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Hi
I'm doing some early planning for my next trip to Thailand {Feb 08} and want to take a side trip to Siem Reap. Whilst in Thailand I'll be visiting BKK, CM and Pattaya - am I right in thinking that the best way to get to SR is from BKK by air rather than trying to get there from either Pattaya or CM? (think I would prefer to fly but other suggestions are welcome)
cheers
Brian
Fly. It is a quick cheap flight from BKK. You might want to consider staying at the Golden Banana Guest House in Siem Reap. It is a gay guest house that offer a good quality service, reasonable prices, and nice boys to show you around the monuments of the Khmer Empire, night time entertainment venues and late night private entertainment. They have a web site, google them up.
Any travel agent can offer you a range of options travelling from Thailand to Seam Reap.
A good choise one is going overland using train or bus and stop by at Surin and have a look around. Surin is very ritch on historical cultural Khmer relicts, very similar to Angkhor Wat but surely not at the same dimension.
From Surin or Ubon you can arrange by yourself a easy trip to the border and further down to Siem Reap. The new road should help a lot.
........... the round trip air fare from BKK to SR is almost double the cost of round trip airfare to Phnom Penh ........... the market will bear that due to the huge number of tourists visiting SR and Angkor Wat ............ plus Cambodia tourist officials want to encourage folks to add PP to their itinerary ........... thus my plan is to fly to PP and then do a round trip bus to SR.............. not exactly sure of the cost of the airfare so will not quote it here ........... also possible to get different prices from different airlines and different travel agents.
However the bus info that I have is US$5 one way for 5.5 hour trip ....... by the way this bus connects in PP both ways to Ho Chi Minh for $11-$12 for a 6 hour trip ........... I have just sent an email to the friend that I intend to visit in SR for info on the guest house that he most recommends in SR and the hotel in PP and also the various airfares he is aware of .......... will post it here as soon as he responds............ attached is the info that I have received from him re the bus ...... have four attachments so one with this posting and the next three subsequently ......... I think this system will permit only one attachment per posting...... also will have to post the brochure sideways as this system seems to permit only "The Attachment/Image must be less than 800 pixels wide and 600 pixels high" ........... sorry, but if you print it, turn sideways.
More as I get it.
Back of brochure
Front of business card
Back of business card
Most of my close friends - Straight (late 20's) have done the SR->PP->Sr (or vice versa) overland route
I have also done the Arranyarathet/Poi pet->SR overland route myself twice
All of us heartily recommend against going overland to anywhere to Cambodia
Just fly!
And if you can't afford to fly - you shoukld just stay at home... and save till you can afford to travel in relative comfort
(or at least until they put tarmacadam on the roads!)
You can get a 2 hr or less flight from either Bangkok or Chiang Mai to Siem Reap and see a lot of pretty clouds on the way. That's ok if you just don't have the time.
You can take a private taxi and stop at all sorts of intersting places on the way or you can take busses and meet all sorts of people and see the country (chickens, buffaloes and potholes) up close.
Up to you.
(For the record, I've only done it by plane. Also, I've had my fill of busses in Thailand after only one trip.)
If you have the time I strongly second the suggestion to see Phnom Penh. Its really a beautiful, small, laid back capital city and worth a trip.
on my upcoming trip I am spending a week or so over in Cambodia. I am flying BKK-Phnom Penh to spend a couple of days there then to REP for several days doing the Khmer/Angkor sites then flying back from there to BKK. I suppose it depends on your budget whether you want to fly and/or whether you have the time and interest in doing an overland adventure. I am on Thai Airways to PP. I can't remember how much I am paying but it's probably a couple of hundred USD for a business class seat, economy is much cheaper for sure. Then I am on Bangkok Airways PNH-REP for about US$70 and REP-BKK for about $115.
as I always do I can recommend the services of Purple Dragon tours. Not as cheap as doing it all on your own but they have hotels of all different levels and also provide guide services and other things that make it worth the money to me. very efficient and the staff are all very nice and professional.
In 2008 Bangkok Airways loses its monopoly and the budget airlines will be flying into Seam Reap from Thailand at at a more reasonable price. Probably 1/2 the price of BKk Air...
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I have never been on a bus in Cambodia but was pretty much cured of any further curiosity having taken the bus from Louangphrabang to Vientiane. It was a very interesting experience that I will not repeat. It was very reasonable, we took the first class bus, there were three buses, first, second and third. All leave about the same time.
I ate a very light breakfast and took a dramine. The bus seemed nice, then this cute Lao boy passed out these little plastic bags with a grin and no comment. Latter it became clear these were vomit bags. The distance did not look very long on the map and I could not figure how this trip would take 10 to 12 hours.
