How to get to Siem Reap

Most travellers to Siem Reap go through the air route from either Phnom Penh or Bangkok and from Saigon to some degree. Then they take the overland travel from either city by taking the bus while some of them ride the boat that sails the Tonle Sap. Realizing perhaps the lifeblood given by tourism Cambodia built a spanking new airport 7.5 kilometers (4.5 miles) south of the city center. Albeit relatively smaller than most major airports in the world, Siem Reap International Airport exudes a charming compact feel with Angkorian figures that seem to set your mood as you enter the city.

If you are a citizen of any of the countries from ASEAN, then just your passport will suffice upon landing at any of Cambodia’s entry points. Otherwise, you would need a visa for US$20 which can be availed upon entry. A photocopy of your passport plus a passport-sized picture are needed to secure a 30-day tourist visa. For a speedier flow through customs and immigration, you could get the new e-visa offered by the government. Same required documents, only you need scanned copies emailed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and an extra US$5 as handling fee.

There are several airlines that fly into Siem Reap from Bangkok, Saigon, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Vientiane, Luang Prabang and even nearby Phnom Penh such as Bangkok Air, Vietnam Air, Air Asia, Jetstar, Thai Airways, to name a few. Bangkok Air and Vietnam Air fly daily to the city from their respective hubs in Bangkok and Saigon. From the airport in Siem Reap you can hail a motorbike taxi for US$2 or a car taxi for US$7. These rates are already cheap, but you can take a free ride if you notify your hotel of your arrival in advance.

Going to Siem Reap through Bangkok is a bit complicated because you may need to take a combination of buses, trains and vans, not to mention overland border crossings. Cambodia shares six border crossings with Thailand to the west, with the Poipet-Aranyaprathet crossing as the busiest. Your 465-kilometer (290 miles) nine-hour ride to Siem Reap starts at Bangkok’s Hualamphong train station. Show up at the station prior to the 5:55AM trip to Aranyaprathet (Aran) and buy the 58 Baht (US$1.86) ticket that will take you to the border in six hours. Alternatively, you can take a bus that departs from the Northern Bus Terminal in Morchit and purchase tickets from 140-196 Baht (US$4.48-6.27) for a four-hour ride to Aran.

Once you reach Aranyaprathet, you need to take a tuktuk or motorbike 15 kilometers to the border town of Poipet on the Cambodian side. Prepare 50-60 Baht (US$1.60-1.92) for this segment.

At the border, just try to breeze your way through the crowd and the numerous touts in the area and go inside the immigration building that operates between 7AM and 8PM. Have your passport ready including documents required for your visa on arrival. Just be mindful of possible bloated visa charges where some officers impose an additional US$5 or more on top of the US$20-25 legal cost, although cases like these are on the wane. Remember to deal only with officials as there as scammers trying to fleece money out of gullible tourists who avail of a fake Cambodian visa while at Aranyaprathet.

Upon reaching the frontier town of Poipet, look for a shuttle bus (US$1-2.50) that will take you to the bus station where four-hour bus rides to Siem Reap are waiting. The fare for this trip will cost you US$7-9. Some pickup trucks also ply this route with the same price.

The fastest means out of Poipet and into Siem Reap are van taxis. Also the most comfortable option, but tourists seem to pay US$20-25 more than the usual US$25 given to the locals. It would be best to ride in groups or with fellow travellers to split the cost of your 2.5 to 3-hour ride.

There are travel agents along Khao San and Sukhumvit Roads in Bangkok that sell package tickets to Siem Reap from 800-1000 Baht (US$25.60-32). These agencies will send you to the same bus lines that depart Bangkok between 7AM and 8AM for Aran four to five hours later. The drawback to this package is you are on your own to locate your bus once you cross into Poipet.

There is a marked difference between legit travel agencies in Bangkok and those that are fly-by-night. Be extra cautious when offered of a package (usually cheaper) that takes you into Siem Reap aboard “express” buses. What they offer is swift border crossings and carefree rides, when the reality is your trip gets delayed due to countless stopovers that force you to spend the night at their affiliate hotels.

Coming from the southeast in the capital Phnom Penh, you can take the bus to Siem Reap through National Highway 6 over a 314-kilometer (196 miles) five to six-hour ride. The five major bus companies operating on the Phnom Penh-Siem Reap route are the following:

• Phnom Penh Sorya (To Siem Reap 7:00AM-1:45PM, five departures. From Siem Reap, 7:00AM-1:30PM, five departures)
• Mailinh Group (To Siem Reap 7:00AM and 2:00PM. From Siem Reap, 7:00AM and 2:00PM, +855 63 762888)
• Mekong Express (To Siem Reap, 7:30AM-2:00PM, four departures. From Siem Reap, 7:00AM-12:30PM, four departures, +855 63 963662)
• Capitol Tours (Both ways, 6:30AM-1:30PM, six departures)
• Sokha Komar Tep (Both ways, 7:30AM-2:30PM, eight departures)

Most of these buses arrive and depart from the bus station at Chong Kov Sou near Phsar Leu (Upper Market) in Siem Reap. Fares cost between 16,000 riel (US$3.70) for basic to US$10 for deluxe rides.

Highway mishaps involving buses are not uncommon in Cambodia where news about serious accidents comes up occasionally, with many tourists as victims. Although it will surely consume a lot of your time, taking daytime buses between Phnom Penh and Siem Reap will be the best option when drivers are more alert. Other forms of transport between the two cities are shared and private taxis that cost between US$10 and $50. Riding the motorbike is used by some but this could pose more challenge as you traverse the entire length of the busy and hectic Cambodian highway.

Years back almost the entire length of roads leading to Siem Reap are dusty, pothole-filled highways. Nowadays though, conditions have changed and roads are sealed and paved well which results to faster travel between major towns.

Not known to a lot of travellers is a ferry service that plies Tonle Sap, the largest lake in Southeast Asia. For the better part of the year from July to March, boats sail daily through the river that swells into a huge lake during the monsoon season. The terminus at Chong Kneas, 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) south of Siem Reap becomes another short boat ride when the waters get shallow during the dry season. Sometimes the ferry service is suspended when the river becomes dried up.

Show up early at the port in Phnom Penh along Sisowath Quay near Street 104 because the only trip of the day departs at 7:30AM. The four to six hour 250-kilometer (156 miles) ride will cost you between US$25 and $35. Ferry rides are often noisy offering varying levels of comfort, and although they are safe overall, they do not usually meet global safety standards. At the port near Siem Reap, motorbike and car taxis can be taken for a ride into town.