Cambodia

Total Time: 8 days (March 2019)
I went as part of a 10 day trip starting in Bangkok, Thailand and ending in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
This was part of a longer 5 month trip around the world

Day 0: arrive in Bangkok, spend the afternoon at the hostel meeting everyone from our tour group as they arrive, welcome dinner with tour guide (CEO- see below)
Day 1: Bus ride to Siem Reap, Cambodia (cross the land boarder from Thailand to Cambodia), dinner with a local family in a village as a group
Day 2: Angkor Wat tour, Cambodian circus, night out in Siem Reap
Day 3: Bus ride to Phenom Penh, walking tour and group dinner
Day 4: Killing Fields tour, free afternoon (local market, massage, walk and explore the city)
Day 5: Bus to southern boarder, boat ride to Koh Rong island, relax by the ocean
Day 6: Relax by ocean
Day 7: Travel back to mainland, bus to Chambok, local village dinner & homestay
Day 8: Bus to Ho Chi Minh (cross the land boarder from Cambodia to Vietnam, final group dinner

I travelled Cambodia through G Adventures tour company. They were amazing and would highly recommend them
- They have various types of tours (active vs. sedentary, cheap vs. luxury, etc.)
- Almost everyone was a solo traveller so no worries if you go alone
- All G Adventure trips are a max of 18 people, which is a really nice size!! I would not recommend going any bigger. I did a New Zealand trip with 40+ people and it was NOT as good.
- I did their “on a shoestring” 18-39 year-old style trip so it was much cheaper, we stayed in hostels, and many activities and meals were optional and had additional costs
- All G Adventure trips have a CEO (aka Chief Experience Officer). Mine was amazing! He coordinated all hostels and transportation, gave us sightseeing and food recommendations, etc. but never was our tour guide. We had local people each place we went lead tours.
I did the “Cambodia on a Shoestring” tour. It started in Bangkok, went straight to Cambodia for 8 days, and then ended in Vietnam. Many people on the tour continued on through Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand for up to 33 days.
- Many of the tours they do have different points where you can start and end. I HIGHLY recommend joining a tour at the origin and not starting in the middle. It is okay to end early (as I did), but it isn’t easy to join a group in the middle

Since I did the “on a shoestring” style tour through G Adventures, it was a budget tour for 18-39 year olds. We stayed in hostels and local homestays.
All were fine, none were awful, but they were NOT luxury by any means.
If I were to go to South-East Asia again, I would go a more luxurious route because I constantly felt like I was hot, sweaty, and covered in sunscreen and bug spray because I could just never get clean or cool off.

Siem Reap
- The main thing in Angkor Wat
  - Our guide took care of getting us tickets but definitely look into this because I think it is a process
  - We got there before sunrise (literally had to walk in the pitch black with flashlights) to watch the sunrise over Angkor Wat
  - We had tickets to all of the temples so we spent the morning at Angkor Wat and then did many of the other ones in the afternoon
- Circus
  - G Adventures arranged for some of use who wanted to go to a local circus performance which was pretty cool
- Nightlife- there is a main street with TONS of nightclubs, bars, restaurants, and street food that is a must-see
Phenom Penh- this is the capital city with the most going on
- The main thing here are the Killing Fields from the Cambodian genocide.
- There is also a silver pagoda and royal palace that are popular, but I didn’t get a chance to go
- Lots to see, even just walking around the city
Koh Rong
- We spent 2 days on the island off the southern coast. It was very nice and relaxing…very bungalow style. There was a fishing village nearby but other than that, it was purely relaxation
Other
- We stopped in this small village between Phenom Penh and Sihanoukville that sold all sorts of cooked and fried bugs and spiders to eat. It was totally gross but also really cool. Many people eat them in Cambodia. (Skon, Kampong Cham)

Since we were on a tour, I didn’t choose where we ate for many meals (even though they were not included), so I honestly couldn’t recommend any specific places
I mostly ate curry, chicken dishes, and rice while there and all were amazing, but be prepared for spice!
Friends- a restaurant in Phenom Penh where they employ former youth living on the streets or those who come from at-risk minority groups.
Cloud 9 Sky Bar- a rooftop bar in Phenom Penh in a hotel with nice cocktails and a good view of the city
Be careful of the restaurants you go to (especially with street food). Several people on my trip got food poisoning. Carrying an antibiotic with you might be good just in case.

G Adventures took care of all of our transportation on the trip.
We took mini shuttle-type buses (9 people per bus) between cities, which were very nice
In cities, we used tuk-tuks to get around both with the group or on our own

From the US, you do need a visa to visit Cambodia
I was able to get an E-visa for $36 that I just printed from the computer (note that you need 2 copies – one for entry and one for exit)
Be sure to check what visas are valid depending on how you enter the country. I know that at some land boarders E-visas are valid and others are not

Cambodia has their own currency, however it is protected and you can not get it outside of Cambodia (you can only get it at exchange places in Cambodia)
However, all of Cambodia functions using the US dollar! All full dollars are paid in US bills and then any coins are converted and paid in Cambodian currency – there are no coins used
Cash only, almost nowhere takes credit card
Only use recommended ATMs, I was told that many card much or steal information

I believe that malaria medication and other vaccines are recommended, however I did not get any vaccines or carry any malaria medication. I stocked up on bug spray and used it EVERY DAY, ALL DAY whenever I was outside of a hostel room.
I didn’t get one bite or have any problems, nor did anyone who I was traveling with (most others didn’t have medications or vaccines either)

Watch out for pickpockets, especially in Phenom Penh. I had a friend who had her purse ripped off her shoulder by a guy on a motor bike the rode past and almost hit her to yank it off!

Read my few blog posts from Cambodia here!

See all my blog posts from my 5-month trip here.