they are mentioned in every good guidebook.
One thing to mention for travellers going to Cambodia with young children is that it is still a very poor country deeply scarred by the civil wars and the genocide of millions. Disabled people are ubiquitous and this may be shocking for sensitive souls, although the kindness of Cambodian people highly smoothens this feeling.
Also, the contrast is very strong between the ambience of the streets and the one of the Raffles, something that one has to handle.
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| L Barratt |
26 April 2005 |
Stayed at Bopha Angkor - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Went to the floating villages. Worth going to. We hired a taxi for the day. Actually the taxi that brought us from the airport. It cost approx Ģ15 for the day. You have to pay a fee at a checkpoint before getting there but this includes the boat that takes you around. The boat trip was approx 1-2 hours. The road is pretty bad getting there but you see a lot of life on the way.
On the way back we went into Raffles hotel for lunch.It was worth it just to see it and it wasn't very expensive. The taxi also took us to see the Landmines museum run by an ex Khmer Soldier. They have volunteers from this country helping there as they run a sort of orphanage for children that are amputees. It really makes you think. Very interesting place.
Of course we went to see Angkor Wat. We only spent one day here and found that it was enough for us. We hired a taxi again for the day with a guide. It was 20 dollars each to get in plus 45 dollars for the taxi and guide. It was really beautiful. One other thing that we saw was a cultural dance at a hotel just two streets away from our hotel. Can't remember the name of the hotel but it was in a 4-5 star small hotel which had a theatre next to it which I think was the National Dance Theatre. Dinner was included and it was very, very good. More expensive than most of the other shows (like double) but worth it.
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| C Bachmann |
17 April 2005 |
Stayed at Raffles Hotel Le Royal - Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
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We had 2 weeks to spend which seems quite fitting to take in most of the highlights: 3nights PNP, car to Battambang, next morning boat trip to Angkor, 3 full days Angkor, flight to PNP and car via Kampot (overnight) and Bokor to Sihanoukville. It was a good experience to see smaller towns like Battambang and Kampot, which do not feature too many interesting things but give you some impression of "normal life" besides all the bars and internationalised restaurants in the more touristy places. The roads to both towns are sealed and in good condition. Be aware that during the dry season boats from Battambang take more than 7 hours (we even had to go by pickup for the first 1,5h - extremly dusty experience).
Take a taxi from the pier to SiemReap since the road is very bad. Angkor: If you know vaguely which temples you want to see, it is easy enough to hire a tuctuc (usually through your hotel) for the day (USD 12) and the driver will tell you which things to do first etc. Even during the hottest season I wouldnīt recommend taking a taxi since a) the difference in temperature can be quite dangerous and b) the tuktuks offers more direct contact to the environment. (Donīt be afraid: practically all roads around Angkor are sealed). Try "Khmer Kitchen" next to Old market for delicous and diversified Khmer food and donīt miss the Apsara Theatre. In Kampot the new "Long House" has a nice outward appearance (havenīt seen the rooms)- unfortunately the food is quite westernized. Bokor hill station is nice for the trip through the jungle and the spooky feeling at the remains of the hotel but donīt expect more than a fine half-day excursion.
We spent the last days at Sokha Beach which offers all you can expect from a new resort (=lacks a bit of atmosphere) and has a magnificent private beach and a good seafood restaurant. All other beaches we saw (though principally of the same quality) were rather dirty (plastic etc). Donīt miss Claudeīs crow-nest for dinner - excellent wines and wonderful seafood. In PNP, SiemReap and Sihanoukville free copies of restaurant/hotel guides are available: very useful and reliable!!
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| C Banton |
04 April 2005 |
Stayed at Preah Khan Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Siem Reap ia a must see destination - the size of the ruins is astounding as was the size of their Empire. Nothing compares to seeing Angkor Wat - and I have seen most there is to see at least in Asia. To understand the magnitude of the atrocity of the Pol Pot Khmer regime and to realise how far Cambodia has moved forward in a relatively short period of time is amazing. They will be fully back on their feet within 10 years for certain. The local cuisine is compartatively mediocre in comparison to Vietnamese and Thai cooking, but a brilliant French restaurant in a courtyard at the back of a library/art gallery was the culinary highlight for me. Definitely Angkor Wat is a must see - two full days of sight seeing is sufficient and if you are lucky enough to have a good driver and tour guide (ask for No. 0091) then all the better.
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| C Whiddon |
02 April 2005 |
Stayed at Sokha Beach Resort - Sihanoukville, Cambodia.
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Great beaches, very unspoilt. Ochuteal beach is unspoilt but has a bit more activity than Sokha beach, also some reasonable resturants. Town is not great but there is a great Sri Lankan place called Bamboo Light.
Trip to islands and ream park a must - use a company called Dive Cambodia they visit the hotel 3 times a week.
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