The first hour was OK but then we it the mountains. Hair-pin curves, pot holes and steep hills. The bus just barley made some of the hills and then the curves and bouncing and bouncing. I kept my breakfast down but the lady behind me began upchucking and that started a chain reaction until the bus had a ripe ode de vomit. The groans of farangs rang out as we transversed this very beautiful countryside. The views were astounding.
We stopped for lunch and to empty the vomit bags. Few ate anything.
We left at 0730 and got in just at dusk. I was very happy to have had the experience and see rural Lao from the bus but would not take the trip again if my life depended on it yet I recommend taking it one time if you have a strong stomach.
Just hopping on an express bus racing to Siam Reap at a bargain price is not advisable at all.
If you allow yourself some time and split the tour in two or three parts, it’s a very interesting jorney to do. And you will learn a lot about down to earth Thailand and Cambodia.
I have done this alone and with friends a few times back and forth. It always worked out nicely.
From Sieam Reap to Phnom Phen the boat is a very good and comfortable option but not the still bumpy road.
Thanks for the information guys, will now consider adding PP to the tour. Decided that due to time I'll be flying where possible although may take the bus from PP to REP.
One of you mentioned a flight from Chiang Mai to REP but can't find which airline flys this route.
cheers
Brian
Shot off my mouth I guess.Quote:
Originally Posted by BeardedBrian
You're right. You can't go direct but must make a stopover in Bangkok.
Purple Dragon used to have an overnight trip from PP to SR by private car. Don't know if they still do since the link on their website for that tour is broken.
Bangkokairways are now, from the end of the month, flying from Chiang Mai to Siem Reap at a cost of about 11,000 bht [for some reason they are not flying Siem Reap to CM]
looking at prices in Feb the cost from Bkk - CM -SR - BKK is approx 18-19,000 bht
bkk-sr-bkk approx 11,600 bht but would still need a return flight bkk to cm 5,500 bht = 17,000 bht
At the moment there is no information as to whether the cm-sr route is included or excluded from the discovery pass.
Bangkok Airways have always been in the rip off business, just look at the fares to Samui. (Fly to Surat Thani and take the coach from there to the island) When Siem Reap opens up to budget airlines that will be a great improvement.
Meanwhile Lao Airlines flies daily from Vientiane to Siem Reap by way of Pakse. Still expensive at $130, and $226 if you add Chiang Mai to Vientiane; you also need an overnight in Vientiane.
I plan on going from Chaing mai to Siem Riep, down to Pursat and then down to Pnom Phen and there to BKK. Did anyone find out if there ae direct flights to Siem Reip from CM? . It will be bus to Poipet i think.
Last thing I heared is that the CM - SR flight has been cancelled. So you might have to go back to BKK.
Consider going to Phnom Penh, flying Air Asia from BKK is very cheap, and to get to SR it is ony a 5 hours bus ride.
I live in Chiang Mai, and was delighted to learn there is a direct CM --> Siam Reap flight. Price: 13,000 baht one-way. THAT is about $420 for a short flight! Hey, my plan was to take my bf along, so let's make that 26,000 just to get to Siam Reap from Chiang Mai.
I decided to return from Phnom Penh to BKK -- 10,000 each one-way. Hm, there's another 20,000 baht. Getting back to Chiang Mai would eat up another 4,000.
Hm! 50,000 baht! $1600 just for the airfare -- we haven't even begin with hotels, restaurants, and shopping! And I was thinking to myself: "You know, I could just about take Aot to EUROPE for that amount of airfare. I mean, I used to buy round-trip tickets from the U.S. to Thailand for $1100!! And Cambodia is right next door!!
It wasn't a tough decision. We went to Bangkok, saw the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew (new for him!) and had a grand old time shopping in the shopping capital of the world.
Actually, I had another thought. "Screw the planes, I'll just DRIVE to the border." Hmm, guess what? Cambodia does not allow "private vehicles" into the country.
A long time ago, people said there would be a train from Thailand to Angkor Wat. I guess we're still waiting.
At least they have a miniature Angkhor Wat in Wat Phra Kaew, so we stood in front of that, snapped pictures, and PRETENDED that we had been to the real place! :-)
I suggest you do a search on Siem Reap here over the last two months, as all the relevant information on this has been covered pretty extensively recently and it would be repetitive to post it all again. A recent post on this, for example, is on the next page. Unless you have to, forget the bus - those leaving Vietnam do not look like the brochure!
Bangkok airways are still flying from CM - SR for 6000 bht. I flew this route at the begining of March - there were only about 20 passengers - we boarded and left early. Yes I admit that even at 6000bht it's not the cheapest way of getting there but it suited me.