Cambodia

[Aposterhasnoname]

Thinking of going to Cambodia next February, four nights in Siem Reap, a couple of nights in Penom Penh, then we want to go somewhere to relax for a week or so, but where? We want a nice beach, but also some sort of life outside the hotel, a handful of bars and restaurants in walking distance will be fine not looking for nightclubs or anything like that. Thought about Koh Rong, but that looks too quiet round the nicer hotels, in Kep, the beach doesn’t look up to much. Are we wrong about that? Maybe the Phu Quoc islands, is that doable? Has anyone got any suggestions of somewhere that meets these requirements please?

Sorry, no advice, but shamelessly following as we will be going to Siem Reap next week.

Oh are you? Please, please, please come back and give me the full low down when you get back. I want to know every detail and tip please.

Can’t help with Cambodia beaches (although the islands look lovely) but personally I wouldn’t bother with Phu Quoc - especially if, as I suspect, it’s a hassle to get to as it’s a different country - very overdeveloped now and the beaches aren’t particularly special.

I’d look at Koh Rong Sanleom (which is the more chilled one!). Went in 2018 and stayed at a place called Lazy Beach which was wonderful and low key and spans the whole of a beautiful sandy beach. Great sunsets and phosphorescent waters. The chalets are fairly basic though so if you want something a bit more jazzy would recommend looking at options on Saracen Bay (which is an easy rainforest walk to Lazy Beach, so you can still meander there for a beer and sunset view should you fancy).

You do have to go to Sihanoukville to get to the islands, which is an overdeveloped mess, but worth it!

@Aposterhasnoname Will do!

It's our first time in that part of the world, and we will mostly be in Thailand, but we have 3 days in Siem Reap. Very excited.

Thanks everyone, will look at Saracen bay

@FloatyGoaty Sorry for bringing up an old thread, but wondered how you got on in Cambodia? We're looking to book for myself and DH and 3 year old DS, wondered if suitable for family travelling?

Just don't travel family-style !
Dad drives a motor bike, 3 year old stands on seat behind with arms around Dad's neck, Mum rides at the back holding on to childs legs to make sure he's safe.

I saw families of five doing the school run, no helmets and the kids sucking lolly pops! I was a complete nervous wreck watching them!

Add the baby in the sling and the dog on the footplate

Yes, I thought the krama tied betweem the handlebars was a good way of taking the shopping home, until I got a closer look at a newborn !

@OneOrTheOther

We had an absolutely brilliant time. Loved Cambodia. Really friendly people and amazing food. We weren't travelling with kids, but I'd have no hesitation going there with the grand-kids one day.

We did book a guide for Angkor Wat which I wouldn't do again. He was very friendly and knowledgeable but went into far too much detail and we ended up cutting the day short as we were overloaded with historical facts when I would have preferred just to wander about by ourselves.

That's really helpful!, thank you

You forgot about the dog! Sitting in front, paws on handlebars.

I live around this part of the world and I really wouldn’t recommend Cambodia with a child that age. There is nothing for them to do at all and it’s a really “give us your money rich westerners” “fake-nice to tourists” sort of place. The nice places are very overpriced compared to Europe and the money doesn’t reach the workers who are barely subsisting. Plus it has a shocking rate of child trafficking and child exploitation and ineffective police. You are also very far from decent hospitals if your child has any accidents (the nearest with decent facilities are in Thailand). I’d recommend Malaysia, Japan or Thailand over Cambodia for kids (or China if you can get a visa). If you want to see lots of similar stuff in a much more developed country with a better attitude to tourists, go for Thailand, you can even see many passengers on scooters there as well.

Thanks Darragon, it's good to have a different perspective. Our DC will be happy enough following mum and dad around seeing temples, climbing rocks, seeing local markets, etc etc, so I'm not that concerned that there's not much for a child to do - he'll do whatever we are doing to be honest!

Equally not too concerned about luxury hotels, and not a naive enough traveller to think any country we choose to go to is free from moral or ethical concerns.

Thank you though

If you have roughly 5-7 days in Cambodia after seeing Phnom Penh and Siem Riep/Angkor Wat and you want to relax, Kep and its offshore island Koh Tonsay might suffice and are easy to reach. I'd also look at Koh Rong Sanloem (not just Saracen Bay), Koh Rong, Koh Ta Kiev, and Koh Sdach. Or, if you want something more upscale and geared more to foreign travelers, Koh Russeh or Otres. With the time you have, though, I'd go beyond these two, maybe use them for night or two if you need a little luxury at some point in your trip.

Add on Thai beach. Easy flight from Cambodia and faster than the trek to the islands in Cambodia! Cab distance from Bangkok airports - Koh Samet, or flight to Trang and onto Koh Chang or Koh Kood by ferry. 12Goasia can sort any boat and transfer transport easily. There are various flights from Cambodia onto Thailand domestic airports. For Cambodia, 3 nights at each location is sufficient.