By: Julio Moreno (Entrance to Angkor Archaeological Park: $20 for a 1 day pass, $40 for a 3-day pass, $60 for a 7 day pass / person. Tuk-Tuk Drivers: $8-$25 a day.) 
Simple “how to” [get there] quick walk though:
1) By bus from Phnom Penh ($5-$7 ): Any hotel (including the “Indochine 2 hotel”, recommended in the Phnom Penh article, check categories)can arrange a bus to take you to Siem Reap with pick up in front of the hotel. Also, almost any hotel (including the recommended “Golden Temple Villa”) can pick you up from where ever the bus drops you off or from the airport, free of charge. “Buses” can range from a large van, to an actual bus. Just make sure to contact your Siem Reap Hotel to tell them your time of arrival. Once in Siem Reap, your most economical choice is to get a tuk-tuk driver for the day ($8-$15 / day) (see recommendation below). He can take you to the Angkor area containing all the main temples, just tell him where to go first (you will be charged the prices at the top depending on which pass you want). Hint: Start with Angkor Wat.
2) By airplane from Siem Reap International Airport: Same as above, but have your hotel pick you up from the airport instead of the bus depot. When you arrive into Cambodia, you will be required to pay $20 for an entry visa to be processed. You will also be asked to bring with you 2 passport sized pictures with you [tip below]. When you leave, you will have to pay another $25 as an “exit visa”.
Skeezy Tip #1: While the passport pics are “required” my friend lost hers on route. Apparently, its only a $2 fine if you forget. That is cheaper than the $9 I paid in Korea and probably cheaper than passport pictures in most countries. They instead just make you take a picture with a digital camera they have.
Skeezy Tip #2: This applies to all of Cambodia. The US dollar and the Riel are used interchangeably with no problem at a street rate of 4000 Riel to 1 USD. If you are American, dont bother trading for Riel as you can consider the dollar the actual official currency, and the Riel as coins or change.
Story: The temples at Angkor were build from the 9th-15th centuries by the Khmer Empire, with all the main ones mentioned here built in the 12th-13th centuries. They were build to be the capital city of the empire, which moved between the Angkor locations depending on the time period and belief system.
Angkor Wat: Built in the 12th century, it is the largest of all the temples in Siem Reap. What is interesting to note, is that on the walls, there are many Hindu inspired drawings, while the rest of the temple has many Buddhas all over. This is because when the ruler of the Khmer died, sometimes, his successor was of the opposite religion. Angkor Wat served as a temple to the corresponding gods, thus a constant switch between Buddhist and Hindu influence. Angkor Wat was built during Hindu rule, thus the lower level walls are dominanted by Hindu legend, while the upper levels have many Buddhist statues. Not often shown in pictures is the existence of 2 libraries on the courtyard of the site, as Angkor Wat was also a place of learning.
The lower part of Angkor Wat, shows the story of a great battle in Hindu myth.
Ankor Thom (Bayon Wat): Is the famous temple with faces sculpted all around the towering spires. The area is massive and includes many smaller ruins, but the main attraction is Bayon, sometimes called Bayon Wat (Wat means temple). Bayon is the main central temple where on all four sides of almost every tower, there is a carved face. This was historically the last capital city of the Khmer, and a testament to Khmer art. Make sure not to miss the giant Buddha sculpture before entering the Bayon temple.
Ta Prohm: If you saw the Tomb Raider movie, you definitely are familiar with this temple. Personally, it was my favorite, as it has a more rugged look than the rest, with wilderness surrounding not just the outside of the temple, but growing as part of it too. This temple, is known for having many trees growing within the temple, giving it an other worldly look. This site has the distinction, like Angkor Wat, of being a university as well as a monastery.
