Themed Cambodia Tour: Travel Options in Cambodia

By Jane Susaeta

Despite poverty and reconstruction from the terror of Khmer Rouge, Cambodia is still a great place to visit. Other than the Angkor, the country is rich with natural and manmade attractions that will truly make your Cambodia tour worth the time and money.

There are different ways to enjoy your trip. You can make it as personalized as possible by thinking of themes that suit the kind of trips you like best. Here are some suggestions that will help you enjoy the best attractions that Cambodia has to offer.

Laid Back Getaway

If you want to simply relax and be comfortable when you are not touring the great temples of Cambodia, you choose from a wide range of five star hotels and guesthouses in Siem Reap. One of the most popular and fastest improving cities in Cambodia, Siem Reap is a charming tourist hub where you can enjoy the local restaurants and food in the area.

Backpacker's Getaway

If you are not into large scale tourism but enjoy backpacking to get a better view of the country, then there are plenty of places to visit in your Cambodia tour. For instance, the small town of Kratie is one of the best places for backpackers who wish to see the beauty of the central marketplace. It is also bordered by French colonial buildings that have been in the area for many years.

The best part about backpacking in this side of Cambodia is you get to see the Mekong River, which is home to the very rare Irrawaddy dolphins. These dolphins are slowly becoming endangered. In fact, there are about 66 and 86 remaining dolphins in the upper area of the Mekong River.

Other than the Kratie, you may also add the Tonlé Sap to your Cambodia tours. The lake is known as the largest freshwater lake in the entire South East Asia and it dramatically shrinks and expands depending on the season of the year. The lake drains to Phnom Penh and Mekong River during November to May. During the month of June, heavy rains pour water on the area resulting to the formation of an enormous lake.

Temples and Historical Getaway

There are plenty of temples and historical places that you should include in your Cambodia tour. One of these is the Khmer temple of Preah Vihear found in the Dângrêk Mountains. This temple found in the border of Thailand and Cambodia is considered to be the most spectacular among the many Khmer temples. Constructed in the 11th and 12th century, the temple is dedicated to the god Shiva.

Another must-see in Cambodia is the Silver Pagoda which contains many national treasures and Buddha statues. You must also see the Bokor Hill Station in Kampot, Koh Ker, Banteay Srei, Angkor Wat, and many other historical temples and buildings.

The places mentioned here are just some of the greatest places to visit on your Cambodia tour. Visit Minmaxtravel to make sure you get the best Cambodia tour experience whatever kind of theme you wish to have.

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Savoring the Essence of Southeast Asian Culture With Cambodia Tours

By Kaden Wilson

If you wanted to get the 'essence' of a global sub-region, you have to look for a place that embodies many of the common values of that region. This means, of course, religion and food but it goes deeper than that. Culture has many facets. Culture impacts the design of traditional buildings, it colors how people dress, it dictates rules on how they are to politely interact In other words, culture is the operating software for the hardware of the human body. We may all have the same body parts and same needs but how meet those needs and how we get along are functions of culture. This is why traveling is so much fun, we get to see the differences in how regions meet certain basic needs. Cambodia is no different. If you go on Cambodia tours, you will quickly see that Cambodia embodies many of the cultural traits of the Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Cambodia region. Here are just some of the key reasons why going on Cambodia tours helps you get a full understanding of Southeast Asian culture.

Buddhism

Buddhism is the main religion in Southeast Asia. While there are many populous Muslim and Catholic regions in Southeast Asia, when it comes to Indochina, Buddhism is the only game in town. In fact, Buddhism is established from Southern China all the way to the western fringes of Myanmar. Moreover, the Buddhism practiced in this region is very distinct from the type of Buddhism that is big in Tibet or China. Theravada Buddhism is all about individual enlightenment and doesn't have as much of the mysticism of Tibetan Buddhism. This is definitely one aspect your will see on your Cambodia tours.

