By continuing to use the site, you agree to our use of cookies and to abide by our Terms and Conditions. We in turn value your personal details in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
Please log in or register. Registered visitors get fewer ads.
Looking to tick Cambodia off the bucket list. Want to see Angkor Wat, Tonie Sap, Killing Fields and generally take in the Cambodian way of life. Would ideally like to start in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam for a few days at the start to visit the bits we missed last time. Will be on a reasonably frugal budget & not exactly spring chickens so would we be better off doing a cheapish tour or is it really easy to travel independently.
We have no village green, or a shop.
It's very, very quiet.
I can walk to the pub.
1
Cambodia.......Travel advice please. on 19:52 - Dec 18 with 5166 views
Female friend of mine went in October. Travelled solo. Booked flight & hotel independently, then joined a local tour group who took the group just about everywhere you need to go. Seemed like a fantastic trip. Think it worked out pretty cost effective.
0
Cambodia.......Travel advice please. on 19:58 - Dec 18 with 5159 views
Was only in Cambodia for a week and shamefully couldn't be bothered to do any tourist stuff, instead reverting to the Keith Floyd style, poking my head into kitchens and getting fairly soused.
The food is incredible and extremely cheap. It was the best piece of fish I've ever had- my friends are sick of me telling them this.
The people are extremely friendly, helpful and polite- so long as you behave yourself! Seeing a couple of 5'-something Cambodians flooring a gang of p1ssed up Russkies was a highlight.
Ho Chi Minh is absolutely amazing, but be warned that it can be very cold as well. Try the char siu banh mi sandwiches :) As well as the eye-opening homemade rice wine stuff- phwoar!
Travel is very cheap and many flights within those countries cost as little as £30 a day or two before. We decided not to book any of those before leaving as we wanted to see which cities were worth staying in.
And don't be tempted to go to a firing range. Machine guns, grenade launchers, the lot- but at ~$100 a pop it's not a wise investment!
Edit: And, word to the wise... some things are not as they always appear at first glance...
[Post edited 18 Dec 2018 20:00]
footers KC - Prosecution Barrister - Friend to all
I went to Siem Reap this time last year on a work thing. Only went for 4 days and it was enough to see the temples but not really do a lot more. I stayed at the Embassy Angkor and it was excellent and ridiculously cheap. https://embassyangkorresort.com . The weather was amazing as their dry season is beautiful.
I'd love to go back and give it a proper tour. It left an impression as a lovely place.
My french tutor got run over by moped going the wrong way down a dual carriage way. Apparently it's quite common as they use gaps in the centre to double back to where they need to be.
I went on a quick 6 day trip to Siem Reap a few years ago. Siem Reap itself isn't much at all but it is the gateway to Angkor which is absolutely stunning. We spent 5 days going around the temples which is great as you don't have to cram it in.
Make sure you do the outer temples as well as the inner ones, the outer ones contain my favourite temple which he built for his dad (Preah Kahn). It's magnificent and fairly empty as the Chinese tour buses give it a miss.
There are loads of cheap boutique hotels (about 30-40 quid a night) which are lovely and will organise very reasonable tours for you. You should do one with a guide and then just get a taxi for the other days to see what you like.
The food isn't amazing in the town but it is cheap so no issues there. Make time for a stop at the FCC for some food and cocktails/beers on the balcony (it's an old colonial building which is now a hotel):
Angkor is amazing - it's worth a week or anyone's time to visit.
Cambodia.......Travel advice please. on 19:58 - Dec 18 by footers
Was only in Cambodia for a week and shamefully couldn't be bothered to do any tourist stuff, instead reverting to the Keith Floyd style, poking my head into kitchens and getting fairly soused.
The food is incredible and extremely cheap. It was the best piece of fish I've ever had- my friends are sick of me telling them this.
The people are extremely friendly, helpful and polite- so long as you behave yourself! Seeing a couple of 5'-something Cambodians flooring a gang of p1ssed up Russkies was a highlight.
Ho Chi Minh is absolutely amazing, but be warned that it can be very cold as well. Try the char siu banh mi sandwiches :) As well as the eye-opening homemade rice wine stuff- phwoar!
Travel is very cheap and many flights within those countries cost as little as £30 a day or two before. We decided not to book any of those before leaving as we wanted to see which cities were worth staying in.
And don't be tempted to go to a firing range. Machine guns, grenade launchers, the lot- but at ~$100 a pop it's not a wise investment!
Edit: And, word to the wise... some things are not as they always appear at first glance...
[Post edited 18 Dec 2018 20:00]
Was in Saigon at the end of a trip to Vietnam a couple of years ago, but only went to war museum & cu chi tunnels as time didn,t allow us to see any of the other sights. We went with g adventures which was great as we went from Hanoi south to Saigon staying at various places on route. Bahn mi is to die for. Less than a pound for a massive baguette filled to the brim & a large bottle of Larue beer. The replies on here are certainly making us wonder if independent travel is the way to go so thankyou all for your answers. Any advice on which airlines to use/avoid ?
We have no village green, or a shop.
It's very, very quiet.
I can walk to the pub.
0
Cambodia.......Travel advice please. on 22:16 - Dec 18 with 4989 views
Went in October. You will adore it. Go independently, it's incredibly easy and I imagine even taxis between the cities will not be beyond you. If you want the local way of life, spend a few days at Battambang - between PP and Siem Reap - and take bikes out into the countryside, you won't regret it. Allow three full days to do Siem Reap/temples well, I'd say. And enjoy - marvellous place that has missed a big stage of its development and the people are so eager both to learn from visitors and explain their own country. I'd say I learned more myself there in two weeks than in any holiday in the last few years.
