How to get to Siem Reap and Angkor Wat

By plane

Next to Siem Reap is Siem Reap International Airport, and theoretically you can get there by plane. There are no direct flights to Cambodia from Russia.

Airlines operating flights to Siem Reap Airport:

• AirAsia (Kuala Lumpur)
• Asiana Airlines (Seoul)
• Bangkok Airways (Bangkok)
• Cambodia Angkor Air (Ho Chi Minh City, Phnom Penh)
• China Eastern Airlines (Kunming, Nanning)
• China Southern Airlines (Guangzhou))
• Jetstar Asia (Singapore)
• Korean Air (Seoul)
• Lao Airlines (Luang Prabang)
• Malaysia Airlines (Kuala Lumpur)
• Silk Air (Da Nang, Singapore)
• Vietnam Airlines (Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Luang Prabang)

A very popular and sought-after flight Bangkok-Siem Reap is carried out monopolistically only by Bangkok Airways, and the prices are correspondingly high. It is more profitable to fly from Bangkok with AirAsia low-cost airlines via Kuala Lumpur or fly to Phnom Penh, and from there you can get by bus or even taxi.

You can find and book flights to Siem Reap on the dates you need using the search form. The search is very flexible and allows you to find flights on different dates, with or without transfers, in both directions or one, etc.:

Prices for flights from Moscow to Siem Reap:

Minimum prices for flights from Russia to Siem Reap:

The airport is located just seven kilometers from the city (Siem Reap airport on the map), and it won't be difficult to get to the hotel. Many hotels offer a free transfer from the airport if you book a room with them. In this case, you will be met and taken to the door of the hotel.

You can get there yourself by taxi. A ride in an official taxi will cost $ 7.

When departing from the airport on a domestic flight, you will need to pay an airport fee of $ 12. The previously existing fee for international flights has been canceled from April 1, 2011!

By boat

Siem Reap can be reached by speedboat from Phnom Penh and Battambang, which arrives daily from/to Phnom Penh. Traveling by boat is very interesting, and we recommend using it if time and money allow you, but be prepared for inconvenience, since this is still a local, not a tourist transport. Most of the way will pass through Tonle Sap Lake, where you can see the life of fishermen and lake residents in floating villages, see wonderful river landscapes. Soviet-made "missiles" act as boats.

The cost of a trip from Phnom Penh is $ 35, travel time is 6 hours. Tickets, including a transfer to the pier in Phnom Penh, are sold at travel agencies and at the reception of hotels. Boats are shipped from pier in Phnom Penh daily at 7:30. In the dry season, boats go less often, and part of the way along the shallow river is replaced by a trip to the lake by bus. Sometimes in the dry season (especially in April-July) flights are canceled altogether.

From Battambang, the cost of the trip is $ 25, the travel time is 5 hours.

In Siem Reap, boats arrive at the pier 15 kilometers from the city. There are always taxis and tuk-tuks on duty there, ready to take you to the city.

There are also multi-day sightseeing routes from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap on traditional boats. Information about them can be obtained from travel agencies on the spot.

By bus

The cheapest way to get to Siem Reap from other cities in Cambodia or from neighboring Asian countries is by bus. Many carrier companies offer a huge number of routes. Prices for different companies vary slightly and, as a rule, are lower for local (Cambodian) carriers. Tickets can be purchased at travel agencies on the streets or at the hotel. The most popular route within Cambodia is from Phnom Penh. International routes are operated from Ho Chi Minh City (including composite from Mui Ne), Bangkok, Pattaya.

In general, buses are considered quite safe transport in Cambodia, but only during the day. Night trips in Cambodia are very dangerous and should be avoided.

From the cities of Cambodia

Direct routes or with a transfer can be reached from most cities in Cambodia. There are a lot of carrier companies, each with its own schedule, prices and places of departure / arrival. Most often, the departure/ arrival points are located in tourist areas or the price includes a transfer from the hotel to the place where the bus departs. The routes are mostly daytime (departure in the morning), but there are also night crossings that we do not recommend using.

