Cambodia

[-=+cZaRiNa+=-]

Czarina, Tiger Airways does not fly from Siem Reap to Singapore. Jetstar and Silkair do.

Thanks for the info. Pero sa website kasi (noon), may Singapore-Siem Reap.

[blue_jay_el]

How was Rosy Guest House? Was it an air-conditioned room? How much did you pay the driver that showed you around? Thanks.

Rosy Guest House was good. They have air-conditioned rooms but I availed for the cheapest room and with only an electric fan.

the usual charge daw is USD 10.00 a day..but it goes up or down depending on the schedule or destination.

Here's the breakdown of the amount I paid to my driver
Day 1 - USD 7.00 (afternoon, to see sunset at Angkor ***- till evening)
Day 2 - USD 12.00 (additional charge for me to see sunrise at Angkor ***)
Day 3 - USD 20.00 (additional charge to see Banteay Srei)

[candycane]

question, is it okay to stay in siem reap for 5 days? the 2 other days are flight dates.

1st day: arrival in siem reap 11am
2nd/3rd/4th day: free time
5th day: flight back to kl at 1130am

i'm wondering if that's too much of siem reap already. is there anything else that should be seen apart from the temples? yung flights kasi for the particular dates we want would allow 3 days or 5 days in siem reap. bitin naman the 3 days only including flights ha.

they said it's useless going to phnom penh pa.. i wanted to catch the flight from phnom penh na lang pero it would mean we'd have to take the bus/shared taxi to phnom penh pa. medyo scared ako to do that travel reading most of the negative remarks about cambodians. help please?

we don't have time to go to hanoi anymore because of the time constraint and i don't want to compromise my stay in siem reap to really enjoy the sights.. help?



help please, i want to buy the tickets na din kasi.

[candycane]

.... unless i find a flight from hanoi-siem reap or vice versa. is there any budget airline that serves that route?

[heymikey]

I just arrived in Phnom Penh around noon today and the first reaction I said to myself was "oh sh!t, what did I get myself into?" It's noticeably much poorer than Vietnam but it's definitely more laidback than Saigon. After I settled down at my guesthouse (which overlooks the lake), I am actually liking it. I was only planning on staying one night and head straight to Siem Reap but I will probably stay another night here.

[heymikey]

I just arrived in Phnom Penh around noon today and the first reaction I said to myself was "oh sh!t, what did I get myself into?" It's noticeably much poorer than Vietnam but it's definitely more laidback than Saigon. After I settled down at my guesthouse (which overlooks the lake), I am actually liking it. I was only planning on staying one night and head straight to Siem Reap but I will probably stay another night here.

[heymikey]

I just arrived in Phnom Penh around noon today and the first reaction I said to myself was "oh sh!t, what did I get myself into?" It's noticeably much poorer than Vietnam but it's definitely more laidback than Saigon. After I settled down at my guesthouse (which overlooks the lake), I am actually liking it. I was only planning on staying one night and head straight to Siem Reap but I will probably stay another night here.

[shinbi]

Hi candy cane,

Personally I'd say two FULL tour days in Siem Reap is already sufficient. Anything more than that, you'll probably get templed out. Aside from the temples, our driver took us to a river cruise but I forgot the name. Don't take this anymore, for $30 I'd say its not worth it. It's very similar to the Mekong River tour only shorter duration. And if you want to have more time in another city, you can even crash your schedule, here's my suggestion:

Day 1 - since you'll arrive noon time, you can proceed to Banteay Srei. Medyo malayo sya from the main temples (i think 2 hours drive) pero maganda sya and really worth it.

Day 2 - Angkor ***, Angkor Thom, Ta Phrom, Preah Khan and catch the sunset either at Pnohm Bakheng (pero riot dito parang may welga) or Pre Rup (have not tried this one)

Day 3 - fly out

But if you have the luxuy of time, ok din naman yun medyo relax. Kapagod din magtemple hopping enjoy!

[candycane]

thanks shinbi! really appreciate the suggestion. that's what i'm afraid of - getting "templed" out!

i think i'm scrapping out hanoi from my trip and simply make it a 7-day kl-siem reap adventure. hanoi could easily be squeezed in to include another 3 days but that would mean 6 flights in 10 days! medyo kakapagod yata yun eh. but i'm still deciding. sayang din the trip eh. otherwise, it's going to be a bangkok-hanoi trip next time. aaarrrrghhh... ang hirap mag isip!

[candycane]

heymikey, kwento ka naman abt your phnom penh trip ok?!

[blue_jay_el]

yeah....2 whole days are enough to see te temples (wich can include Banteay Srei and beyond). On the third day, you may want to check-out the tours on Tonle Sap. You might also want to check out sa cultural shows (w/ dinner buffet) that most hotels in the area offer.

[candycane]

thanks to those who gave their opinion!

blue jay el, might follow your kl-siem reap itinerary!

[heymikey]

heymikey, kwento ka naman abt your phnom penh trip ok?!

