History
Following a five-year struggle, Communist Khmer Rouge forces captured Phnom Penh in 1975 and ordered the evacuation of all cities and towns. Over 1 million displaced people died from execution or enforced hardships. A 1978 Vietnamese invasion drove the Khmer Rouge into the countryside and touched off 13 years of fighting. As a result of the devastating politics of the Khmer Rouge regime, there was virtually no infrastructure left. Institutions of higher education, money, and all forms of commerce industries were non-existent in 1978, so the country had to be built up from nothing. UN-sponsored elections in 1993 helped restore some semblance of normalcy, as did the rapid diminishment of the Khmer Rouge in the mid-1990s. A coalition government, formed after national elections in 1998, brought renewed political stability and the surrender of remaining Khmer Rouge forces.

The Cambodian government now offers an e-Visa service that allows you to apply online. However, in practice this is effectively useless, as the e-Visa costs more (US$25 instead of US$20) and is valid only at the Phnom Penh and Siem Reap airports, where you can easily obtain a visa on arrival anyway.

International departure tax From both Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, the surcharge is a steep US$25.

Phnom Penh International Airport (previously Pochentong International Airport) and Siem Reap - Angkor International Airport are the two airports used for travel to and from Cambodia. Travellers going specifically to visit the Angkor temple ruins may prefer to use Siem Reap as it's only a few minutes away from the main sites.

Direct flights connect Phnom Penh with China (Guangzhou | Hong Kong | Shanghai), Laos (Vientiane), Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur), Singapore, Taiwan (Taipei), Thailand (Bangkok) and Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City).

Direct flights connect Siem Reap with Laos (Pakse | Vientiane), Singapore, Taiwan (Kaohsiung | Taipei), Thailand (Bangkok | U-Tapao (Sattahip/Pattaya)) and Vietnam (Danang | Ho Chi Minh City).

Low-cost carrier Air Asia have introduced flights from Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur to Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, while JetStar Asia has begun flying between Singapore, Siem Reap and Phnom Penh.

Other airlines operating flights to/from Cambodia include Asiana Airlines, Bangkok Airways, China Southern Airlines, Dragonair, Eva Airways, Lao Airlines, Malaysia Airlines (MAS), Shanghai Airlines, Siem Reap Airways (a subsidiary of Bangkok Airways), SilkAir, Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways International, and Vietnam Airlines.

Scam alert Beware of scams when entering Cambodia overland. Most common is the inflation of the visa fee from the official US$20 to 1000 baht (US$25) or more - you may want to get your visa in advance from a Cambodian embassy or consulate in order to avoid this. Past scams have included fines for not presenting a vaccination certification (even though this is not mandatory), charging 50 baht for a (bogus) SARS health form, and enforcing an imaginary US$100 to Cambodian riel exchange requirement (at lousy rates).

by Bus
There are no direct bus services from Thailand, but there are good Thai bus services to the main border crossings. On the Cambodian side, more basic and less frequent bus services are available from Poipet and Koh Kong. There are direct bus services from Ho Chi Minh City to Phnom Penh.

• Bangkok - Siem Reap - see the Aranyaprathet and Poipet articles for more details

This route is in better shape than it once was but still a bit of a hassle, particularly when entering Cambodia. On this route, tourist bus employees often take kickbacks from restaurants and guesthouses they suggest, and tourist buses will stay at rest stops for 2-3 hours or feign mechanical problems, extending the travel to 12 or more hours, which usually makes tourists too tired to argue when arriving at an overpriced guesthouse.

• Bangkok - Sihanoukville - see the Hat Lek and Koh Kong articles for more details

Starting in Bangkok, catch a bus to Trat, and from there a minibus to the border. After crossing into Cambodia there are two possibilities - the once-daily boat to Sihanoukville (can be unpleasant in adverse weather), or else a minibus or taxi to either Sihanoukville or Phnom Penh (note that most of the road is not sealed and conditions vary considerably, depending on time of year and maintenance).

• Ho Chi Minh City - Phnom Penh

It can be interesting to go by tour (3 days) on the Mekong delta, ending up in Phnom Penh. The cost is about US$35 in total for three days from Ho Chi Minh City to Phnom Penh (2002).

To/from Laos - There is one border crossing for tourists on the Mekong, a 90 minute speedboat ride north of Stung Treng. The border guards have few opportunities for "alternative" income, and will usually try to make a few extra dollars from scamming tourists.

To/from Thailand - There are no ferry services between Cambodia and Thailand. However it is possible to cross the border from Thailand to Koh Kong on foot, take a 15 minute share taxi or motodop (motorbike taxi) ride, and then proceed to Sihanoukville by ferry from there (or vice-versa).

To/from Vietnam - It's possible to travel between Ho Chi Minh City and Phnom Penh by boat, or by combination of road and boat.

Domestic departure tax From both Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, the surcharge is US$6; from Banlung the fee is US$4.

