One of the many things I love about Bangkok is that some of the best destinations in Asia are just a short flight away. Now, if you’re coming to Thailand for the first time and may not return, I really do recommend that you spend most of your time here. But if you’re a return visitor, or you happen to be working here for a while, take advantage of the location and see some other places, too.
My sister C had never been to Southeast Asia before and will probably return at some point since I live here, so I thought she would appreciate seeing Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, Cambodia. We planned a three day side trip from Bangkok and just returned a couple of hours ago.
sisters are doing it for themselves
Getting There
Siem Reap is just a few hundred miles from Bangkok, but roads on the Cambodia side aren’t in great shape, so traveling by land is a bit of hardship. You’ll need to drive to Aranyaprathet in Thailand (4-5 hours), do the border crossing on foot and by tuk tuk (can take an hour or more depending) to Poi Pet, then take a bus or taxi to Siem Reap (3-7 hours depending on whether you get a shared taxi or take a bus). I’ll be honest and tell you I’ve only gone as far as the border crossing at Poi Pet and that felt long enough; worst case scenario, getting to Siem Reap can take 12 hours or more, though it can cost as little as $40 if you take a bus from Bangkok and a bus from Poi Pet. If you have time to spare and you’re short on cash, that’s the way to do it. If you are on the fence at all, let me just add that everyone I know who’s ever done it has called it a miserable, confusing, or uncomfortable trip.
The other option is to take the 50 minute flight from Bangkok. It would be a no-brainer but for the fact that there is only one airline that flies there, Bangkok Airways, and prices are really steep considering the length of the trip. We paid 7,500B per person, round trip, which is about $230 right now (and that was the absolute cheapest ticket). When you compare that to the cost of similar flights to other destinations in the region, it is significantly more expensive.
Visas
If you hold a North American, European or Asian passport, you can get a visa on arrival in Siem Reap for $20 US (you have to pay in $US but there are ATM machines conveniently located right next to the visa desk). You can also apply for a visa at a nearby embassy before hand but it is very easy to get a visa when you arrive. Some balk at the price of the visa, especially when you compare it to Thailand, Malaysia or Singapore, which are free, but it’s certainly cheaper than the $100 + a visa to China, India or Vietnam will cost and about the same price as one for Indonesia.
Keep another $25 in US dollars for when you leave, as you’ll need to pay an airport departure fee.
Getting to your hotel
The airport is only a few miles from the center of town and you can either arrange a car with your hotel or guest house or get a car when you arrive. To make things easier, we arranged to have our hotel pick us up. It was $8 for a car, or $5 for a tuk tuk.
Hotels
While Siem Reap used to be a destination for either rich holiday makers or intrepid backpackers, right now hotels in all price categories are sprouting up in Siem Reap like daisies. We did some research and ended up at Bopha Angkor Hotel and were satisfied (I’ll be blogging about it shortly) with our choice. My first choice in the price range (under $100 USD) was Viroth’s Hotel but they were booked up, which wasn’t a surprise considering the rave reviews I’ve heard. There are definitely great options at the higher end but you’ll pay at least $150 per night (personally I love the FCC and Hotel de la Paix gets great reviews from friends). At the lower end there are also many guest houses for under $20 per night. There are also lots of new mid-range hotels on the airport road if you don’t want to be close to the market and night life. We both liked being able to walk to dinner, hang out, and walk back to our hotel whenever we wanted to so were happy to pay a little extra for that.
a nice pool was our number one priority
Eating
We picked our hotel so we’d be right near the main market and Pub Street, a small area filled with restaurants, bars and massage spas. There were plenty of restaurants, both Khmer and international, to choose from. The first night we ate at Khmer Kitchen, which came recommended and was packed full of people. We tried traditional Amok and curry but weren’t bowled over. Everything tasted bland! The next night we ate at Le Grand Cafe, which had both Khmer and Western food and a great view of the neighborhood from the second floor. C called it “bougie” and dinner was a little pricier there but we both thought it was better.
running amok with Khmer Amok
Tours and Drivers
Siem Reap is a small town, and there are plenty of tuk tuks available to take you wherever you want to go for a few bucks. Some hotels offer bicycles, and that’s a great way to see the sights (I’m a big fan of bicycles). You can also arrange to hire a car to take you around if you’re going farther out or want a chance to cool off in air conditioning once in a while. We chose to hire a driver for one of the days, since we wanted to see a lot of the temples in the morning then head to Tongle Sap to see the floating village on the lake, in the afternoon. A full day with a car cost $30.
negotiating with the driver
When I first went to Siem Reap, there were lots of kids and others offering tour services, but things have changed and nowadays you must use a licensed tour guide. You can spot these guys because they are wearing yellow shirts and wearing credentials. Expect to pay around $20 per day for their services. We didn’t hire one since I had been here before, but when I eavesdropped on some of their tours, I was quite impressed. I was also quite impressed with the fact that many of the guides were multi-lingual and conducted tours in English, Japanese, French, German, Korean, etc.
The first time I came to Siem Reap, I hired an excellent guide from Hidden Cambodia Adventures who took me out to some off the beaten path temples, brought me to villages and really gave me an insider view of the area. Paul, who runs the company, also took J and some of his friends on a multi-day dirt biking tour through Cambodia on my recommendation and they had an excellent time. We put this trip together in just a couple of days so I didn’t get a chance to call him and, in retrospect, I think we would have enjoyed our time even more if we had had him as a guide.
one of their clients put together this awesome video and posted it on Youtube
Angkor Wat
To make things simplier, I’m calling the temples collectively Angkor Wat, although that is the name of only one of the temple complexes.
I am no expert on Cambodia so I can’t offer insider advice but I will say that the temples of Siem Reap are undoubtedly the most amazing ruins I have ever seen. Even jaded travelers will be impressed!
Angkor Wat
If you’re coming from Thailand or otherwise interested in the region, a visit to the temples offers valuable information about the confluence of religions and the different influences that shaped the country. The Khmer empire was vast and, at its height, stretched across Southeast Asia. If you are touring through Thailand, you can see some of the Angkorian ruins built by the same king who built Angkor Wat in Isan and I highlight some of the best of them in Moon Thailand. You can also see many traces of Hinduism in the National Museum in Bangkok.
Tongle Sap
village on the water
You’ll definitely feel like you’re on the tourist path here, but there is no other way to see this floating village on the massive lake Tongle Sap. We did it on the second afternoon we were here, and it was a nice way to break up the temple tours.
The New Siem Reap Museum
I was a little sceptical of this museum since it is privately owned and admission was $12, which seems really steep considering how poor the country is. The International Herald Tribune did an interesting article about it last year when it opened. In the end, both C and I were very happy we went. The information about the Khmers, Angkor Wat and Buddhism was well presented and there was lots of statuary, lentils and other detailed objects to see. At the temples, many of the details are worn away or have been looted so I felt like going to the museum gave us a chance to “zoom in” a little and see some things in detail that we wouldn’t have seen just touring the temples.
The museum was also a great break from hiking up and down temples in 95 degree weather! We gave ourselves just a couple of hours but had to rush through the last couple of exhibits so if you’re visiting and you’re interested in reading and seeing everything, plan for about three hours.
Our Budget
Airfare:
15,000B for two ($460)
Hotel:
$63 per night, $126 total
Angkor Wat 3-day pass:
$40 each, $80 total
Tongle Sap boat:
$30
Driver:
$46
Visas:
$40
Exit fee:
$50
Food:
$70
Total for two people:
$902 for a three day trip
$150 per person, per day
