As a kid growing up in the 1980’s in East Baltimore, I had no awareness of Cambodia. Our neighborhood was working class, and it was the pre-Internet era. We had World maps hanging in our schools, but even these were not entirely reliable because they were often out of date. Especially after 1989 and the fall of the Iron Curtain, much had changed in the World.
We kids were aware of the major players on the globe: France and England, China and Japan, India. Of course everyone was aware of Vietnam, most of us having a relative who had served. It was common growing up to see the POW/MIA flag displayed, to see Vietnam vets in parades, and movies about the war. If you had looked at one of the maps hanging in my small Catholic school, and tried to find Vietnam you would have seen both North and. South. Cambodia would not have been found on the border. It was labeled as Kampuchea more often than not.
Where’s the Money? This site may contain affiliate links. Many travel sites include such links to earn a commission at no cost to readers.
Holiday In Cambodia
My first real awareness of Cambodia was hearing the Dead Kennedys song. Holiday in Cambodia was released in May 1980, only about 5 months after the fall of the Khmer Rouge. The point that singer Jello Biafra is trying to make with the lyrics is that many American college students of the upper-middle class are highly privileged and pampered. Their limited worldview and knowledge of events outside campus life and pop culture contrast poorly with their peers overseas. Given a different set of circumstances, a comfortable life could become unbearable.
It was absurd at the time to think of booking a hotel in Cambodia. Even by the time I first heard the track around 1993, traveling there would have been difficult or impossible. ‘War-torn’ would have been a very accurate way to describe Cambodia then. Not only had it suffered the genocide of the Khmer Rouge but there was the occupation by Vietnam to topple that regime, not to mention years of bombing campaigns by the US during the Vietnam War. Rural areas throughout the country were covered in 5-10 million landmines. Efforts to locate and remove them are still ongoing, but in the years following the wars the threat posed by mines was acute, with tens of thousands killed or injured annually.
A Changing World
Thirty years later the Internet exists. Flights are cheaper than ever. Not only is it possible to visit Cambodia but you can access the reviews and photos of countless tourists, YouTubers and bloggers. Someone planning a trip in 2023 can curate a full list of activities down to the last detail, without a single call to a travel agent.
Personally, it was an adjustment for me to shift from thinking of Cambodia as a place less like Myanmar and more like Thailand. As much as it would shock my teenage self to book a flight to Phnom Penh, my adult brain understands that the only way to really know is to go.
As you can see in the photos above, this third world country has some first class accommodations to offer. If you do aim to tailor your experience in Cambodia it can range from a ragged hut in the countryside to a five star hotel in the bustling capital city.
How to Obtain a Cambodian e-Visa
Getting a tourist visa for Cambodia is straightforward and easy. Visit their official government website to start the process.
The biggest headache in the application is that you need a passport photo separate from the one that is on your actual passport. So if you haven’t got it you will need to go have a photo taken. Also the photo has to be rectangular to meet their exact size requirements. What I did was scan a standard square photo into my computer and then crop the sides, which worked for the application.
There is a space on the application to attach a hotel reservation. I am not sure if this is strictly required. If you aren’t sure about the exact date of your visit or you want maximum flexibility you can make a dummy hotel booking for the same date you are applying to the visa. Just make sure it’s free to cancel. I did this on my application successfully.
The cost is $36. The visa is usually issued via email within a week of application. It is good for 30 days and you can enter within 30 days of the date listed on your visa. e.g. If your visa starts March 1 you can enter as late as March 30 and then stay until April 29.
Cash is King in Phnom Penh
You should not bother exchanging any money. US dollars are king in Cambodia and everyone takes them. And cash is all they take. Even the fanciest restaurants I could find did not accept credit cards. I was not able to make any progress at all here toward earning a bonus on my Chase Sapphire Preferred. You can pay for hotels and experiences with a credit card by booking online. I would not count on being able to show up at those same hotels and swipe a card though.
It is a good idea to keep some cash in your hotel safe in crisp new bills. We don’t often think of it as Americans but locals in many third world countries are very particular about the condition of the bills they will accept. You can fight them on it but it is not a fight you are going to win. If you are receiving change you should check the condition of those bills carefully. It is not as big a deal with US bills because we can always just take them home and use them wherever. But condition is important for Cambodian riels too.
