I went to Cambodia on August 2013. I spent 5 days and 4 night there which covered most of the "must go" places in both Phnom Pehn and Siam Reap. Although it was a short trip, we really enjoyed our time there! Hope to be back again soon!
"Must go" Places :
1. The Killing Field (Choeung Ek) in Phnom Penh
After
checked in, we decided to go to The Killing Field (Choeung Ek). We took
a Tuk-Tuk which cost us USD 15 for 2 way transport. The road is
actually very dusty but the super nice Tuk-Tuk driver bought us mask to
cover our nose and mouth. It took us about 30 minutes to reach the mass
graves of victims of the Khmer Rouge. The entrance fee is USD 6 which
includes the audio tour with many language options. As you walk around,
the audio tour will guide you through the places and explain what
happened in that place. I would recommend you to read a bit about
Cambodia History before visiting this place. It was indeed a very sad
story to hear and I pray for all the victims may their soul rest in
peace.
2. Royal Palace in Phnom Penh
Royal Palace is a 174,870 square metres complex of buildings which serves as the royal residence of the king of Cambodia. The entrance fee for Royal
Palace is USD 6.50 per person and you have to wear proper attire to go in (sleeveless shirt and short pants are not allowed). The layout are divided into few sections here : Throne Hall, Moonlight Pavilion, Silver Pagoda, and Khemarin Palace. We only can visit the first 3 sections and Khemarin Palace, Royal Gardens, and some other buildings and pavilions are closed to public.
3. National Museum of Cambodia in Phnom Penh
National Museum is just 5 minutes walk from Royal Palace. This is the largest museum in Cambodia. They have lots of collection of Khmer Art which includes ceramics, sculptures, bronzes, etc. They have more than 14,000 items here. The entrance fee for National Museum is USD 5 per person.
4. Angkor Archaeological Park
Third day, we went to Angkor Archaeological Park by Tuk-Tuk (our hotel
gave us free Tuk-Tuk during our stay). We actually wanted to go there
early to catch the sunrise but as it was a rainy season the hotel
receptionist told us that there will be a very little chance to see the
sunrise. So we decided to continue our sleep and start our journey to
Angkor Archaeological Park at 9am. Once you reached Angkor
Archaeological Park, you will need to buy the entrance ticket. They have
the option of 1 day pass (USD 20), 3 days pass (USD 40), and 7 days
pass (USD 60). Once you got your ticket, you can start you exploration
of 400 square kilometres Angkor Archaeological Park. It's HUGE!!! That's
why they have the 7 days pass as you can not finished the whole park in
a day! But if you only have limited time like us, you can just go to
the most famous one like the
Temple of Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom (which consist of Bayon,
Baphuon temples, The Elephant Terrace, Phnom Bakheng, and many more),
and Ta Prohm (where Tomb Raider were filmed here). We spent almost half
day to explore these temples. Each temple have their own stories and
uniqueness so it's good if you read some of their history before the
visit. They also have restaurant inside the park so you dont need to go
out from the park to find food.
We only had a very limited time in Cambodia so I didn't have much time
so shop. But I was very happy with my shopping experience in Cambodia.
It was cheap (although is not that cheap) and the seller are very
friendly! They can speak multiple language too!! We only went to 3
places to shop : Psar Chaa - Old Market in Siam Reap, Night Market in
Siam Reap and Russian Market in Phnom Penh.
5. Local Delights
During our stay in Cambodia, we went to try some of recommended restaurant like Friends The Restaurant in Phnom Penh, Khmer Kitchen Restaurant in Siam Reap, and KFC. :)
6. Khmer Massage
After tired walking, we went back to hotel for a quick shower and went
out for massage. Our Tuk-Tuk driver recommended us a very nice Khmer
Massage Place named Lemongrass Garden Beauty and Massage. It cost us USD
15 for 90 minutes Khmer Massage... a bit more expensive than Thai
Massage or Oil Massage but it's very very good!!! It's actually a dry
massage (without oil) similar to Thai Massage just that without twisting
and pulling so it's more relaxing... We really enjoyed it!!
How to Get Around
1. From and To Phnom Penh Airport
Phnom
Penh is the Capital City of Cambodia and as there are more flights
flying from Singapore to Phnom Penh than Siam Reap, we decided to fly to
Phnom Penh. We flew in in the morning and after reading some of the
travel forum, we decided to take cab from Airport to Hotel. They have
flat rate USD 9 from Airport to anywhere in Phnom Penh and actually USD 9
is considered fair price as we took a taxi with meter from Hotel to
Airport on the last day and it cost us USD 9 also. Once you passed
immigration and collected your luggage, you can just get the taxi coupon
before getting into the taxi. Another option, you can take Tuk-Tuk to
Hotel with USD 7 flat rate to anywhere in Phnom Penh. It
took us about 20 minutes to reach Intercontinental Hotel by taxi.
2. Phnom Penh - Siam Reap
On second day, we took a bus to Siam Reap. Bus is the
cheapest way to travel between Phnom Penh and Siam Reap. There are
several bus companies which serve this route and the price are vary from
USD 8 to 13 but we decided to take Giant Ibis bus. We booked the bus
online from their website and you can choose your seat online too (Price
per person : USD 13 + service charge of USD 1 if you book online). It
took around 6 hours to Siam Reap includes 1 time toilet break + 1 time
lunch). This is more worth it compare to taking a flight as the air
ticket is close to USD 100 for one way trip.
3. In Phnom Penh
Tuk-Tuk in Phnom Penh can cost you USD 1 - USD 5 within the city depends on how far you go. Or USD 4 per hour or USD 20 per day.
4. In Siam Reap
Similar with Phnom Penh, Tuk-Tuk in Siam Reap can cost you USD 1 - USD 5 within the city depends on how far you go. Or USD 15 per day (additional USD 5 if you want to go to see sunrise at Angkor Wat).
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