Another Siem Reap Trip Report

I have been planning this trip for a while and used this forum for a lot of helpful tips and information. Many thanks to all the contributors here.

First off, I loved Siem Reap and the Cambodian people. I can't wait to go back and explore the country further. This was the second part of my trip to Bangkok and was much more impressed with Cambodia.

I was there for 5 days in early December. Arrived from BKK via Bangkok airways and although it's a bit pricey, I was really impressed with the airline. Friendly service and in just under an hour flight they manage to give you a meal and a few drinks without breaking a sweat. And a nice little lounge for your use at BKK while waiting for our flight.

I stayed at The Mens Resort and cannot praise this place enough. I travel quite a bit and have stayed at many gay resorts and I have to say that there are very few gay resorts that have this level of service and accommodations. I paid USD $90 a night for a suite and it was worth every penny. In fact by western standards it was dirt cheap for what you get. I asked the hotel to arrange a car to pick me up at the airport for $8 extra.

They greeted me at the hotel with a nice cool drink and then checked me into my room. The suite was huge and well furnished with a balcony overlooking the neighborhood. A nice huge bathroom with a great rain shower as well. Their is a lot of staff running around they cater to anything you would need. They have a terrific restaurant and bar on site with reasonable pricing and really good food. (reasonable by Cambodian standards, again, by Western standards, the pricing was a steal). Every morning you get a cooked to order breakfast by the pool, again the service, food and atmosphere was exceptional.

My first night I took a tuk tuk (They always have one ready for hotel guests) into town. Hang on for your life, that is one wild ride on the bumpy dirt road. 2 bucks (In Mexico, this is called gringo pricing, ah well) I started my night at Linga Bar and was immediately besieged by the money boys. I spent a few minutes shooing them away and sat down for a couple of drinks. Great place to sit and chat people up. I headed over to Miss Wongs afterwards and also had a couple of drinks and chatted up the staff there. They brought out their home made chips. Another really great place to sit and chat and no money boys. Wound up at Station wine bar and was extremely impressed here by the wine selection and the friendliest staff of any bar I have been in. I tried their "wine of the month" and they also serve up a some cheeses and olives with it as well. This is a very sophisticated but fun place to hang. By now it was about 11pm and I was the last customer in the place. The staff told me to meet them at a club called Hip Hop, I guess it's the club du jour, which is a short walk away from the center of town. They were sweet, but my disco days are well behind me and I was beat, took Mr Toad's wild ride back to the hotel (Return trip is 3 bucks!) Anyhow, all the tuk tuk drivers know exactly where Mens resort is and were all very sweet as well, but that ride is even more fun after 6 drinks!

This was more or less my nightly schedule and I really enjoyed it. I met Tony the owner of Temple and congratulated him on such a successful place. I met all different kinds of people here and it was great to unwind at these places at the end of the day. Tony kept telling me make sure not miss "The show" Friday night. Oy. It's a bit hokey with a local drag queen and some local boys dancing and stuff, but it brings the tourists in I guess.

I did take a few walks into town from the resort and the hardest part is not the distance, but the danger. Until you get to the river, it's like walking around a bumper car ride at the local carnival. I also took in the Angkor Wat Museum which is pricey but still a really good museum.

The hotel arranged for a car and a guide for me for Ankgor Wat for $60. At first I though maybe I overpaid and maybe I could have done this myself, but after 5 hours and 6 temples I was really grateful I had a guide. The guide (and I think all of the official guides) go through a pre approved script but it was great to be able to get all of the amazing history from a live person and then get some perspective from a local resident as well. It's truly an amazing place and totally overwhelming. I would never have been able to navigate all of that territory on my own.

FOOD: Never had a bad meal anywhere. Amazing. Of special note, Viroths restaurant. Excellent menu and service and I had a full meal with drinks, totaled $11.

SEX! You'll be dissappointed here. I didn't really come here for sex, but here's my report. The Mens Resort is the local gay bath house and from 5-9 the locals and money boys come in. The "Farangs" around the pool put on their towels and the hunt starts. I didn't really see anyone I was that excited about, so I just sat at the bar, had some drinks and chatted people up. (Also, I'm not a rice queen!) I'm not really a bath house guy, but it was good fun to watch.

I also ordered up a 90 minute massage from the resort for $28 for the last day of my stay. I had been hiking around with a back pack for hours each day and my shoulders were killing me, so I wanted an actual good massage. I actually didn't really want a happy ending, I wanted a good massage. About 10 minutes into the massage, I'm noticing that this guy is not so good at what he's doing. And what I got was what I would call a surprise ending, more than a happy ending. He was really good at that part and before I knew it, he was going at it.

Can't wait to return to Cambodia.

A great report and I agree with all you said.

One thing that I remembered was that opposite Linga bar was a massage place and the boys from the massage seemed to be wearing the same "sarongs" that the waiters at Linga were. I was with someone and could not get away to find out more. Also there is one room to let above the massage place , not cheap but great location.

Maybe Kevin might be able to add a little bit info.

Straight friends a married couple have booked into Samar Villa and Spa and I hope to get a report from them as it looks great as well ,but almost double the price of Mens Resort.

http://www.samarvillas.com/en/

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One thing that I remembered was that opposite Linga bar was a massage place and the boys from the massage seemed to be wearing the same "sarongs" that the waiters at Linga were. I was with someone and could not get away to find out more. Also there is one room to let above the massage place , not cheap but great location.

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Yes, I remember that as well and there is some kind of confusing link between them. One of the money boys kept inviting me up there for a massage. However, Linga does have a spa attached to it as well. I wasn't clear if he said $50 or $15. They were also running in and out of the small hotel across the alley as well.