Seven Warm Winter Destinations - #5 Easy Cambodia
Looking for a winter destination that's sunny and warm? Cambodia is easy to arrange. Do it on your own with help from Lonely Planet (most tourists seemed to be carrying a copy) or one of the many websites available. Prefer group travel? Check out Adventure Center (on the side bar who booked our "Heart of Cambodia" tour), Intrepid Travel (bookable through Adventure Center), iExplore, GAP Adventures to name a few.
Cambodia has good food, gorgeous hotels ranging from extreme luxury (Raffles) to rock bottom, and friendly, helpful people. The country shares borders on the north with Thailand and Laos, and Vietnam on the east. The main historical site is the Khmer temples of Angkor Wat. Head south to Sihanoukville for beaches. Cambodia is another inexpensive country to visit. Read through past posts on TWS detailing the entire "Heart of Cambodia" Adventure Center trip...
What to see and do?
- Angkor Wat is the major highlight of anyone's visit to Cambodia. Angkor Wat is really a series of cities built between 9th-13th centuries by Khmer kings. You will not be alone here. Thousands of tourists pour out of the main complex every morning after watching the sunrise. It does become difficult to keep your interest level up after seeing five temples in one day. My favorites were Angkor Thom (The Bayon) and Banteay Srey rather than Angkor Wat itself. Go and decide for yourself;
- Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia, has the Art Deco Central Market, tuk-tuks, and sidewalk cafes aplenty on Sisowath Quay overlooking the Tonle Sap River. The Royal Palace has the incredible Silver Pagoda filled with too many Buddhas and statues to count in silver, gold and diamonds. Other "must sees" for us were the Killing Fields and Genocide Museum (formerly the Khmer Rouge's main torture and interrogation center). On the opposite end of the spectrum, you can do yourself up as an Apsara at a photography studio. Great fun...watch the video below...;
- Sihanoukville, in the south, has pristine offshore islands and beaches around the headlands. Go now because it will eventually become another Phuket (because of the crowds and higher prices). Take a look at the cost to stay in Sihanoukville now...View image... Swimming, snorkeling and relaxing is why you come to Sihanoukville. But as long as you're there, have a Seeing Hands Massage. The masseuses are all blind and a very painful 1-1/2 hour (felt wonderful the next day) Japanese Am Shiatsu massage was $7.50 U.S. ;
- Siem Riep. This is where you stay while visiting the various Angkor Wat complexes. Formerly, a little provincial town, Siem Riep is a with-it, happening place. Great restaurants, nightlife and the Central Market...a boom town. Have a massage at "Dr. Feet," pick a restaurant or bar on Pub Street, stop for the best ice cream at the Blue Pumpkin. Loved Siem Riep; and
- There is one other "unusual experience" available in Cambodia. Try a crunchy, fried frog, snake or big, black Tarantula. Emphatically not for me!
Basic Information?
- Need a Cambodian Visa. Obtainable at main entry points or online to get an e-Visa;
- Use the ATM's;
- No major problems with food or water as long as you use common sense. Drink bottled water, don't eat raw foods, "cook, peel or forget it...yadda...yadda." I didn't follow my own advice when it came to eating fish and paid the price as did others in the group. Who knows how long the fish was either sitting in the sun or not refrigerated properly. After that experience, stayed away from all seafood; and
- Drugs can freely be had in Sihanoukville with "Happy Pizza," and "Happy" anything being advertised up and down the beaches. Watch out. If you do buy drugs, it may be a set-up and, if so, prepare to spend years in a Cambodian jail. Not a "Happy" thought.
Now...wasn't that easy?