The most popular route is from Phnom Penh. From Sihanoukville to Siem Reap, the route also passes through Phnom Penh.

Approximate cost and travel time for popular destinations:

• Phnom Penh-Siem Reap: $10, 6 hours;
• Battambang-Siem Reap: $10, 6 hours;
• Sianoukville-Siem Reap: $16, 10 hours.

From Vietnam to Siem Reap

You can get to Siem Reap by tourist bus from Ho Chi Minh City. There is also a composite route from Mui Ne, but in fact these are the same buses from Ho Chi Minh City, just you will be taken from Mui Ne to the place where the bus departs in Ho Chi Minh City. Buses depart from the tourist quarter of Ho Chi Minh City.

There are routes through Phnom Penh, as well as direct routes to Siem Reap itself. The cost of the trip is about $ 22 (depending on the company). Visa processing on arrival in Cambodia is carried out at the border.

From Thailand to Siem Reap

Until recently, air travel on the Bangkok-Siem Reap route was carried out by the only carrier Bangkok Airways at monopolistically high prices. But now flights from Bangkok's old Don Mueang Airport to Phnom Penh and Siem Reap are operated by budget Air Asia at very reasonable prices.

Crossing the border by land crossing (by bus or car) from Thailand to Siem Reap is most convenient through the Aranyaprathet-Poipet border crossing (Aranyapratet border crossing/Poipet on the map of Cambodia), which has long had a bad reputation among travelers due to cases of extortion by officials at the border (when applying for a visa and passing through customs control), "mafia taxi drivers", visa fraud, as well as many different kinds of scammers, pickpockets and other rabble" on duty" on both sides of the border. In recent years, the situation there has improved significantly, but there is still a chance to face "unforeseen expenses". To avoid unnecessary charges from the border guards, it is best to issue E-Visa to Cambodia in advance. The border crossing is open from 7:00 to 20:00.

Transfer by tourist bus

In travel agencies on the street you can find on sale a composite tourist transfer from Bangkok, Pattaya, about. Phuket, about. Koh Samui, Chang Island, etc. (see the schedule and directions in the photo) to Siem Reap and back. The cost of such trips is enticingly low, for example, from $ 14 to Bangkok (in August 2012). And at the same time you don't have to change the transport on your own on the way, everything seems to be organized for you. And you will actually get to the place, at least in most cases. But instead of the promised 8 hours on the road, you are almost guaranteed to drive much longer, and this is the best of the troubles that can happen to you. You can easily get lost somewhere on the road, your luggage may get lost, you will have to ride in a corner of the bus with crushed bags of cargo, you may be taken to the wrong place, you will have to wait for a transfer from bus to bus somewhere under the scorching sun, and you will have to change at least 4 buses. And all this can happen to you in one trip. Therefore, we highly recommend not to use such a move, but to get to the place on your own with transfers. One of the companies that deals with such transportation is Hang Tep Travel Co. We recommend avoiding travel by this company like fire.

Independent transfer by regular buses

In our opinion, the best and most reliable way to get to Siem Reap from Bangkok, Pattaya and other cities in Thailand is to travel by regular buses. At the same time, the route, in general, will look like this: moving to Aranyaprathet --> crossing the border to Poipet --> moving from Poipet to Siem Reap. Such a route has long been worked out and tested by many travelers, and there is nothing complicated about it.

• Transfer to Aranyaprathet You can get to Aranyaprathet from Bangkok and Pattaya by bus in about 4 hours and an average of 200 baht. You can get from Bangkok to Aranyaprathet with Bangkok Mochit North Station, and Ekkamai East Bus Terminal. Most often (almost every half hour) buses depart from the northern station. There is no need to purchase tickets in advance. The bus costs from 160 to 200 baht depending on the class (in August 2012. from the northern station, the 1st class bus cost 223 baht), and the journey time is 4-5 hours.

