Expatriate Forums in Cambodia

Cambodia tourism · Guest Home Country: countryx

Facts for the Traveler

Visas: A one-month visa, available on arrival at Pochentong and Siem Reap airports, costs 20.00 for a tourist visa and 25.00 for a business visa.
Health risks: cholera, hepatitis, malaria, typhoid, rabies, Japanese B encephalitis
Time Zone: GMT/UTC +7
Dialling Code: 855
Electricity: 230V ,50Hz
Weights & measures: Metric

When to Go

The ideal months to be in Cambodia are December and January, when humidity is bearable, temperatures are cooler and it's unlikely to rain. From February onwards it starts getting pretty hot, and April is unbearably so. The wet season (from May to October), though very soggy, can be a good time to visit Angkor, as the moats will be full and the foliage lush - but steer clear of the northeast regions during those months, as the going gets pretty tough when the tracks are waterlogged. The country's biggest festival, Bon Om Tuk, is held in early November, and is well worth catching.

Events

Lunar New Year is celebrated by ethnic Chinese and Vietnamese in late January or early February. The Khmer New Year celebrations bring the country to a standstill for three days in mid-April - a fair amount of water and talcum powder gets thrown around at this time, so it's a lively but noncontemplative time to visit. Chat Preah Nengkal, the Royal Ploughing Festival, takes place near the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh in early May. The Khmer calendar's most important festival is Bon Om Tuk, celebrating the end of the wet season in early November - it's the best time to visit Phnom Penh or Siem Reap. Banks, ministries and embassies are closed during all public holidays and festivals.

Public Holidays:
January 1 - New Year's Day
March 8 - Women's Day
April 13 - Khmer New Year
May 1 - Labour Day
June 1 - International Children's Day
September 24 - Constitution Day
October 23 - Paris Peace Agreement
October 30 - King's Birthda
November 9 - Independence Day
December 10 - UN Human Rights Day

Attractions

Phnom Penh

Cambodia's capital retains an undeniable charm despite its tumultuous and often violent past. The crumbling colonial architecture makes an attractive backdrop to bustling streetside cafes and the redeveloped riverfront precinct - a particularly lively part of town on Friday and Saturday nights.

The city has several impressive wats (temple-monasteries), including Wat Ounalom, Wat Phnom and Wat Lang Ka. Pride of place goes to the spectacular Silver Pagoda, one of the few places in Cambodia where artefacts embodying the richness of Khmer culture were preserved by the Khmer Rouge.

Angkor

The celebrated temples of Angkor are Cambodia's greatest tourist attraction. The 100 or so temples are the sacred remains of what was once a much larger administrative and religious centre, and were built between the 9th and 13th centuries to glorify a succession of Khmer kings. The three most magnificent temples are Bayon, Ta Prohm and the immense Angkor Wat.

Most of Angkor was abandoned in the 15th century and the temples were gradually cloaked by forest. The site became the source of scholarly interest in the late-19th century after the publication of Voyage à Siam et dans le Cambodge by French naturalist Henri Mouhot. Efforts were undertaken to clear away the jungle vegetation that threatened to completely destroy the monuments, and restoration continues today.

Battambang

Cambodia's second-largest city is an elegant riverside town, home to some of the best-preserved colonial architecture in the country. Battambang used to be off the map for road travellers, but facilities have been improved and it makes a great base for visiting the nearby temples and villages.

It's a secondary hub on the overland route between Thailand and Vietnam, and if National Hwy 6 from Poipet to Siem Reap is ever upgraded it'll become an even smaller hub. The network of charming old French shop houses clustered along the riverbank is the real highlight here, and there are a number of wats scattered around the town. The small museum has a collection of Angkorian-era artefacts, and beyond the town there's a number of hilltop temples, yet more wats and a large lake. Battambang is a pretty bumpy 293km (181mi) bus or share-taxi ride from the capital.

Sihanoukville

Sihanoukville's beaches aren't a patch on Thailand's, and sights are few and far between, but as Cambodia's only maritime port it makes a reasonable base for exploring the south coast and nearby Ream National Park. Four beaches ring the headland - Ochheuteal, Sokha, Independence and Victory - and the fishing port offers the odd photo opportunity at sunrise or sunset. There are a few dive operations in town, plus a waterfall an hour's drive away that's swimmable. The sleepy colonial riverside resort of Kampot isn't too far away, with the strangely skeletal remains of seaside Kep further along. Sihanoukville is 232km (143mi) from the capital, and is served by regular buses.

Off the Beaten Track

Kompong Luong

Ten thousand people live in this permanently floating town on Tonlé Sap lake. Houses, schools, karaoke bars and restaurants float atop boat-based foundations, rising and falling up to 5km (3mi) with the tide. Like the Vietnamese Floating Village on the northern stretch of the lake, the population is mainly Vietnamese. There's not much to do, and nowhere to stay, so it's a matter of soaking up the atmosphere of life on the water, with an iced coffee or beer in hand. Kompong Luong is near the southern reaches of Tonlé Sap lake in Pursat province, around 40km (24mi) northeast of Pursat.

Phnom Udong

Udong, 40km (25mi) north of Phnom Penh, was the capital of Cambodia between 1618 and 1866. It's generally very quiet here, and you'll often have the town's stupas to yourself (along with picnickers at weekends). You'll find the ruins sprinkled across two ridges.

The smaller has two ruined buildings, several stupas and the Ta San Mosque (or at least its remains; all that's left is the building's bullet-pocked walls). A 16th-century treasure is supposed to be hidden below the larger ridge, which is topped by the scattered ruins of a large vihara (sanctuary) and Buddha statue, blown up by the Khmer Rouge in 1977. Surrounding the ruins are some still-intact smaller viharas, stupas and Buddhas. At the base of the ridge is a memorial to victims of Pol Pot, containing the bones of people buried in the 100 or so mass graves found in the area.

Activities

With tourism in Cambodia still in its infancy, activities as such are generally limited to sightseeing. Phnom Penh's population of foreigners are kept entertained by a swag of leisure activities like go-carting, jet-skiing, mini golf and tenpin bowling. A network of national parks is slowly being established nationwide, complete with visitor facilities; Ream and Bokor on the south coast are the most accessible and interesting. There's limited trekking and elephant rides in Ratanakiri and Mondulkiri, but you need a guide. If you fancy a spot of snorkelling you could try Sihanoukville (also known as Kompong Som), home to Cambodia's finest beaches.

Getting Around

Flying is the quickest (and of course most expensive) way of getting to places like Angkor, Ratanakiri, Koh Kong, Stung Treng and Mondulkiri. Road travel is safer than it's been for years, but your body is still going to suffer for travelling by bus - the country's highways are in truly pathetic shape. Train travel is back on the agenda for visitors - and it's ludicrously cheap - but the journey will take much longer than by bus. Trucks and jeeps tackle the dreadful roads to Siem Reap, Battambang and Kratie, and share-taxis scoot around the south coast. With some 1900km (1180mi) of navigable waterways to utilise, boats play a major role in getting around. The most popular services operate between the capital and Siem Reap - the express service cuts the journey time down to a mere four hours. Fast boats also head up the Mekong to Kompong Cham, Kratie and Stung Treng. An effective local bus network makes travel to sights around Phnom Penh much easier than driving, particularly as cars can only be hired with a driver - and when you look at the country's highways from hell, perhaps that's all for the best. Taxis are more common in the cities these days, and cyclos and motos (small motorcycles) can be flagged down for short hops.