Sometimes you will pay with dollars and they will try to give you change in riels. This is a fight you can win and you should not accept change in riels unless it is in the smallest amounts. There are 4000 riels to a dollar so they are pretty worthless. If you have them you will need to spend them all because money changers outside Cambodia will not be accepting them, even in neighboring countries.
Where to Stay in Phnom Penh
For all intents and purposes Wat Ounalom is the center of the city. The Buddhist monastery (pictured in featured image) is the holiest site in Cambodian Buddhism. How did they get such good real estate? By showing up early. The temple predates Columbus’ sailing to the New World.
Along the riverfront in this area is a broad and lively promenade that is enjoyed by locals and tourists alike. It’s home to a variety of bars, restaurants and coffee shops, including chains like Starbucks and places catering to Western tastes. There are several hotels near the promenade at all price points. The Hyatt Regency is about as fancy as it gets in Phnom Penh at around $140 per night. I spent part of my time in the Angkor Mithona Guesthouse, which I didn’t care for although the location is fantastic. At just over $20 per night the price was not one of my complaints.
The Amanjaya Pancam Suites Hotel is right next door to the wat and is at ground zero of any hotel search. At about $85 per night it’s not cheap by Cambodian standards, but certainly not out of range for most American visitors. This is a four star hotel with river views in a perfect location for the price of a Super 8 in Ohio. I would recommend spending at least a few nights here. Even if you are trying to stick to a more modest budget the hotel is worth a visit for the Le Moon Rooftop bar and restaurant five floors above the promenade. The views are fantastic, especially at sunset. The place has an upscale vibe but is very casual and affordable. Heinekens are offered at 2-for-1 daily during happy hour.
Phnom Penh is Huge
Looking at the map above, most visitors will want to focus on the area from the river to six block west. Look north of Preah Sihanouk Blvd and south of Wat Phnom, the green traffic circle that’s labeled. Another place to look is around the Central Market. I stayed on the market square and enjoyed that location as well. Additionally you may want to look around the area of the Olympic Stadium. That part of town is very businesslike/diplomatic in nature and home to modern shopping malls.
It is easy to forget that Phnom Penh is a very large city. While a number of Asian mega-cities are much larger, Phnom Penh is home to over 2 million people. At over 260 square miles is it right in between New York and Chicago by area. Directions are not available on smartphone maps so it can be difficult to know exactly how far away things are. What looks close on the map might be several miles away. These are not easy miles to walk either, with cars parked on every square inch of sidewalk.
Getting Around in Phnom Penh
When you do walk in Phnom Penh most of your footsteps will be in the street. The tropical climate means that heat and humidity are a constant. One walks here there same way people walk in New Orleans: saunter around in the morning or evening but take your time and don’t actually try to trek from point A to point B.
For most trips around the city you are going to want to take a tuk tuk ride. There are no trains. As a foreigner you probably won’t want to learn about the bus unless you’re staying for an extended period. There are lots of motorbikes in Phnom Penh, but not the bike taxis common in Bangkok and Saigon. That leaves tuk tuks and cars as the best option unless you want to rent a motorbike online.
Download Grab before you go to Asia. It is their version of Uber and I can’t recommend it enough. The same app works across every country you’ll visit. Using Grab eliminates the language barrier. There can be no confusion about the destination because you enter it yourself on the map. In Cambodia you can choose either a car or a tuk tuk for each trip.
Both options are cheap, but the tuk tuks are very cheap, with some fares as low as $1. An advantage with Grab is that you get the price upfront and it will always be the lowest. Especially around the promenade, hailing a tuk tuk in person might have the driver charging you whatever he thinks he can get away with, or expecting you to haggle. Grab is much simpler and another opportunity to indirectly pay with a credit card. You can use it cash-free or select an option to pay cash for the ride.
How’s The Food?
I didn’t care for it to be honest. Phnom Penh is tough sledding for vegetarians. That is not to say that you wouldn’t like it. You might love it. There is a lot of street food everywhere and mostly it is similar to what you can find in Thailand. I’d say it’s probably a little more adventurous. There are a number of food tours and cooking classes available. I haven’t got many photos to share because it’s very rude to go pointing your phone at someone’s cart or grill to take photos and then not buy any of what they are selling. Please be mindful of that wherever you go in the world. Khmer Restaurants are cheap with entrees running around $3.00.