Cambodia.......Travel advice please. on 01:35 - Dec 19 by WickhamsLeftBoot
Download Grab, it’s the Asian equivalent to Uber. Tuk tuks will try to scam you.
Disclaimer - EVERYONE will try and scam you.
I lived in Thailand for half a year, scamming is part of it.
With Thailand, for haggling, if you knew their numbers and a few basics you could knock a price down a lot.
I always remember when at a Full Moon party, myself and a friend wanted some clothes. The asking price was 600 baht for the vest / shorts. Two Aussies seemed delighted to knock down to 560 baht. I managed 280 - simply due to this fact.
Tuk Tuks have a bad reputation, but taxis will think nothing about rejecting the metrer being put on - insist they use the taxi meter. I often rejected about 10 - 15 taxis that refused - save a fortune this way. Also, try and ensure ( if possible ) they are driving the correct way as they have a ' habit ' of taking the very scenic way.
Book trips at organised adventure places / NOT hotels who just use them and charge a commission. Again feel free to haggle even in places like this, can save 10-20%.
Have some dollars on you in Cambodia would be a good piece of advice - visas on different borders this side of the world CAN be cheaper in dollars than local currency.....
Don't bother booking a room through a third party website, book direct and choose your own room - cheaper and you'll get by far the best room. You can save a fortune direct extending your stay also.
Cambodia very similar to Thailand.
0
Cambodia.......Travel advice please. on 07:16 - Dec 19 with 4829 views
Cambodia.......Travel advice please. on 07:12 - Dec 19 by Currie10
Disclaimer - EVERYONE will try and scam you.
I lived in Thailand for half a year, scamming is part of it.
With Thailand, for haggling, if you knew their numbers and a few basics you could knock a price down a lot.
I always remember when at a Full Moon party, myself and a friend wanted some clothes. The asking price was 600 baht for the vest / shorts. Two Aussies seemed delighted to knock down to 560 baht. I managed 280 - simply due to this fact.
Tuk Tuks have a bad reputation, but taxis will think nothing about rejecting the metrer being put on - insist they use the taxi meter. I often rejected about 10 - 15 taxis that refused - save a fortune this way. Also, try and ensure ( if possible ) they are driving the correct way as they have a ' habit ' of taking the very scenic way.
Book trips at organised adventure places / NOT hotels who just use them and charge a commission. Again feel free to haggle even in places like this, can save 10-20%.
Have some dollars on you in Cambodia would be a good piece of advice - visas on different borders this side of the world CAN be cheaper in dollars than local currency.....
Don't bother booking a room through a third party website, book direct and choose your own room - cheaper and you'll get by far the best room. You can save a fortune direct extending your stay also.
Cambodia very similar to Thailand.
Agree on Thailand but I don't remember Cambodia being very scammy.
SB
Avatar - IC410 - Tadpoles Nebula
0
Cambodia.......Travel advice please. on 07:44 - Dec 19 with 4819 views
Cambodia.......Travel advice please. on 07:44 - Dec 19 by Currie10
They all are, Vietnam Laos Myanmar too.
No issue, good chance to make money.
All outstanding places.
Guess everyone has a difference experience but I honestly didn't find Cambodia to be anything like that at all. They do have a "sticky price" whereby if you say no to 1 bottle of water at the temples you suddenly get 2 bottles for the same price. We are only talking 1 USD though.
Thailand you'll obviously get taken to the Tuk-Tuk drivers uncle shop "on the way" to wherever you actually want to go.
Agree entirely it's a lovely area to visit although I think people should be avoiding Myanmar at the moment.
SB
Avatar - IC410 - Tadpoles Nebula
0
Cambodia.......Travel advice please. on 15:01 - Dec 19 with 4755 views
Cambodia.......Travel advice please. on 08:58 - Dec 19 by StokieBlue
Guess everyone has a difference experience but I honestly didn't find Cambodia to be anything like that at all. They do have a "sticky price" whereby if you say no to 1 bottle of water at the temples you suddenly get 2 bottles for the same price. We are only talking 1 USD though.
Thailand you'll obviously get taken to the Tuk-Tuk drivers uncle shop "on the way" to wherever you actually want to go.
Agree entirely it's a lovely area to visit although I think people should be avoiding Myanmar at the moment.
SB
I happily went along with a Tuk Tuk taking me to suit shops, the usual jazz for a day. Was quite funny!!!
Cambodia certainly nothing like Thailand in the haggling wars either but still possible.
Of course, trivial £££££ to us but welcome £££££ to locals at times.
Cambodia I preferred to Thailand, however Chiang Mai the jewel in the South East Asian crown for me. Nothing will come close, amazing place.
0
Cambodia.......Travel advice please. on 15:37 - Dec 19 with 4736 views
Cambodia.......Travel advice please. on 07:16 - Dec 19 by StokieBlue
Agree on Thailand but I don't remember Cambodia being very scammy.
SB
I didn't think Cambodia was too bad for potential scams but am use to travelling in Asia. Agree prices for tuk tuks up front, avoid places that look really dodgy and be sensible.
I personally like Bali, especially Seminyak and Ubud. Each to their own.
Remember you recommended a nice little bar near Pub Street. My colleagues still bring it up and reminisce.
Made up until 1974, The AK47 (AKA Kalashnikov) is the classic and revered gas-operated assault rifle. Firing 7.62 rounds, ammunition could also be used in the British SLR (L1A1). A cyclic rate of fire of 600 rounds per minute, contrasted with short-burst capabilities of approximately 50 to 100 rounds per minute and a range of 350 metres, make it an essential street-fighting/skirmish rifle. Over 100 million AK47s have been manufactured since it’s conception. Bayoneted AK47s were the popular choice of the Khmer Rouge for close-action recompense.
By continuing to use the site, you agree to our use of cookies and to abide by our Terms and Conditions.
