Motorbike, Phnom Penh

Travellers take note! Make sure your moto-driver knows where exactly you are going. I had this experience whereby I told the driver to go to Sisowath Quay. I said;"Sisowath."

He nodded his head firmly with a look of confidence and I got on it. After some turns and alleys, he came to a spot and pointed his finger to a buidling saying;"Sisowath!"
I gave him the longest Noooooo of my life. Luckily I brought my city map along and I became his GPS. Eventually I got where I wanted albeit a very long walk.

Before I forget, make sure you have lots of change(riels). If not, you might have to part with your precious US dollars.

One of the cheapest and fastest way to go around the city. Phnom Penh is buzzing with these two-wheels speed machines. You can hire one to take you around with a small fee.

I am amused by the amount of people who can ride on a bike at the same time here. Two are the max where I come from. Here, three are normal. No one bat their eyelids at four. I have seen with my own eye, 5 people on a bike on the Phnom Penh road. Have anyone seen 6?

Generally it's safe to travel around Phnom Penh using the motodups. If you agree on the price before hand, normally you won't run into any problems. It's just that away from the city centre, the drivers tend to be a bit more opportunistic and renegotiate the price when you've reached your destination. Also ensure that they really know the way around. Even when the driver repeated what my friend said and nodded his head, he did get my friend lost.

Without a doubt the most popular and efficient way to get around the city is by motorcycle. You can hire a driver to drive you around everywhere for the day. A reasonable fee is around 10 dollas for the day, anything less than this would be ripping off the driver.
A friend of mine called john is a driver and would often tell me how hurt he felt when people would try to haggle for a fee which would mean nothing to them and everything to the driver.

This guy, Dara, took me around Phnom Penh and surroundings with its motorbike for the whole day and I paid 10 dollars.I do not reccomend motorbike that much as, the traffic is really crazy and the motorbikes do not even have the back mirror, but I must admitt that Dara is a really carefull driver and, above all, he goes slowly, that's why I reccomend him here.

It is hard to find a car-taxi in Phnom Penh, that will drive you around town. Mototaxis on the other hand are on every street corner and everywhere on the road, just lift up your arm, and as foreigner, you will find more than a few will be glad to take you around.

They see foreigners as their main income, many of them will try to charge you more than the locals. Your ride should cost somewhere between 1500 for a short distance to 2500 for a longer distance.

One older man motodriver left his phonenumber with my dad, he speaks very good english, and likes to tell you about the places he passes. His name is mr. Phat Vandy, phonenuber; 016 733946.

The easiest way to get around Phnom Penh is to use a Motodup (motorcycle taxi). You will find plenty of them outside all hotels, bars etc. The best thing to do is find one your comfortable with and try to use him all the time. Once you get a reliable driver he will recognise you and make sure you know he's around when you need him. The drivers will go out of their way to pick you up and then come back for you later. And you needn't pay them until the end of day, depends on how you've negotiated the fares before you start to get the best deal.
However do be carefule about which one you choose - especially late at night. If in doubt ask at your hotel/guesthouse for help.

When in Phnom Penh, the best way to travel from point A to point B is to jump on the back of someone's motorcycle. To cross town costs about $1, and gives you a nice street-side view of things. Is it dangerous? Sure, but during the day, you'll be fine.