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Killing Fields Phnom Penh
2 Reviews When you arrive at the airport you will be approached by taxi drivers who will try to rip you off. Remember, you can get a tuk tuk to take you anywhere you want for a full day for 15$, don't pay...
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Touts Phnom Penh
1 Review As you arrive by boat from Siem Reap, you will find many guesthouses' touts waiting for you at the pier. It is a bit confusing at the beginning, they shout and hassle you around... If you have a...
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Angkor Wat and all of Siem reap is definitly a giant tourist trap. But it is a must-be-seen that really must be seen. After years in soyh asia I suffer from temple fatigue, but I would return to Angkor Wat again if I could. Its an amazing place, but better go there very early in the morning or late in the afternoon.
When crossing the border, there will be kids following you before the Thai border until you cross the Cambodian border. These kids will try to sell you transport from Poi Pet to Battambang, Phnom Pehn and Siem Reap. Make sure you have lose change or small USD notes. But I will suggest you to walk all the way across the police checkpoint at the round about. There will will find van and other mode of transport to Siem Reap.The van owner or guide will aslo try to sell you rooms and packages to Angkor Wat. Most of the rooms we seen are alright. I would suggest you to walk out on yourself around Siem Reap and there are a few Moto-Taxi or Bike willingly to take you around Angkor for USD5 per person one whole day.
If you plan to get to Siem Reap by road via Bangkok, be warned that there's a scam to try and get tourists to stay at a particular guesthouse when you get to Siem Reap (so they can collect a commision). What happens is that the drivers drive really slow and create unexpected 'delays' in order to make sure that you don't arrive in town until late in the evening. We were supposed to get there at 4PM, instead we arrived around 9PM!! When we did get to town they purposefully took a series of right turns to try and confuse us then they drove us to a guesthouse on the edge of town. They actually had the nerve to claim that we were in the CENTER of town, but I had a map and knew better. I refused to even looked at the room- I grabbed my gear and left. Almost everyone else in the group did so as well. Serves them right. One thing I don't appreciate is being lied to. From what I can tell - this...
Just a normal S.E Asia con, when you get a cab/ride from the airport or boat, some drivers get paid to take you to hotels that give them commision, so some will try and tell you that your hotel is closed, full, etc. Just insist you already have reservations even if you dont, if you dont want to go to one of their hotels. Another tip is in Siem Reap, many guesthouses will provide you with a driver into town if you have advance reservations and some money off the speed boat to P.Penh.
Taking a bus from Khao San Road, Bangkok to Siem Reap - though you should leave around 6.30 and arrive to Siem Reap in the late afternoon, it's likely the bus company keeps you waiting before departure and on the road as well, even pretending to break down in Cambodia, so that you arrive very late and exhausted to your destination and stay in the first guesthouse they are taking you to. There is not much to do to avoid this if you don't have your own transportation, but at least you will know what's going on.
Since I spent all my money on the luxury hotel in Siem Reap, I took the bus back to Bangkok, Thailand. This can be arranged by your hotel or guesthouse. The ticket was $10US. The roads in Cambodia are very bad so it was a VERY bumpy ride. Did I mention the roads are bad?! At the border crossing, everyone must get off the bus, walk some distance and carry your own bags (a struggle for me since I bought some heavy bronze statues!) to get your exit and entrance visas at the immigration counter. After this business, walk into Thailand where its just waiting and waiting for another bus to take you to Bangkok. And, the bus broke down halfway to Bangkok. So more waiting. So I suggest if taking a bus - don't expect to get to Bangkok on any rigid time schedule - there will inevitably be some delay or another.Don't worry - this picture is not the vehicle that will take you to Bangkok!
This should not only be catergorized under 'tourist traps' but it should also go under 'warnings and dangers'! The fast boat service from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap is expensive at $22 a head for foreigners, it is extremly overcrowded, and you'll depart the boat nearly deaf if you sit in the wrong area.The trip from Phnom Penh, up the Tonle Sap, to Siem Reap was far from pleasant other than some great views of life along the river & lake. We just happened to be at the rear of the boat, situated right next to the huge twin diesel engines. The roar of the motors was deafining and the heat they generated made it all the more miserable. For six hours I could hear nothing! It was extremly hard to enjoy the river scenery when all I could do is worry about falling over the side of the overcrowded boat. There are no life jackets provided, and you are only inches from the railing....some sections...
May also be put in Warnings and dangersWhen you plan to go to Thailand and pass the frontier by boat close Ko Thong and then go to Trat(Thailand), be very carreful, a real mafia team is waiting for you. You first have to take the ferry from Sihnaoukville to Ko Tong, there the speed boats are waiting for you, this people works together with taxi drivers. The speedboat ( 3 dollars and not 100 bahts like indicated in some guides ) brings you at a specific place where the ' collegues ' are waiting for you. They don't wait to hold the boat while you get off, no they just rapt you bagage and run with it to their car all you can do is follow, it goes very fast. They put your bagage in the back of the car and refuse to open( you could kill them...). Their price starts at 5 dollars for one person ( it's only 4 min driving ) after long discussion you get 5 dollars for 3 people. They arg you not to...
I got to know a canadian biker who worked as a englishteacher. He rented a motorcycle for a month or so. One day we were driving in Phnom Phen, we were pulled over by two cops. We were fined for driving around without a licenseplate!!! 60 % of the motorcycles don't have a licenseplate... The nice thing about being screwed in Cambodia is that you usully are screwed for just a couple of bucks.. I also had to bribe a local 'seargent' in the airport at Kokong to be allowed to get on the plain to Phnom Phen.
Whenever you decide to buy something from their markets, ALWAYS bargain! They tend to overcharge tourists. I've had items discounted at 50%! So, bargain, don't be embarrassed about it.Also, be careful of the (many) kids that come begging, once you start giving to one, everybody will charge at you to ask for money! They will ask you for money even to take a picture of them. For this, it's up to you to give, but remember what I said before! The children can be very tenacious.
Raffles Hotel Le Royal Phnom Penh
9 Reviews and 371 Opinions Raffles Hotel Le Royal is the premier hotel in Phnom Penh. The hotel was first established in 1929...
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La Residence d'Angkor Siem Reap
1 Review and 372 Opinions The hotel is simply splendid. The spa is the ideal manner for relaxing after a long sightseeing of...
Au Cabaret Vert Battambang
56 Opinions
Reviews and photos of Cambodia attractions posted by real travelers and locals. The best tips for Cambodia sightseeing.
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Q: I have only 6 days in Asia - planing to go through Cambodia and Vietnam and do a quick sight seeing tour through both countries ....
A: You could very well spend those 6 days in Vietnam alone yet it may not be enough, but that depends on what your interests are. It may be best to devote those days to just...
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