I just visited the Killing Fields and the Genocide museum today and it was quite depressing. Seeing the skulls of the victims who were obviously bludgeoned to death in the head in order to save precious bullets was really a sobering experience. The site of the graves in the killing fields where thousands of bodies were found was disturbing. The genocide museum was actually a former high school that was turned into a torture prison during the Khmer Rouge. There were a few times where I was teary-eyed seeing the faces of the people who were killed there and reading some of the stories from their surviving family members.

Anyway, tomorrow I will be heading to Siem Reap to see the magnificent Angkor temples. I've just seen the horrible dark side of Cambodia's history, and I am about to see its glorious past. Quite a juxtaposition, I might say.

[smilehigh]

^ enjoy siem reap. best place to see sunrise in the angkor *** and sunset at phonm bakeng

[blue_jay_el]

thanks to those who gave their opinion!

blue jay el, might follow your kl-siem reap itinerary!

go ahead... hope you enjoy your trip!

[kjay21]

ei guys just sharing my 2cents here...ive been flying to cambodia since 97, my parents worked there and i studied my 6th grade there..my last trip was last year..i took the bus(scenic route)heheh...from bangkok's mo chit station to aranyaprathet..the ride was eneventful just like the local trip from here to baguio...from the border u can ride a tuktuk to poipet the cambodia border side...getting in was easy since i spoke fluent khmer...from there you can buy a seagt or rent the whole taxi's( taxi's here are toyota camrys so comfy ang ride..heheh)...the trip was gut-wrenching because of the poor road conditions..pero enjoy...heheh...i went to phnom penh first to visit friends stayed there for a while then took the taxi again to siem reap...stayed at a guesthouse...for the wole 10 years back and forth to cambodia, it was my first time in siem reap..we went to the usual stops...pa body massage sa island's sa old market area tapos you've got to try blue pumpkin..in the same row..it's a cafe and resto/lounge..free wifi sa beg/lounge nila...at night naman went to pub street...i felt i wasn't in cambodia sa sibra dami ng tourists..sarap ng beer chang...hehehe...the next day i went to the temple, my suggestion is stay away form the packaged tours..gala ka lang on your own...tip lang for a free entrance, learn mga 2 sentences in khmer and master it..tapos pag pa lapit ka na sa temple entrance kasuapin mo bantay..tell them na balikbayan khmer ka..para free..hehehe...tapos un kodakan na sa bantay srei, bayon...tapos rent ka nalng tuktuk to go around the area or rent a bike...heheh...hope this helps....

[heymikey]

*bump*

My favorite temples in Angkor are definitely Bayon, Angkor ***, and Ta Phrom.

Bayon


Angkor ***


Ta Phrom


Oh, I also want to plug in Bou Savy Guesthouse where I spent 3 nights at. The people are incredibly nice and I actually felt sad leaving the place. I was planning on staying at Rosy Guesthouse due to blue_jay_el's recommendation but their budget rooms were full. I paid USD6 for a single room with cable TV and attached bathroom.

[imogen_ph]

question, is it okay to stay in siem reap for 5 days? the 2 other days are flight dates.

1st day: arrival in siem reap 11am
2nd/3rd/4th day: free time
5th day: flight back to kl at 1130am

i'm wondering if that's too much of siem reap already. is there anything else that should be seen apart from the temples? yung flights kasi for the particular dates we want would allow 3 days or 5 days in siem reap. bitin naman the 3 days only including flights ha.
...
help please, i want to buy the tickets na din kasi.

Naku, late na malamang itong sagot ko pero just in case may mga curious dyan sagutin ko na rin.

If you like seeing temples like those in Angkor, 3 days is the minimum. There are over a hundred temples around Siem Reap. You can spend one day in Angkor *** alone, it's vast and there are so many interesting details. Aside from the temples you can also go to the silk farm, go boating along Tonle Sap lake and see the floating villages, go shopping in the old market, relax and get a massage, hang around Bar Street, and so on.

Plus, there are farther temple areas that are worth seeing - my friends and I went to Beng Melea, it's a jungle temple ruins, feeling Tomb Raider ka talaga doon and there aren't that many tourists there. I had wanted to go also to the River of a Hundred Lingas and Koh Ker (it used to be the capital, it's still largely unrestored so iba ang atmosphere doon) but we didn't have enough time.

Besides, whether you'll go pasyal 2 or 3 days, $40 pa rin ang bayad for the pass, so sulitin nyo na. Sa amin tamang-tama yung 3 full days in Siem Reap (arrival in the afternoon of Day 0 and departure on Day 4). If you arrive in the afternoon, go buy the 3-day pass and you can already go to Angkor *** and have a free sunset.

heymikey, those are also my favorites, but I would add Banteay Srei, the Citadel of the Ladies with its pink-hued stones.

For those planning a trip to Siem Reap, check out Tales of Asia, it's very informative. It was very helpful especially to me as we took the overland trip from Aranyaprathet to Siem Reap. Very up to date ang information.

We found a very very nice place to stay, go check The Villa Siem Reap.

I have some entries, a video and photos in my blog about my trip last February, you can check them out here.

I will definitely go back to Siem Reap.

[candycane]

imogen ph

thanks! it's not too late for your suggestion i'll be reading your travel blog soon!

[baileys^]

sino naka schedule for travel sa inyo sa cambodia? at kung *** kasama nyo?