Cambodia Thread 2

[bagaholic_chewy]

Maliit lang airport ng Siem Reap. Me mga nakita kami nakatambay sa may checkin counters, pero basically sa chairs lang natutulog.. wala ako napansin pay lounge or recliners. Sa arrival area, parang walang area to sleep doon.. medyo short walk lang kasi palabas..

Pero madami naman mura lodging in Siem Reap. Tapos mabilis lang travel to/from airport.

[entwife]

Hi sis. darating kasi kami ng around 10pm sa siem reap. then we plan to take a taxi to poipet border by 4-5am since 4 naman kami para sakto pag open ng immigration ng 7am.
We'll be doing the bkk-rep trip. We want to spend the first 2 days in Bangkok then the last 2 days in siem reap since yung return flight namin is from Siem reap to manila.

What do you advise na gawin namin from 10pm to 4am? Is it worth to get a room? Or sa airport na lang kasi kakain pa naman pag dating then kakain before umalis. I think we can sleep naman sa bus from border to bangkok since it's around 4-5 hours.

Pacensya na magulo hehe

[bagaholic_chewy]

^ oh I see.. alanganin nga if you get a room pa kasi maaga pala kayo aalis kinabukasan.. airport na nga lang kayo..

If 10pm ETA, makakalabas kayo by 10:30pm. Me kainan pagkalabas ng arrival area.. then walk kayo to the right going to departure area, then dun na lang kayo tambay.. very limited ang food options sa airport, kahit sa departure area..

Or.. if kaya nyong walang tulog.. you can take taxi/tuktuk from airport to Pub Street, if konti lang naman gamit nyo at ok lang bitbit nyo (usd5-10 one-way). Pwede pa-massage, kain, ikot around the area, etc. Medyo madalang taxi dun, so pwedeng yung masasakyan nyo from airport e kontratahin nyo na papuntang border, pasundo kayo (either from Pub Street or from airport) ng certain time. some establishments around Pub Street are open until 2am or so.. Tulog na lang kayo sa taxi pa-border or sa bus.

[entwife]

I'll take note of that sis. haggard lang yung trip namin. haha I thought enough na yung 5 days but the day trip overland is really consuming the time.

Naexcite ako sa Pub Street. Dami ko ng nabasang good reviews specially the $1 massage.

[bagaholic_chewy]

^ tantyahin nyo na lang pagdating if kaya pa ng powers nyo, hehe..
for foot massage, average price for 1hr is $3-$5. Baka express massage lang yung $1, hehe. Usually nasa $5 presyo, pero pwede tawaran to $3 or $4, especially if 2 or more kayo.

[sashikatkat]

hi sissies, baka may mairerecommend kaung tour guide for the Angkor Tour. Im still looking for one. tia

[bagaholic_chewy]

^ pa-assist ka sa hotel mo sis. Average rate for tour guide is $30/day.

[Mr.Punch]

To those who have been in Siem Reap recently, andun pa ba yung green net sa harap ng Angkor [textspeak!]?  (pampanira sa view)

[gorgeousmama]

^last july lang ako nandum parang d ko napansin parang andun pa ata

saka on going pa din yung mga construction

[sashikatkat]

  Sis do you know any tour guides in SR? budget is 20-25 USD. Gusto namin may guide during the temple tour. tia.

[a.k.a. HELGA]

^ Our guide during our 1day tour inside Angkor Complex was Chenla Mao. 25USD for 3pax na yun. He was recommended to us by Mr. Bovourn of Bou Savy Guesthouse.

For us ok siya kasi, he knows when to keep quiet and when to give us info. Ayoko din naman kasi ng uberloaded info pagdating sa history. He let us stop and enjoy each site and view kasama na syempre yung todo pictorial. Funny and parang kuya lang ang peg niya.

You can search online for his fb account (actually fb friend na namin siya)

[Mr.Punch]

^^ Our guide was Mr. Sam.  Actually, he was more of a driver than a guide.  He just dropped us off the entrance of the sites and pretty much just let us wander around while he stayed with the vehicle.  We'd return at a certain meeting place at an agreed-upon time after our "tour" and he'd give us ice cold water, wet tissue and even bought us traditional Khmer merienda (part of the package.).  He even let us experience a traditional Khmer rural lunch in faraway Koh Ker, which was also part of what we paid him.

If you want someone who will explain to you a lot of stuff about the temples, Mr. Sam is not for you.  If however, you like the idea of just roaming around without anyone tailing you, then Mr. Sam is perfect.  He also has FB, and you can PM me if you want his contact info.

[sashikatkat]

^ Our guide during our 1day tour inside Angkor Complex was Chenla Mao. 25USD for 3pax na yun. He was recommended to us by Mr. Bovourn of Bou Savy Guesthouse.

For us ok siya kasi, he knows when to keep quiet and when to give us info. Ayoko din naman kasi ng uberloaded info pagdating sa history. He let us stop and enjoy each site and view kasama na syempre yung todo pictorial. Funny and parang kuya lang ang peg niya.

You can search online for his fb account (actually fb friend na namin siya)

sa 25USD included naba doon yung sunrise sis? or may additional payment pa?

[curiouschellie]

hi sisses,

saw a deal on Cash Cash Pinoy, accommodations and airfare for around 10k. Though may block out dates nga lang. What do you think? Anything we should double check if we decide to push through?

[bagaholic_chewy]

^ is that per person, sis? And ilang nights? Me kasamang tours? Check mo din rates nung hotel na kasama sa voucher, etc  kasi mura lang hotels sa Siem Reap, a mala-3star hotel walking distance to Pub Street with buffet breakfast can cost you only about php2500, for 2pax na yun. And madami pa cheaper options (ask ka lang sa ibang sisses dito)..also check airfare price for your target travel date sa airline website. Baka makamura ka pa when you book on your own, less the hassle of fineprints and what-nots ng voucher.

[curiouschellie]

@sis bagaholic, straightforward naman yung nasa site. 9.5k for 3D2N, accommodations and airfare. not tours included.

ilang buwan ko na rin kasing binabantayan ang seat sales, dati pa nga ang flight IT na naiisip ko is Manila-Pnohm pehn, then Siem Reap-Manila kasi mas mura sya that way.. ewan ko ba bihira ang cebu pac seat sales ngayon for siem reap?

[entwife]

Is 5 days too long for siem reap?

[bagaholic_chewy]

^ I think so.. for me, 3 days is ok na..

^^ I suggest compare side-by-side how much airfare and accom when you book on your own, vs yung sa voucher. What I mean by "hassle" sa voucher is, for example, the blockout dates, o di kaya baka me certain fare type/class lang and if di available yun e babayad ka addl (also, anong airline and via Manila or Clark?), or me kasama bang breakfast and airport transfers yung sa hotel nila (to begin with, check also if the hotel is indeed strategically located). I heard some unpleasant stories kasi about some travel agencies na nag-o-offer sa mga group-buying sites, like pahirapan magbook/kumontak, me hidden charges, etc. If you feel confident wth the inclusions ng voucher, and super-malaki difference sa price compared to booking on your own, then by all means, buy it.

[entwife]

hi sis.  5 days yung trip namin. Kaso parang ayaw ng tita ko na mag bangkok kasi malayo daw. But I think I'll proceed with it, instead of staying in Siem Reap for 5 days.

[bagaholic_chewy]

^ well, you can book a nice hotel na me pool and other amenities para the other days e chillax na lang sa hotel, parang stay-cation, hehe.. or spend a day in Phnom Pehn. Or, option ba na mag-BKK ka then balikan mo na lang sya sa SR?