Love for family

Southeast Asians place lots of importance on their families. The family unit is very big-it includes multiple generations and multiple lines. In fact, cousins twice removed are as welcome in a home as brothers and sisters. The Southeast Asian focus on the family arose partly due to economic reasons. Big and cohesive families are needed due to the heavy labor requirements of traditional rice farming. This is why, until the proliferation of contraception, Southeast Asian families tended to be big on children. It was only until the spread of antibiotics that family sizes exploded. Many families wanted many children but due to infant mortality, the numbers were kept down.

Indian and Chinese influence

Indonesia is a Muslim country and you would think that there is very little Indian or Chinese influence there since it is quite a ways from the Indochina. Think again. Indians actually brought Buddhism to Indonesia. In fact, there are some Buddhist temples in Indonesia. These are relics of a time when Indonesia was predominantly Buddhist. After this time, Indian traders then began spreading Islam and now the country is predominantly Muslim. Similarly, Indian influence is big in Thailand and Cambodia. As you go on your Cambodia tours, you will see the Indian influence in sculpture and art. As for Chinese influence, much of Southeast Asia's business revolves around Chinese traders and middle class.

Kaden wants to share his love in travel with friends around the world. He's booking many Cambodia tours to explore this country. Will you visit Cambodia like Kaden does? Act Quickly register cheap tours in Cambodia.

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Cambodia Travel on a Budget

By Mike Ibbertson

The most expensive part of travel to Cambodia and indeed any international destination is the price of the airplane ticket. This is particularly true for Cambodia which doesn't have a direct destination link with major airlines based out of the South East Asia catchment area. However the introduction of online airline booking systems has made the costs to travelers more competitive. It is now possible to receive price comparisons from over 100 different airlines in a matter of minutes. The arrival of budget airlines in the South East Asia area has also made the market more competitive and offered more assistance to the budget traveler.

With the cost of internal air travel in Cambodia expensive the budget traveler will be seeking out alternate forms of transport. Cambodia fortunately has very efficient bus services utilizing the country's modern highway system. Where is your favorite destination point in Cambodia? Is it Siem Reap in the north to view the majestic Angkor temples? Is it the coastal region to the south including the port and beaches of Sihanoukville on the Gulf of Thailand? Or is it the lesser known town of Kratie on the Mekong River where you'll be able to sight the Irrawaddy dolphins? All these destinations are a 5 to 6 hour bus trip from the capital city; Phnom Penh.The International Airport at Phnom Penh is the busiest airport in Cambodia and is the first port of call for most travelers.

All long distance bus services in Cambodia operate during daylight hours. With buses setting out as early as 7 am travelers have enough time to enjoy the sights after reaching their travel destination without losing a entire day on traveling

In this part of South East Asia, Cambodia offers cheap accommodation. It is possible to stay in clean, guesthouse accommodation from as low as US$4 per night. US dollars as well as Cambodian riel's are the accepted currencies in this country. For the budget traveler these accommodation prices represent great value as generally accommodation is the most expensive cost after air travel.

The low local cost of living is reflected in the price of food. It is possible to get an excellent, nourishing meal for under $2 from street vendors. By simply following locals to where they go to eat, travelers will save money by not needing to pay expensive restaurant prices. There needs to be no excuse to put off traveling to Cambodia as it would qualify as one of the World's most affordable travel destinations amidst some of the friendliest people you'll ever meet.

Mike Ibbertson is a traveler through South East Asia and through his website [http://thecambodianadventure.com] shares his experiences of his adventure through Cambodia

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Traveling to Angkor Cambodia, One of the Wonders of the Asian Continent

By Peter Vanderlans

The first time I visited Angkor was in 1995, after the peace agreement with the Khmer Rouge but before the clash between the two prime ministers in 1996. Major parts of Cambodia were still under control by the Khmer Rouge and Angkor was not 100% safe. Just 15 km outside Angkor the Khmer Rouge was still active.

However, much of the country was living in peace after years of turmoil, chaos, destruction and fear. I had arrived in Phnom Penh by flight from Bangkok. At the time it was the only save way to come to Cambodia I was told although I leaned the overland route from Vietnam was supposedly open too.

