Siem Reap

[Asia Smiles]

Turns out it costs $76 USD each way from on siemreap airways, fourty-five minute flight. I'll be in Siem Reap April 24, for 2 or 3 days. Banyon Hotel. If any fellow mongers out there that day, let's have a beer.

Email:reservation@siemreapairways.com

www.siemreapairways.com

Flight schedules available on-line. E-mails no problem with English.

Thanks Samu Rai, Member 2041, and all contributors.

[Samu Ray]

Asia Smiles,

I am glad you found my modest contribution to be helpful!

The bus trip from Phnom Penh to S R is not that bad. The road is paved.
It takes about seven hours to make the trip.

The trip from Poipet to S R or the other way around is bad, I think because
the buses that cover that route are unreliable, they break down because of
the bad state of the road, it is a dirt road. When it rains it gets worse.
I sympathize with Cambodians who have to travel along that road.

[Hutsori]

Fellas,

Can you suggest some decent hotel in SR that are close to restaurents, bars and other nightly entertainment. My girlfriend are I will be visiting SR for the first time to mainly exprience Angor Wat. But we both like to stay closer to the area where there are ample choices for nightly entertainment.

Thanks in adavance for any advice.

I looked, but did not stay, at the Red Piano which is at the center of the action. It's nice and not a rip off--provided you don't define anything more than $5 a rip off. Very good food there, too. I stayed at the Freedom Hotel which is well outside ground zero, but it had a pool and was cheaper. Only a $1 motorcycle ride to town center

[Asia Smiles]

Seems like the Air Asia is the way to go BKK to PP (799 Baht). Gets to PP around 8 AM. Would like to take Siem Reap Airways to PP to SR, same day. Went to www.talesofasia.com (Great Site) and Cambodian Airports website for flight schedules, but can't find any pricing on the PP to SR trip. Any info or advice on the SR to PP flight, costs. Also getting worried about all the discussion on HIV in Cambodia photo section and thinking about skipping any mongering activity in Cambi and just head back to Thailand. Or would that be regrettable. Anyway, thanks for the info on Air Asia Samu Ray. Big cost savings over Bangkok Airways.

[Kamking1]

Thanks Fast Eddie 48. I am planning to Fly from Singapore to PP and then overland to SR, probably by bus as you say the roads are better now. Then will fly back to Singapore. Jetstar Asia will cost me SIN-PP and SR-SIN a total of about S$211 including taxes.

Kamking1

[Fast Eddie 48]

Flying to Siem Reap was a reapoff in the past, especially from Singapore where SilkAir had the monopoly.

But now the things has changed. Jetstar Asia, a subsidiary of Quantas, started flying Singapore-SR route three times/week. Round trip, restricted tickets, will cost you around S$210 including taxes. Jetstar Asia also fly to Phnom Penh and you can buy one way ticket to either places. So you can buy SIN-PP and SR-SIN ticket for S$210 and make an overland transfer between PP-SR. Just my two cents.

Kamking1

to kaming 1

I just check today round trip from bangkok to phnom penh is 7400 baht on
bangkok air way morning flight only , bangkok to siem reap is 5800 baht one
way so it is better to take the bus from pnnom penh to siem reap is very fast
now with new highway.

fast eddie 48

[Elguy001]

Fellas,

Can you suggest some decent hotel in SR that are close to restaurents, bars and other nightly entertainment. My girlfriend are I will be visiting SR for the first time to mainly exprience Angor Wat. But we both like to stay closer to the area where there are ample choices for nightly entertainment.

Thanks in adavance for any advice.

[Kamking1]

Flying to Siem Reap was a reapoff in the past, especially from Singapore where SilkAir had the monopoly.

But now the things has changed. Jetstar Asia, a subsidiary of Quantas, started flying Singapore-SR route three times/week. Round trip, restricted tickets, will cost you around S$210 including taxes. Jetstar Asia also fly to Phnom Penh and you can buy one way ticket to either places. So you can buy SIN-PP and SR-SIN ticket for S$210 and make an overland transfer between PP-SR. Just my two cents.