There are only two domestic routes:

Phnom Penh - Siem Reap: Siem Reap Airways is the most reliable operator on this route, offering four daily 55-minute flights using French ATR-72 turboprops; one-way fares are around US$60.

Phnom Penh - Banlung: PMTair has flights on Mondays and Wednesdays, using Antonov An-24 turboprops; one-way fares are around US$70.

The three main routes to Phnom Penh (from Siem Reap, Sisophon, and Sihanoukville) are all sealed and in good condition. National Route #7 from Stung Treng to Phnom Penh (Skuon) is in good condition, paved between Kratie and Phnom Penh, partly paved and partly gravel between Stung Treng and Kratie, but well maintained, even in the wet season. Most other roads are unpaved dirt; many are in abysmal condition, others are maintained fairly regularly (but fall apart with alarming speed in the wet season). On the unsealed routes, overloaded trucks do a good job of smashing poorly built bridges. In all, buffer your schedule and expect delays when travelling around the country, especially on the dirt roads, and doubly so in the wet season.

For longer journeys there is a system of buses and pickup trucks that usually operate from the local market square, with most departures between 06:00-09:00.

Motorcycle taxis are ubiquitous. For quick trips across town, just stand on a corner for a moment and someone will offer you a lift - for a small, usually standard, fee.

Motorcycle rentals are available in many towns, with the notable exception of Siem Reap.

Ferries operate seasonally along many of the major rivers. Major routes include Phnom Penh to Siem Reap and Siem Reap to Battambang. Boats are slower than road transport, charge higher prices for foreigners, and are sometimes overcrowded and unsafe. Then again, Cambodia's highways are also dangerous, and boats are probably the safer of the two options.

The boat trip between Siem Reap and Battambang takes longer (especially in the dry season), and is less comfortable and more expensive than taking a seat in a share taxi, but is favoured by some travellers for its up-close view of subsistence farming (and hundreds of waving children) along the river. Taking the boat late in the dry season (April and May) is not advisable as low water levels mean that you must transfer to smaller vessels in mid-river.

As of January 2006, the only passenger train in Cambodia travels very slowly from Phnom Penh to Battambang every other day, and back again on the alternate days. There are no passenger services to Sihanoukville or Kampot anymore, but it may be possible to hitch a ride on a cargo train if you enjoy that kind of thing (likewise between Sisophon and Battambang, and between Battambang and Phnom Penh).

Cambodians primarily speak Khmer, which unlike most languages in the region is not tonal, but makes up for it with a large assortment of consonant and vowel clusters. Some elder Khmers speak French from the colonial days, but partly because of the Khmer Rouge era (in which those speaking foreign languages were targeted for extermination), to actually encounter anyone fluent in French is rare in most parts of the country. German and other European tongues can be found in the tourist centres (but are even rarer than French) and Japanese is also a popular language for tourist industry workers.

In market situations, most Khmers will know enough English to complete a basic transaction, though many vendors carry calculators into which they punch numbers and show you the screen to demonstrate the price.

The Cambodian riel is the official currency, but US dollars are so widely accepted in Cambodia that you don't even need to exchange money. The exchange rate is fairly stable at 4000 riel to the US$, and it's not uncommon to receive change in a mix of the two. Near the Thai border (especially Battambang, Koh Kong, and Poipet) Thai baht is also accepted; further east (including Siem Reap) baht can easily be exchanged, but cannot be spent - except at uncompetitive rates. Likewise Euro can easily be exchanged, but cannot be spent - except at uncompetitive rates. Although US notes are universally accepted in Cambodia, coins buy nothing but confused looks.

Instead of queueing up and filling endless paperwork at banks, you'll have better luck changing money at the nearest market - just look for the guys with a glass case full of cash. Torn foreign currency notes can be difficult to exchange. It's acceptable to check each note and ask to have them changed if you aren't happy with the quality, even in banks.

If you're planning on heading out off the beaten track, you need to take enough US dollars to get you back to a point where you can get more.

In many of the larger towns one or more of the local banks operate as Western Union Money Transfer agents.

ATMs can now be found in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap; elsewhere, some banks can process cash advances on credit cards. For the rest of the country it's best to stick to cash or traveller's checks.

VISA and JCB are the most widely accepted credit cards; MasterCard and American Express cards are slowly becoming more widely accepted.

Traveller's checks, like credit cards, are accepted in major business establishments, such as large hotels, some restaurants, travel agencies and some souvenir shops; American Express (in US$) are the most widely accepted flavour. However, competitive rates are only usually found in banks in Cambodia's larger cities (guesthouses in heavily touristed areas may offer similar services but at horrendous rates). The usual fee for cashing traveler's checks is 2% and US$2 minimum.

While not as spicy or as varied as food from Thailand or Vietnam, Khmer food is tasty and cheap and is invariably accompanied by rice (or occasionally noodles). In addition to Khmer food, there are large number of Chinese restaurants, especially in Phnom Penh and large provincial centers.

