"Kingdom of Cambodia's Capitol City" Top 5 Page for this destination Phnom Penh by Etoile2B

Phnom Penh Travel Guide: 1,425 reviews and 3,746 photos

The Independence Monument in Phnom Penh - Phnom Penh

The Start of Our Asian Advenure!

Marc had been talking about Vietnam and Cambodia ever since we canceled Venezuela but as we looked into last minute flights it just didn’t seem financially possible. So we concentrated our efforts elsewhere. I had been dreaming about Latin America, last minute flights to Central America were cheap and we didn’t need visas so we started looking hard at Nicaragua. Our window of opportunity was growing slim, so we needed to book and leave quickly. My show was wrapping on Friday and I had a little over a month free until my next job started. Yet Marc was still fantasizing about Vietnam so on a whim we made a phone call to United Airlines and by some stroke of luck they had two seats available through frequent flier miles leaving on Wednesday to Bangkok. We didn’t have Vietnamese visas secured, nor did we have the time at this point to procure them at home so we booked flights into Bangkok and out of Ho Chi Mien City and crossed our fingers that we could easily obtain the proper visas in Cambodia.

I raced home from work that evening, my heart pumping adrenaline through my system. It wouldn’t be real until I had the tickets in my hands. Marc and I went directly to the United ticket counter at LAX – the final step in securing our tickets. I could barely contain my excitement as the agent handed them over to us. It was finally becoming a reality. We stopped by a local bookstore on the way home from the airport and camped out in an alcove, surrounded by every travel guide we could find relating to our trip. When we settled on the texts we thought fit us best we also searched for some relating novels. Much to my dismay, much of the related literature focused on war and violence. I was hoping for something a little more literary and the one book relating to conflict that I was interested in reading, “Surviving The Killing Fields”, was out of print. Instead we picked up “The Lover” by Marguerite Duras and “Catfish And Mandala: A Two-Wheeled Voyage Through the Landscape and Memory of Vietnam” by Andrew X. Pham for our journey.

Our flight was only five days away and we had much to do to prepare, like hit REI for supplies and get vaccinated. Thankfully that hardly left any time to dwell on the fact that this was our first trip together and after all, we had only known each other for about 7 months so a month in Southeast Asia could be quite a test. Would our travel styles really mesh? How would we deal with the lack of planning? We only had our tickets to and from The States booked thus far. Could we stand each other 24/7 for an entire month? Would we still like each other when we returned home? None of that mattered at that moment, because we were going and in all honesty if we discovered that we weren’t compatible on the flight to Bangkok we could just split up and meet again on the return flight, right?

Our Travelogue starts here and continues on our Phnom Penh travalogue pages...

Last visit to Phnom Penh: Feb 2007
Intro Updated Oct 3, 2007
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Reviews (22)

Ice Cubes Local Customs (1)

As most tourists know, it is not advised to drink anything but bottled water while in Cambodia. But the ice in country... more travel advice

The Royal Residence Things to Do (4)

The Royal Residence (Preah Barom Reachea Vaeng Chaktomuk) is one of the favorite attractions with visitors to Phnom... more travel advice

The Dhammasala from the side of the Silver Pagoda - Phnom Penh

The Silver Pagoda & The Emerald Buddha Things to Do (4)

One of the major tourists attractions in Phnom Penh is the Silver Pagoda. Admission to the Royal Residence includes the... more travel advice

The first pit stop on the way to Siem Reap. - Phnom Penh

Getting to Siem Reap Transportation (7)

The cheapest way to get from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap is by bus. There are a variety of busses to choose from and they... more travel advice

Travelogues (2)

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Comments (10)

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easterntrekker Jan 4, 2011 at 5:42 PM

Sounds like you had a great trip.I've book marked many of your pages to help prepare for our trip in a few weeks.
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planxty Feb 17, 2010 at 3:00 AM

Hollie, great PP page. I am there again at the moment and your tips have been most useful (mine to be done yet!). fergy.
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BillNJ Mar 29, 2009 at 3:48 PM

Very helpful information about Phnom Penh. I am planning a trip to Thailand -- and still deciding whether I will visit someplace else (such as Cambodia and/or Vietnam). Cheers!
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ricky52 Sep 11, 2008 at 8:24 AM

No matter where you are in the world, the tuk tuk is always fun to ride. Great pages and tips.
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victorwkf May 17, 2008 at 10:12 AM

Very good information on Phnom Penh! I may be visiting it in the next few months and your tips will be useful :)
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volopolo Mar 29, 2008 at 11:59 AM

Love to visit Cambodia in my next travel in South East Asia!
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Lunaina Mar 10, 2008 at 10:25 AM

Great tips!!! Really looking forward to visiting Phnom Penh!!!
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izamacedo Dec 12, 2007 at 6:27 AM

thanks for the many recommendations. great comments.
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Stekmer Nov 10, 2007 at 8:57 PM

I think it's well worth planning ahead to take advantage of cheap AirAsia flights. I have just booked a return flight from Bangkok to Phnom Phen for US$95
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Jim_Eliason Sep 25, 2007 at 9:08 PM

great tips!