| |
 Traveller's Tales: Getting around in Siem Reap, Cambodia
Know the most popular landmarks in Siem Reap, Cambodia. You may read about best transportation, recommended travel itinerary, suggested routes and directions. Also, you might want to read our
Angkor / Siem Reap city guide,
and Phnom Penh city guide.
Pages (11 of 19):
« Previous 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
| J Blum |
31 January 2003 |
Stayed at Princess Angkor Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
|
We used a guide and car for 3 days to tour as many of the ruined temples as possible. We found this to be good value.
|
| S Sayers |
25 January 2003 |
Stayed at Angkor Village Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
|
Angkor temples were everything we hoped for, they made our holiday. Getting around was easy due to tuk tuk drivers, and taxi's right out side the hotel.
|
| B Cutillo |
16 January 2003 |
Stayed at Princess Angkor Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
|
General Tips/Observations:
1. Rent a car w/driver if in your budget. $20-25/day and well worth it. Our driver spoke English well and we found that we did not need to hire a full-time guide at the temples if we read a bit about the best parts to see.
2. Cambodian people are VERY nice and help make the trip worthwhile. Looks a lot like Thailand 30 years ago.
3. Don't buy 'rubies/sapphires' in the Central (Old) Market, unless you just want them for costume jewelry. Most are not 'real'.
4. Bargain in the Old Market - start at around 50% of the asked price - or lower, depending on the item.
5. Get to the temples EARLY - by 7:00 or 7:30 am - Bus crowds start showing up around 9:00 am. Light is better for photos then, also.
6. Tonle Sap lake tour in dry season was disappointing. Channel water very polluted. Don't pay more than $10.00 - even for having a boat to yourself. Not worth more. Some interesting photo opps, though, and a break from temples. One hour is enough.
7. Start Angkor Wat at around 7-7:30 am from the East entrance (back side). Barely anyone there, great light.
8. Keep lots of small change handy (USD/Baht/Riel). Lots of people work for 'tips', helps with small purchases.
9. Better Thai food was at Chiang Mai Restaurant. Forget Khmer Phuket near Old Market-really quite bad.
|
| F Armand |
13 January 2003 |
Stayed at Angkor Village Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
|
We travelled independently and did not book a tour. Recommended restaurant: Chez Soheap in front of the Angkor Wat entrance. If trying to avoid tour buses: skip sunrise and sunset hotspots. Spend lunch time visiting the most popular temples. Hire a car and driver to visit off-the-beaten-track temples: Beng Malea and Kbal Spean.
|
| S Reiterer |
09 January 2003 |
Stayed at Sofitel Royal Angkor - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
|
Got around by taxi for 20 dollars a day. Wonderful food at Chivit Thai in Siem Reap.
|
| W Bramley |
07 January 2003 |
Stayed at Angkor Village Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
|
There are a lot of tourists visiting the temples, especially in the afternoons. On the main road alone, we noted six new large hotels under construction in Siem Reap, so the sooner you visit the better.
We saw the dance show at the Angkor Village hotel. Good setting but don't expect the dancing to be in the same league as, for example, Bali and Java.
A visit to the Silk Farm and the Floating Villages should not be missed. They both can be done in a morning if you start around 08.00. Do the Floating Villages first as there will be a lot of tourist boats later in the day. We used the same taxi driver (Hak) throughout our stay. Normal rate is 20 US dollars a day. Most of the drivers do not own their taxis but drive for someone else so do tip them.
If you ask any Cambodian about their families experiences during the Khmer Rouge days you are going to hear some terrible tales. It makes all you have read and seen more real but still unbelievable.
If you have time, visit Phnom Penh. It is a very interesting city and the Raffles Le Royal is a lovely hotel to stay in or visit for a drink. They seem to have a lot of deals on rooms even in the high season.
|
| E Rea |
06 January 2003 |
Stayed at Angkor Century Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
|
We got to Siem Reap by boat from Phnom Pehn. Five hours on travelling at 50 knots. One hundred people inside and thirty or forty on the roof! There is a recently opened airport now 15 mins from the town, and there are flights between there and Siem Reap, but the boat journey - although a bit scary, should be taken at least once.
We rented a luxury minibus with four armchair seats, driver and courier which cost 45 dollars a day. A three day pass to the temples costs 40 dollars, and is necessary as it takes the full three days to see everything. Around town, various types of moped-powered transport charge one dollar for every journey.
|
| R Veneziani |
04 January 2003 |
Stayed at Angkor Diamond Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
|
Excellent trip for all the lovers of monuments, history and ancient civilisations.
It is surprisingly easy to get around since most of the tourism-related people speak good English and there is a good frame of tourist services.
|
| J Christie |
27 December 2002 |
Stayed at Ta Prohm - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
|
The Angkor temples deserve their reputation - they really are impressive. We spent three days exploring them, and could have spent another few days. We rented one of those motorcycle-pulled carriages for US$12 a day, which was a nice way to get around the temples and around town. Cars with drivers were readily available for US$20 a day, and motorcycle rides around town were very cheap.
|
| K Frick |
22 December 2002 |
Stayed at Sofitel Royal Angkor - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
|
The Angkor temples live up to the billing. Beyond that, it is worth the half day excursion to see the floating villages. On the downside, the town of Siem Reap doesn't offer much (e.g. shopping, restaurants). For transportation, we hired a Tuk Tuk for $13 a day and couldn't have been happier with the driver and the experience.
|
|
Pages (11 of 19):
« Previous 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
Book a hotel in Siem Reap, Cambodia
|