Typical Khmer dishes which are palatable to westerners include:

Don't forget Khmer desserts - Pong Aime (sweets). These are avaliable from stalls in most Khmer towns and can be excellent. Choose from a variety of sweetmeats and have them served with ice, condensed milk and sugar water.

There is also a wide variety of fresh fruit available from markets. The prices vary according to which fruit is in season but mangoes (around Khmer New Year, with up to 9 varieties on sale) and mangosteen (May/June) are both superb.

Other popular Khmer foods which are less palatable to westerners include pregnant eggs (duck eggs with the embryo still inside), Prahoc (a fermented fish paste) and almost every variety of creepy or crawly animal (spiders, crickets, water beetles) as well as barbequed rats, frogs, bats and small birds.

• The two domestic Cambodian beers are Anchor and Angkor. In Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, discerning drinkers choose Beer Lao, which not surprisingly is from Laos. Beer Lao is very good but not available in the provinces away from the Laos border. A plethora of other beers include ABC Stout, which is dark and not so bad, but many beers are vile (Crown, Leo etc.) and only drunk by the locals.

Western-style accommodation is generally only available in the big tourist hotspots of Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and (to a lesser extent) Sihanoukville. Basic guesthouses can go as low as $2/night in the countryside but prices in the cities are usually in the $5-10 range. At the budget end, expect to provide your own towels etc. If you want aircon and hot water, the price creeps up to close to $20, and you can easily pay over $100/night if you want to stay in a branded five-star hotel.

Cambodia has less opportunities for language and cultural studies for the short-term traveller, though there are many language schools and private teachers advertising for those who are hanging around a bit longer. There are also meditation groups which meet at some of the Buddhist Pagodas in Phnom Penh.

There are many opportunities for volunteer work. Those in Phnom Penh include teaching English, health education, working with the homeless, and other development projects.

Cambodia is a safe and friendly country, with the usual exception for large cities late at night, particularly Phnom Penh, and unobserved luggage or wallets. Bag snatching, even from those on bicycles and motorcycles, is a problem in Phnom Penh. Be discreet with your possessions, especially cash and cameras, and as always, take extra care in all poorly lit or more remote areas.

Cambodia suffers from a legacy of millions of land mines left during the war years. For the average tourist, mines are not really an issue, as areas like Siem Reap and Angkor Wat were never mined in the first place and any sites on the tourist track that were have long since been thoroughly demined. However, travel beyond well established paths is still not recommended. In border areas such as Preah Vihear, exercise caution and heed warning signs, and do not venture beyond well established roads and paths.

Most medical services in Cambodia are an absolute joke, and the rest are few and far between and very expensive. Should you become seriously ill or injured while in Cambodia, evacuation to Thailand or Singapore will be the most likely result. Because this can be incredibly costly, adequate insurance coverage is an absolute must while in Cambodia.

There are presently no vaccination requirements to enter Cambodia, unless arriving directly from Africa. Border officials have from time to time operated scams whereby travellers were "fined" for not having proof of vaccinations, however this now appears to have stopped completely.

Before visiting Cambodia, be sure to discuss prevention with a qualified specialist / travel clinic. It's especially important to review the relevant vaccinations (hepatitis A, hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis, measles, rabies, tetanus-diphtheria, typhoid, etc) well in advance; in addition, both malaria and dengue fever are endemic in most parts of Cambodia.

HIV/AIDS is widespread and on the increase, with some surveys showing as many as 40% of sex workers being HIV positive. Always wear protection!

Tap water in Cambodia is not suitable for drinking. Phnom Penh municipality claims that its water is treated and cleaned, and this is probably true; however by the time it gets to your tap, it's been contaminated. Bottled water is the only thing you should ever drink or brush your teeth with.

Cambodia is a country at a crossroads. While the more heavily touristed places like Phnom Penh and Siem Reap are well adjusted to tourist behaviour, people in places such as Stung Treng or Banlung are less so. Always ask permission before you take a Khmer's picture, as many in the more backwater areas don't like to be photographed, and some in the urban areas will ask for payment.

Haggling - Khmers are by and large not the hardcore hagglers that their Vietnamese neighbours are, so it's important to be respectful when haggling over something in the market or with your motodop. If you're staying at a Western owned hotel, or going to a Western owned bar, realize that the people you haggle with at the markets need your money a lot more than the people at the hotel or the bar that you aren't even bothering to haggle with. The bottom line is that you shouldn't take the attitude that every single transaction at a market must be bargained into the ground. If a vendor is asking 1,000 riel for a bottle of water, or US$1 for a T-shirt, don't haggle-- pay it. They need the extra 50 cents much more than you do.

Country Code: +855

Internet cafes are cheap (US$0.5/hour) and especially popular in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. In Kampot, Kratie and Sihanoukville the rate is around US$1/hour. Elsewhere, Internet access can be scarce or non-existent; many cafes feature dated computers and slow dial-up connections.
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