Siem Reap, Cambodia travel tales and tips

Siem Reap, Cambodia travel tales

Our customers share their travelling experiences in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Read about first hand stories on travel tips and guides, events, entertainment,shopping, food, business and transportation. Also, you might want to read our Angkor / Siem Reap city guide, and Phnom Penh city guide.

K Hoeing	02 September 2003
Stayed at Passaggio Boutique Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
We had a fantastic time in Siem Reap/Angkor Wat. Three full days were exactly the right amount of time to be able to see all the temples, the floating village, the silk farm and have time to scroll through the city of Siem Reap. We had a driver for the entire time ($20 per day), who turned out to be a very reliable and knowledgable guide as well. After having seen a few bad examples of guides, other people had booked for the day, we decided not to take one. Instead, we bought one of the guide books the children sell at every temple. The book is very detailed and even explains the bas-reliefs in Angkor Wat better than some of the tour guides. The food in Siem Reap was excellent. We did not have a single bad experience with the local meals we ordered. Fully recommended are the Soup Dragon as well as the Bopha Angkor. Business seemed to be going very poorly this year due to SARS and the war in Iraq. Since it was wet season as well, there were not many tourists at all. We felt sorry for the people who try to get their business running and are depending on the tourists. Everyone was very friendly and lots of smiling faces were making the stay worthwile.
C Branting	17 August 2003
Stayed at Passaggio Boutique Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
Be ready for some trek-type travelling; getting around the Angkor Complex takes some hiking in hot and humid conditions but it's well worth it, of course (this was the first time we took along a first aid kit, and we did use it a couple of times).
T Nightingill	17 August 2003
Stayed at Angkor Village Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
We really liked the Madame Butterfly restuarant just out of town on the N6 highway. We got around the temples with a hired driver. A bit pricey but very useful, if for no other reason than the cooling aircon in between the temple visits. A guide is useful if you want to get more detail about the temples. Also visited the Silk farm south of Siem Reap. Very interesting.
Z Gooderidge	03 August 2003
Stayed at Angkor Saphir Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
It was well worth paying a little extra to get an air condtioned car and driver for a mere $20 US. We stayed at the Angkor Saphir hotel in Siem Reap which had an excellent location, close to town but situated in the nice part by the river. Service was second to none and a bargain at twice the price. We visited virtually all the temples in the Angkor area and they were all fantastic. We were however ripped off by the drivers of the boat we went on to see the lake area. They said it cost $5 each to see a fish farm which was in fact free. Apart from that the people of Cambodia were incredibly accommodating and made our holiday a once in a lifetime experience.
S Ghosh	29 July 2003
Stayed at Bopha Angkor - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
Angkor Wat needs no introduction..Would recommend getting a guide and car for visits to the temples. Costs about USD 50 a day. Reccomend getting touch with the Angkor Guides Association particularly Mr. Samnang Pok : samnangp@camintel.com
S Heijs	24 July 2003
Stayed at Passaggio Boutique Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
We travelled around in a tuk-tuk, which we thought was very relaxed. This costed us only $8 a day. It is nice to go to the river of thousand lingas. It is about 40 km away from Seam Reap but it is worth it. We have been in the complex (temples) for three days, but it is nice to do the river on the second day so you will not get temple-tired!
M Underwood	15 July 2003
Stayed at Angkor Diamond Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
I called about a week prior to arriving and asked the price of a guide and a driver for the 5 of us. They quoted the same price as what others are quoting on this site $20 for the guide and $30 for a driver with a van. So I went for it. They asked when we would be arriving, picked us up at the airport then spent two full days with us and the driver took us to the airport on the third day - no additional charges (although I did give a nice tip). If staying at the Angkor Diamond, I would recommend just having them set you up with a guide and driver for your visit. While we had done a lot of good preparation for the trip, the guide made everything come alive and provided other interesting commentary on the country and general situation. Our Guide's information - Khoun Vuthy (855) 012-630785 khounvuthy@everyday.com.kh In case you would like to contact directly. When touring the temples, be prepared for some of the cutest little kids selling all sorts of stuff, bring plenty of small US bills. You really have to purchase some of there items and make certain you engage in some conversation, some of them have learned excellent English. They will surprise you with their knowledge of US State capitals! While sad and sometimes annoying they have to make a living - just be prepared. The visit to the floating village was amazing. In fact our guide grew up in the floating village and provided many insights. Never seen anything like it, this impacted our family as much or more than anything we did on the entire trip. Lots of new hotels going up. Glad we went before Angkor gets any busier.
J Fitch	13 July 2003
Stayed at Bopha Angkor - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
Siem Reap is a hot, dusty hive of activity. An ideal location for visiting all the temples of Angkor. It has its fair share of child beggars, amputees from landmines, doubtful smells and lots of litter. There are many motorbikes, tuks tuks and taxis with driver guides. There are colourful markets and plenty of restaurants and bars.We got our information predominantly from the Lonely Planet Guide to Cambodia and extra information from hotel reception and our guides. Our favourite restaurants were The Bopha Angkor Hotel Restaurant for the best Cambodian and Vietnamese food, and the Soup Dragon for drinks, cocktails, local and Western Food. The Blue Pumpkin had lovely bread and cakes and fresh shakes. The Red Piano Bar has a good atmosphere and is a great hangout for Westerners. The Koulen II has wonderful Apsana dancing most evenings and a buffet dinner but it is not the best food unfortunately. We got around cheaply, in tuk tuks with friendly drivers, and for longer journeys in very good taxis with guides arranged by the hotel Bopha Angkor. We arranged through the hotel, driver and guide to Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, which included the Bayon, the Elephant Terrace and the Leper King Terrace. On our second day, we took a trip to the floating fishing village on Tonle Sap. We went by tuk tuk. We bought boat tickets for $US5.00 each at the ferry dock and were adopted by 3 very young boys, who gave us a colourful ride through the village with a stop on a floating bar and shop at the entrance to the lake for drinks and toilet. On our third day we took a taxi with English speaking driver, arranged by the hotel, to Banteay Srei, a 35 kilometre drive and returned via Ta Prohm and Preah Khan, both of which are near Angkor Thom, stopping for lunch at local restaurant in front of Angkor Wat. We found it best to eat the local food rather than the Western food in these establishments.
B Moore	07 July 2003
Stayed at Angkor Saphir Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
Civit Thai II restaurant, about one block from Angkor Saphir Hotel, was absolutely one of the best places we ate at during our trip to Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand. Met driver through contact from hotel. Driver was a good idea [A/C car was so nice] after wandering through the complexes on any hot day.
T Choi	06 July 2003
Stayed at Princess Angkor Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
We hired a car ($20-$25/day) to see the various temples in the area, and that worked out fairly well. We had lunch once at the Foreign Correspondents Club, which was fine.

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