  There is also a bus route from Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport immediately to Aranyaprathet. This is bus No.390 which departs from the airport bus terminal (Public Transportation Center) and goes to the Rongklua Market station almost at the border with Cambodia (Aranyaprathet-Poipet border crossing). It costs a trip by bus number390,174 baht (currency of Thailand, exchange rate) and departs at 09:00 and 11:00, however, the schedule may change (as of March 2013 the bus departs at 07:40 on weekdays, and at 07:40 and 9:30 on weekends). In any case, the dispatch of this route is carried out in the first half of the day in order to have time to take tourists to the border before the border crossing closes.

  Buses arrive in Aranyaprat either at the city bus station (bus station on the map), or to the Rongkluea Market bus station (Rongkluea Market Station on the map). The second option is preferable, since the Rongkluea Market station is located right at the border, while from the Aranyaprateta bus station you will have to get about 5 kilometers by tuk-tuk for 60 baht. From Rongkluea Market to the border crossing can be reached on foot (800 meters) or by tuk-tuk for 20 baht per person. The walking route and the position of Rongkluea Market can be seen on the map.

• Crossing the border in Poipet. So, whatever station you arrive at, your task will be to get to the border crossing in one piece. Tuk-tukers will most likely take you to the office, where they will try to promote you to the "left" visa. How to avoid this, it is written Here.

  After passing all border and customs formalities after leaving the border crossing, you will find yourself just on the main street of Poipet, and not at any bus station.

• Atobus schedule from Poipet to Siem Reap

  Transfer from Poipet to Siem Reap. By some quirk that does not fit into any logic, the tourist bus terminal of Poipet (do not confuse this place with the bus station of Poipet) was built as much as 12 kilometers from the border crossing in the middle of desert fields (Poipeta Tourist Bus Terminal on the map). The station is huge and empty - another quirk. In order to get to it, you need to use the free bus, which constantly runs between the border crossing and the terminal. Minivans are sent from the occupancy terminal to Siem Reap for $ 10 per person (bargaining) with delivery to the hotel in Siem Reap, but delivery to the hotel should be agreed upon upon boarding, otherwise the driver will deliberately forget about it and drop you off on the outskirts of the city. Delivery to hotels in the city can be carried out with a transfer to tuk-tuks. You can also take a taxi from the bus station for $ 48 per car for four or $ 12 per person through the ticket office.

  Regular buses also depart from the terminal (see the schedule in the photo), including to Siem Reap for $ 9, but there is no special point in such a delay, since the cost is less than a minivan to the hotel by only $ 1.

  But try not to rush after leaving the border crossing to go straight to the tourist bus terminal of Poipet. It would be more optimal to find a taxi for $ 40 and even cheaper (you need to bargain) immediately upon leaving the border crossing, while it will be possible to find fellow travelers so that they share the cost with you (even the driver himself can do this, you will only need to wait a little). Here, however, there is a wiring, when the alleged taxi driver, under various pretexts, sends you on a free bus to the bus station (allegedly the car is there), and then they just put you in a minivan for $ 10 per person.

By train from Bangkok

From Bangkok, from the Hualamphong station, a train (like our train) departs twice a day to Aranyaprathet, the fare in which costs only 48 baht. The first train departs at 05:55 and arrives in Aranyaprathet at 11:35; the second train departs at 13:05 and arrives at 17:35. The first train is preferable, because on the second you may not have time to get to the border crossing, especially if you are traveling for the first time, and you will have to spend the night in Aranyaprateh. From the railway station in Aranyaprathet to the border crossing is easily accessible by tuk-tuk or taxi.

You can check the train schedule on the website https://www.railway.co.th/

When you get to Aranyaprathet and cross the border crossing to Poipet, then you need to follow the same as when moving by bus.

By taxi

From Phnom Penh (airport) you can get to Siem Reap by taxi in 4 hours and 80-100 dollars, but you have to bargain well.

You can get to the border crossing from Bangkok Suvarnabhumi airport and from Bangkok itself for 1800 baht, from Pattaya for 2200 baht.

Siem Reap Bus Schedule