Phnom Penh was a surprisingly interesting and relaxed city at the time, especially considering the hectic previous years. I had come at the right moment, it was festival days with dragon boat races at the Mekong.

But I had not come for the dragon boats, this was just the cream on the pie, so to say. I had come to learn more about the recent and not so recent history of Cambodia. Cambodia has such a history that no one in the world can ignore. The pictures of Angkor Wat had always made a huge impression on me and now it was possible to visit them.

To understand the present and the past of Cambodia, I felt I had to see the Killing Fields too. And I was happy I did that, considering what happened later in Siem Reap. Cambodia has many Killing Fields, I went to visit and pay respect to the victims to a Killing Field near Phnom Penh. It was a horrifying experience only to be compared with the German concentration camps of World War II in Europe. At the Killing Fields site I saw photos showing people in such fear I could not imagine. It's hard to understand to what cruelty humanity is able to create. And at the site one could still find broken teeth remains.

I left to visit an even more macabre place: Tuol Sleng, in the city of Phnom Penh. Here the atmosphere was so dense. It was as if the guards and prisoners had just left. Chains were on the sandy floor and I saw the dormitories of the prisoners. The most impressive and scary part of Tuol Sleng was the room with thousands of portrait photos of prisoners, all with fear in their eyes, knowing they would not have to live long. Few prisoners have left Tuol Sleng alive.

Siem Reap and Angkor

I had a boat from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap. In 1995 even the Ton Le Sap lake was at points not safe and the boats carried a soldier with a gun. At several docking points the military had machine guns ready to fire. But during the journey we experienced no problems.

Siem Reap turned out to be a small mellow town consisting in principle of the street. There were some hotels and restaurants. It was clear the Cambodians were picking up the increasing amounts of tourists but it was all still mellow.

The first night (after visiting Phnom Bakheng on the western hill top) I had my dinner in a local restaurant. At a certain moment we heard a lot of noise outside. The staff screamed..."attack, attack... hide".. We heard a lot of what the staff called machine gun fire. Everyone was under the table. It turned out to be fireworks for opening a new shop. The situation showed how deep the fear at the time was embedded in the minds of the people.

The next day I rented a bicycle and went to see Angkor. I bought a 3 days pass and went in. In the next days I visited many of the important temples including Angkor Wat (just outside the Angkor Thom city walls), the magnificent Bayon temple, the terraces and many other smaller temples. Of course the Bayon temple was the highlight, but Ta Phrom was probably as impressive. At the time you couldn't visit the outer temples of the complex as the Khmer Rouge was still controlling large parts of the country.

Back on bicycle

Some years later I came back. By then Cambodia was at peace. I cycled from the Thai border to Siem Reap, a mostly dust road. At arrival in Siem Reap I was totally covered in red sand. But when I went into the Angkor area the next day I saw it was as impressive as I have seen it a few years earlier. This time I was able to visit some other further away temples including the Beng Melea.

Beng Melea is maybe one of the most interesting temples because it is not restored. Here you can get an idea what the explorers in the mid 19th century saw when they came (I purposely do not say "discover" because it was never really lost, not even for the western world).

Angkor is such a widespread area, there are so many sites to visit. A three day pass gives you only the possibility to visit the most spectacular temples. For most people that is enough but as I am interested in a little more then average, I went back. I visited Angkor three times, and I can assure you, every time I came back, I was as knock out as the previous time. Angkor is one of the architectural wonders of Asia, if not one of the world and only a few sights in Asia can compete with Angkor.

Peter van der Lans is a Dutchman who lives these days in Sitiawan Malaysia. After years of traveling, he cycled from Holland to Malaysia, stayed a months in the Middle East, a year on the Indian Subcontinent and 2 years in China plus a year in the UK, he settled himself in Malaysia.