Skeezy Tip #1: [For Angkor Wat] “Official Tour Guides” can only be reserved before you arrive at the site for about $25 for a single temple, and in high season, this can go up to $40. When you enter the gates at Angkor Wat (past the moat), you will see some shops on the (very) far left, selling anything you want, food, souvenirs, and if you ask, even tour guides. They aren’t the “trained professionals” the state sells, however, I purchased one for $10 (need to bargain) and he did quite a good job explaining the site. While $10 is a lot of money in Cambodia, the story is well worth the investment (and you came all this way!), as there are almost no plaques explaining anything in the site (or any of the sites for that matter). Quality can not be absolutely guaranteed, but everything he told me checked out once I got home and did my homework.
.
Skeezy Tip #2: The Tuk-Tuk driver I recommend below, Barang, has a surprising knowledge on the Angkor temples, and his English is better than most (including the official tour guides). Although drivers are forbidden from acting as tour guides, you can easily say he is your Cambodian friend who invited you to Cambodia and is showing you around. While I can’t guarantee that Barang will agree (as he is risking getting fined) it could be easily pulled off, as I noticed many foreigners in the sites with their Cambodian friends explaining the history. It would save you the $10 of the first skeezy tip.
.
Other places to go/ things to see:
.
The Floating Village of Konpong Phluk (~$12 plus tip): There is a large lake adjacent to Siem Reap, the largest in the country. You can get a half day tour to the floating villages, which is pretty much a city in the lake. There are two villages, one Cambodian, and one Vietnamese. The tour takes you around the village, and stops a while in the villages school.
A school on a boat. Sadly they didn't know the "I'm on a boat" song.
Students learning Vietnamese.
.
Skeezy Tip: There is what I believe to be a scam while heading to the school. The people giving you the tour will tell you that it is customary and it would be nice to bring the children of the school food and school supplies. Naturally, he knows a shop. The shop is, you guessed it, grossly overpriced, selling notebooks you find in the city for 25 cents, for $1 a piece. Same goes for the food. Oh and they only sell by the box (of 20) of both food and notebooks. Do yourself a favor and if you don’t want to feel duped, nor cheap, buy a few notebooks in the city before doing this tour.
.
The War Museum: While this is just a rag tag collection of Civil War weaponry tossed into a big empty lot and charging $3 to see it, how often do you get to take pictures holding rocket launchers (with the rocket on it) and all kinds of other weapons? There are just 2 guys in the front door and no one telling you to please “put that down”.
.
Street 63 (Not sure if I got the number right…its 60 something): This is a street where many Cambodians come and rent a spot (literally a square) to just have a beer and chill. This spans for a good 2-3 kilometers, and even has a fair in it. The food is also quite different from what you get in the city, and pretty cheap. You know you are in a place where not many tourists go when you are charged in Riel, and not dollars.
.
Night Clubs: There are 2 clubs everyone and their mother will recommend, “Temple Club” and “Angkor What?” which are in the downtown area. While they aren’t bad, and the music is generally American pop, and don’t expect to get a feel of a real “Cambodian club” in either of these. They are filled with foreigners, prostitutes, transvestites, and con artists.
.
1) Temple Club: Drinks are 2 for 1 (at $4 each) and is a lively place with traditional ‘Apsara’ dances on the second floor for free, and pretty good food. However, if you decide to dance with the locals, expect to be asked if you want to “boom boom” for $20 within minutes. The walls also have big screen TVs which show important sporting events.
On Pub Street (should have no problem finding it)
.
2) Angkor What?: Across the street of Temple club, and besides its darker venue, very similar too. Also has American pop, and similarly priced drinks. This club however doesn’t have the dining capacities of Temple club. One thing which makes it different is that anyone is allowed to write on the walls, which gives it a graffiti wall look.
On Pub Street (should have no problem finding it)
.
3) Zone One: In my attempt to find a more “Cambodian club” Barang (see below) showed me this place. A new, enormous club, some distance away from the downtown “pub street”. By the size of this place, I assume that electronica and house are more popular than pop amongst your average Cambodian. With lasers flying everywhere, you will not see many foreigners here, as most don’t venture this far from “pub street”. While a foreigner will be given the royal treatment, sadly your Cambodian friend(s) will be frisked like if this was an airport. This club also has an (expensive) Kareoke bar on the second level.