As mentioned above there are Western options along the Promenade. I found some good Indian and Middle Eastern restaurants near the river too. Phnom Penh has a number of rooftop restaurants. These places are about as fancy as it gets in Cambodia but drinks and entrees are very affordable compared to similar places in the US. Dinner for two with drinks will be around $50-60. Tipping is not expected there.
The best meal I had during my time in the country was from the Indonesian restaurant pictured above. It is located right next to the Le Moon Rooftop. I am barely even familiar with Indonesian food. I certainly didn’t find any on the beach in Bali. But it was great. Sort of like Soul Food through an Asian lens with plenty of vegetarian choices for just a couple dollars.
If all else fails there are a ton of convenience stores around where you’ll find instant noodles and snacks. You can also find liquor here but it is slim pickings. Cheap vodka plus juice or soda is about as good as it gets. You’ll be in these stores several times a day buying water anyway so stock up at will.
What About the Red Light District?
There are several blocks near the river promenade that are made up entirely of girlie bars. I don’t need to describe the location, you will definitely find them. An overview what to expect from this sort of nightlife is far beyond the scope of this post. You’ll have to keep Googling if you’re after that info. My impression was that these bars are a lot seedier than the ones in Thailand. If cavorting is on your agenda you will probably be better off in Pattaya.
The bars in Pattaya are clean and comfortable. They’re airy and you can go there just to drink, or see sports on TV or shoot pool. The girls in the bars in Phnom Penh are pretty surly. They are mostly just going to sit there and stare at you awkwardly while you have your beer. Most of these bars aren’t much more than a beer cooler with one brand in it. The whole experience is kind of like having a drink at Moe’s Tavern, but with a bunch of Cambodian prostitutes trying to decide whether to hustle you or whether you’re not worth snapping out of their lethargy.
The city and the visitor’s experience in it would be much improved if the number of these bars was cut by half or maybe two thirds. It is difficult to understand how these places are staying in business. They are largely empty of customers all day and most of the night. Gentrifying this area with a better class of merchants would be a boon to tourism, and even at 1/3 there would still be plenty of beer bars and girls to go around.
What To Do In Phnom Penh
I’ve already mentioned the Promenade, the rooftop restaurants and some of the many Buddhist sites in the city. There are separate posts here about the Factory and the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. It isn’t difficult to locate various shopping and sightseeing activities, and the food is all around you. Taking boat rides on the river is very popular.
But mostly Phnom Penh is a place for independent exploration, on foot or in the tuk tuk. Walking around the city you really do get the sense that you have no idea what might be around the next corner. Modern offices and western hotel brands are all mixed up and jumbled with little local storefronts and rooming houses of the working class.
It is easy to get yourself away from the riverfront and into the larger city. Once you do there is no end of streets to walk down and places to find. It wasn’t tourism that brought the Khmers back from the edge of genocide. They are friendly and welcoming, but ultimately they don’t care if you are there or not. It’s easy to blend into the fabric of the city here. You can go around anywhere and the only ones who will really take note are the tuk tuk drivers wanting to give you a ride.
The area reflected on the map in this post is very large, and would take considerable time to see. I was in the city for a week and didn’t even make it to the island in the river, which will be high on my list for a return trip.
There Is So Much More To See
I will be making a return trip to Cambodia eventually. Whether this is your first trip or not you should plan to get out and see things beyond the capital. The country gives visitors a sense of exploring in a place that is truly out of the way and exotic. But unlike Brunei or Papua New Guinea flights to Phnom Penh are cheap from most Asian cities. Don’t sleep on it. You should plan to use most or all of a 30 day visa.
I believe it is a mistake to visit a country just for the sake of getting another stamp in your passport. No one at a party cares if you say you have been to 15 countries or 40 countries. If truly experiencing a region’s culture and a wide variety of offerings is your goal, you should see Phnom Penh, and also Angkor Wat and Siem Reap, the islands and Sihanoukville. And as much as possible in between.
I didn’t visit Angkor Wat on this trip. I was very much on the fence about it and wasn’t sure if the trip was worth it. The blogs and YouTubers say it’s great, but it is hard to know how trustworthy they are when the goal is primarily clicks and engagement. But everyone I have talked to offline who’s seen Angkor Wat has spoken highly of it. I’m sorry now that I didn’t go. When I do, you can find a post about it here.
