Cambodia essential travel information

Getting around Cambodia

Travelling around Cambodia is fairly easy with several options to choose from depending on your budget, experience amount of time you have a quick summary:

Long Distance

Flying there are flights between Phnom Penh and Siem Reap but not to many other places within Cambodia
Minibus these are the main semi luxury way to go between the major destinations around Cambodia most hotels and guesthouses and all travel agents can book these quickly and cheaply they shuttle between all the main places daily and are reasonalby quick and safe make sure it is a reputable company
Big Bus cheaper than the mini buses and take around 20% longer, this is how most Cambodians travel around the country
Four Wheel Drive / Car vehicle hire normally comes with a driver whose accommodation is NOT included in the price most convenient way to travel but also the most expensive road option

Short journeys

Remork / Tuk Tuk these buzz around the towns and cities and are ideal for trips across town, from the bus station to your accommodation and for going out for the night
Moto (Motobikes) quick cheap way to zip around you can hire them by the day or just flag them down for a single journey
Bicycle rentable from many places in most towns and cities cheap and good for exercise
Walking cheapest way of getting around but also the most time consuming pack a good pair of flat shoes for walking any distances
Cow Not your normal tourist travel and not very fast but in rural areas you can catch a cow across the village!

Visa and passport

Everyone needs a passport that is valid for six months beyond the date of travel to Cambodia.

Visas are required for most nationalities and are available at all major entry airports: Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, and at all major land borders from Thailand, Vietnam and Laos although the process and helpfulness at land borders is less efficient than at the airports. You will need US$20 plus a two passport photos.

Visas are available before arrival at all major Cambodian eembassies around the world costs and times for this vary.

Money and credit cards

The currency of Cambodia is the Cambodian Riel but everything is priced and paid for in US Dollars, even the cash machines give you the choice of Riel or US Dollar. Many things are US$1 so bring lots of small notes !

Credit cards Visa and Mastercard are accepted at some hotels and restaurants - generally only the upmarket ones though, and often there is a surcharge. Most small shops, eateries and guesthouses do not take cards.

Internet and Mobile Phone connections

Internet and mobile phone coverage is good across all the main locations in Cambodia.

Roaming on your phone will work but is expensive, pick up a local sim card for US$3 and connect to the many free wifi connections in hotels, cafes and even buses for the internet. Connections are generally good but not high speed.

Eat up and enjoy

Food is excellent in Cambodia, with most food being prepared with fresh ingredients and influenced by Thailand, Vietnam and France making it very tasty and diverse in flavour.

Eating is a social pastime in Cambodia from street stalls to a la carte restaurants you will never go hungry, eating on a budget is very easy, food quality is fantastic.

Electricity

Although still developing the power network across Cambodia with a rapidly growing demand of electricity users the electricity is reasonably reliable in all major areas, top hotels have generators. There usually is some form of power outage every week somewhere but the are usually short lived (one hour ish).

Plugs are two pin as pictured on the left here.

General health staying healthy

Health and hygene is fairly good in Cambodia, drink bottled water NOT the tap water, medical care is not stellar there are decent hospitals in Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville but not western standard.
Access to general medication, pain relief tablets, antibiotics, sanitary towels, shampoo and the like is easy in all major places, if you have specific medication you need bring it with you with a letter from your doctor.

Travel safe dangers etc

Cambodia is a pleasantly safe country to travel around, all the usual safety concerns should be noted - walking dark streets or deserted beaches at night, leaving valuables on display at cafes etc.

Use common sense and dont put temptation in peoples path, Cambodia is still a very poor country.

When to visit

The Wet Season May to October - The Dry Season October to April

It is possible to enjoy a visit to Cambodia all year, although in two very different ways, for the rainy season you will need to be prepared for lots of rain and slower journey times but you will see the green lush Cambodia that dissapears in the dry season, also beach / island locations are not ideal in the rain! But prices and availability are better.

Int the dry season the beach areas and islands are fantastic while Angkor is much busier and much hotter but dry. Most tourists visit in the dry season, while many travellers say you can only really appreciate Cambodias beauty in the wet season.

Weather

The Wet Season May to October
The wind from the southwest brings the rain from May to October when 75% of Cambodias annual rains fall. Peak rains are July to September where it can rain for two out of three days, usually just a few hours heavy rain a day but ocassionally you get an all day rain downpour!
The rains do cause slower journey times on the roads so plan accordingly.
The good thing with the rains is that the roads are no longer dusty and grimy and the countryside turns a lush green with a natural beauty completely missing for the rest of the year.
Angkor temples with the surrounding forests and jungles take on a new dimension during the rains.
It is also the queiter time of year for visitors so prices go down and there are less tourists

The Dry Season October to April
October to April are Cambodias dry period, the wind blows from the northeast and the dusty dry roads and the hot air return, quite cool means just below 30 C... November to February is the main tourist season where the most visitors arrive in Cambodia to enjoy the sun and dry weather. Prices, bus seats, plane tickets and accommodation availability also peak so plan ahead for these times

Language

The good news is that English is widely well spoken in all main areas of Cambodia, in all the tourist places menus, signs etc are all in English.