517 Tep Vong Street
Tel: 855 63 965 251
Logistics:
.
Airplane: Fly into either Phnom Penh, or Siem Reap. Use sites such as AirAsia.com, Kayak.com, Ctrip.com (chinese airlines only) or Cheapoair.com, as they consistently give the best rates.
.
Skeezy Tip #1: If you will visit more than just one city, you might want to consider buying a one way flight to one city, and flying out of your final destination. For example, you can buy a flight into Siem Reap, and out of Phnom Penh.
.
Skeezy Tip #2: Airasia.com offers extremely cheap one way flights within South East Asia. Sometimes as low as $10 for a flight.
.
Lodging:
.
1) Golden Temple Villa, as low as $13 a night for a single person.
This is a recommended spot because, while cheaper do exist, this comes in a very established place, with all the services (including free pick up), free internet access, and a complimentary 20 minute Khmer Massage. The massage room also offers additional massages at $3 an hour. Furthermore, there is a decent restaurant attached to the villa, with a complimentary pool table. The place is pretty central, and the rooms are quite beautiful and clean too (not something you want to risk here).
.
2) Hostels as cheap as 2USD a night
.
Transportation and Guides:
.
Tuk Tuk: A tuk tuk is a camper like cabin attached to a motorcycle, and the most common taxi type in Siem Reap, and other cities in South East Asia.
.
While transportation is usually not required in other tourist areas, as buses drop you off in front of sites, it is highly recommended here. Furthermore, none of the temples have any signs telling you about them, so a guide would be nice. I got just the guy for you:
.
1) Barang Hang (hangbarang@yahoo.com ,
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Barang-Hang-Cambodia-TukTuk-Driver/155971414415325 ,
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100001575593984) is a student (22 yrs old) who yearns to be a professional in tourism and hospitality. Furthermore, he is a young guy who will not only show you the temples, and other things around Siem Reap but if you so desire (totally up to you) he will go clubbing, drink and party with you too. He even took me to see his house, but again, the level of comfort and closeness is up to you. He also takes payment as a “whatever you think is fair” however, given he has become a personal friend, please dont rip him off. Take note that most tuk tuk drivers ask for $8-$15 a day (8 hours) and he usually does a lot more than 8 hours. This guy hung out with me, one day, until 4am, and was ready to take me to the next place at 9am the next morning!!! That kind of service is just phenomenal (pun not intended). Also, if you come with more than one person, the load on a tuk-tuk is heavier, thus more gas is spent (which isnt cheap in Cambodia). Keep that in mind when paying him.
All you have to do, is email him and ask if he and his tuk-tuk are available to show you around, and give him your dates, and hotel, he will pick you up! If he is unavailable for your date, he will surely have friends who will be available.
.
2) If for what ever reason, you dont trust my guy (shame on you) you could either ask your hotel to get one for you, or many tuk-tuk drivers hang out near the down town area.
.
Skeezy Tip #1: Many tuk-tuk drivers will quote you something, then try to charge you per person at the end of the trip. Make the cost clear before agreeing. (This isnt an issue with Barang)
.
Skeezy Tip #2: Some tuk-tuk drivers will agree for a rate, but change their mind and add more if you want to go to more distant temples, make clear where you want to go before agreeing (again this isnt an issue with Barang).
.
Skeezy Tip #3: The time in a “full day” is often just 8 hours, which really isnt a lot in Siem Reap, as the temples are huge. Make sure to start your day early, and make clear how long he is willing to stay up with you. (again, with Barang, dont worry about time).
.
3) To get an “official guide” for the temples, you must have your hotel make reservations with anticipation. Keep in mind, this is not necessary if you follow the Skeezy Tip on Angkor Wat above (or just ask Barang!)
.
Map:
Read Full Post »
Skeezy Planet Inc. 