Kamking1

[Dinghy]

the bus ride is about 5 hours - leaves from near the central market in pp and arrives at the bus station in sr. a bit boring but nice countryside. one or 2 [CodeWord134] stops enroute (no on-board lavs). take a lunch

there were some cambodian airline service with propjets from pnh-sr but that might not be avilable now. depending on your itinerary, 1 night would probably not be enopugh in sr - if you are going for hobby, you would actually be better off going to snooky (4 hour bus ride) - no other way there from pp. sr is only valuable as a cultural trip to angkor (which takes a whole day by itself - minimum)

[Member #2041]

The BKK to Siem Reap route is a Bangkok Air monopoly. They are the only choice for that direct flight. Don't know about BKK to Phnom Penh, but I can tell you that it is a corporate strategy of Bangkok Air never to compete with discounters like Air Asia. If they can't tie up a route, they won't pursue it.

[Samu Ray]

Try www.airasia.com

[Asia Smiles]

Traveling to BKK in April, would like to see PP (3 nights) and Siem Reap (1 night) Found only Bangkok Airways flying to all three places and it's a pricey trip.

Can anyone recommend another airline or alternative? Considered going by land to Siem Reap, but 4 hours in a bus would be my limit.

Cheers.

[Member #2041]

FYI, a year ago when I was there, I bought a 4-leg airpass on Bangkok Air for $275. This covered TWO round trips for me: Bangkok to Siem Reap, back to Bangkok, Bangkok to Koh Samui, Koh Samui to U-Tapao (closest airport to Pattaya).

[LexLuther]

hutsori,

Thanks for the link to the photos. I really enjoyed them.

Lex

[Hutsori]

Just came back from Siem Reap. Stayed at the Freedom Inn, which has rooms at $15, $20 & $25 w/ good cable TV, fridge, hot water & swimming pool. It's a bit outside the center of the things (I wanted a place w/ a pool & ESPN to watch the football), but it was a decent place and good value. It is girl friendly.

For three nights I went to Khmer discos around town and had a great time--I never got the names of the places, just told the moto driver that I wanted to go to a place where the locals hang at. Waiters saw I was on my own and brought round a few girls; there were gobs of super hotties but they were w/ locals and didn't strike me as working for living. The working girls were good looking, but not as smokin' as the hotties. LT time at my hotel was $15 and $20. Bumped into a group of Korean college students at the disco on night 2, and as I speak fairly good Korea I partied with them to hook up with one of the girls. Chatted up one the girls and learned they were staying at my hotel. Had an okay freebie.

Angkor Wat is a much better experience today than it was in 1994. Back then I was hounded everywhere by beggars, "tour guides" and peddlers. A non-stop cacaphony that had me flee the place as I couldn't enjoy it. On this go I did the 3-day pass at $40. The cost is worth it since I didn't get hassled while visiting the temples. Correct that: I was a little bit hassled when I got out of car, but as soon as I entered the defined temple areas no peddlers are allowed to enter.

The government-approved tour guides are worth the price, which is typically $20 a day. I've never used a guide anywhere before, but my guide was awesome. I felt sorry for those I saw wandering around looking at guidebooks. You spend so much money to get here, just a little bit more makes the experience so much better. I hired him from sunrise to sunset for 3 days, and he really made the experience. No push at all to go shopping, etc. Of course he offered, but never pushed. I have contact info for Mr. Chhay (pronounced "Chai", like how the Indian word for tea) so if you want it PM me--I check the board about once a week so do so BEFORE you arrive.

If you want to save a lot a money don't fly direct to Siem Reap. A return ticket from either Bangkok or Hanoi is almost $400. I flew Air Asia from Bangkok to Phnom Penh for less than $100 return. The guide books I read stated that the road from PP to SR was kinda buggered, so I took the boat at $25. The boat trip is okay, but there really isn't much of visual interest. BTW, the PP to SR road is NOT buggered. I took the bus at $8 from SR to PP. The bus took the same 5 and a half hours that the boat took. The bus station is across the road from where the boats launch. There are decent, affordable & girl friendly guest houses ($15) near the bus and boat.

If you want to see some awesome Angkor Wat photos by a Siem Reap-based American photographer visit asiaphotos dot net. John McDermott has 2 galleries in SR; one "downtown" and the other near the Le Meridien. Well worth a look. Pricey, though. Very pricey.