Sitiawan was the perfect place to write a website about Pangkor Island. He also wrote a website about Yangshuo: http://www.yangshuo-travel-guide.com A more extensive set of pages he wrote for his bicycle adventures website, start reading here

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Travel To Cambodia To Experience Breathtaking Angkor Wat The Magical Temple Complex

By Slava Fuzayloff

For the non-denominational spiritually-minded amongst us, nowhere on Earth conjures such mystical feelings as the famed temple complex at Angkor Wat, Cambodia. A simple gaze at its spectacular geometrical towers against the bright sun-streaked sky (or even better: under the yellow moonlight of a star-studded evening) and one feels closer to whatever deity he or she currently holds closest to their heart. There is a mysterious aire to this destination, as if the prayers and esoteric beliefs of millions of ancient devotees are somehow synergized directly into its strange and secretive stone carvings. However, in this era of non-arcane points of view and the almost-complete failure of mystery schools for the knowledge of medical schools, a visit to a travel vaccination clinic may offer better protection than a talisman or amulet of your particular divination when visiting this complex complex.

This priceless and shining jewel of Cambodia is the largest Hindu temple in the world, dwarfing others by great magnitude. Its iconic shape and structure adorns the national flag and is known worldwide for its pilgrims. In fact, this twelfth century labyrinthine religious place is still a prime destination for pilgrims of not only the Hindu faith-but for millions of others who are absorbed by its aesthetic beauty, respect for its culture, and veiled-but-profound sculptures of deities, demigods and demons. Cambodia is a region of the world still infused with magic. Unfortunately, their reliance on this mystical way of life may have contributed to its high infant mortality rate, almost nonexistent industrialization, and its high ranking as a source of infectious disease. For anyone planning on traveling to this spiritual paradise it is highly recommended that they visit a travel vaccination clinic four-to-six weeks before the beginning of their trip to help protect against contracting one or more of Cambodia's dangerous diseases.

According to all reigning disease specialists-including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-the sheer number of infectious diseases still continuing to be contracted in Cambodia compiled can create quite a frightening list. Things often look worse on paper than they do in the real world, so remember that if Cambodia is calling for business or pleasure, for religious reasons or any other, a simple vaccination or two can protect you against becoming infected with any or all of its insidious sicknesses.

The list of diseases virulent in Cambodia that a vaccination may be recommended for at a travel clinic of your choosing include:

Hepatitis A

This is a viral disease that interferes with the liver's functioning and is spread through ingestion of food or water contaminated with fecal matter.

Hepatitis E

A water-borne viral disease that also damages the functioning of the liver.

Typhoid fever

A bacterial disease spread through contact with food and/or water contaminated by sewage or fecal matter.

Malaria

A worldwide killer, Malaria is caused by the parasitic protozoa Plasmodium which is transmitted to humans through the bite of the female mosquito. The interruption of blood supply to the brain can cause damage to vital organs and death.

Dengue fever

A mosquito-borne (Aedes aegypti) viral disease associated more with urban living than jungle and that begins with a sudden fever and head pain. Death occurs in approximately five percent of cases.

Japanese Encephalitis

A mosquito-borne (Culex tritaeniorhynchus) viral disease associated with rural areas in throughout all of Asia. Can cause paralysis and/or coma and death rates of this insidious disease can be as high as thirty percent of those acutely infected.

If travel to the wondrous Angkor Wat, Cambodia is in your future, please get to a licensed travel clinic for an in-depth consultation with a board-certified doctor regarding what vaccination (or vaccinations) would be best for you. This decision can be best made by a medical professional who will closely peruse your itinerary in order to pin point the most dangerous diseases that may be in your vicinity. This is calculated through season, age, general health of the traveler, etc. and should only be made by a certified travel doctor.

If you are in NYC, please log onto Cambodia vaccination NYC for more information on the city's premiere travel clinic NYC of its type. Call 1-212-696-5900 to arrange an appointment. They are discreet, affordable, friendly and conveniently located just blocks from Grand Central Station. Enjoy your trip.

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