I have always wanted to visit Cambodia.  From the stories I’ve heard, Cambodia has this magic about it that casts a spell on many who visit this charming kingdom.

Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the northeast, Vietnam to the east, and the Gulf of Thailand to the southwest.

“Their beaches as beautiful as Thailand but without the tourist tide; wilds as remote as Laos but even less explored; cuisine as subtle as Vietnam but yet to be discovered; and temples that leave Burma and Indonesia in the shade. This is the heart of Southeast Asia, with everything the region has to offer packed into one bite-sized country. If you were only planning to spend a week in Cambodia, it’s time to think again” (Lonelyplanet.com)

If you are  planning visit Cambodia in Southeast Asia, here are Propniceinnit’s top 8 Cambodia travel tips (which are probably not unique to Cambodia):

1. The level of English was higher than I expected, but try to learn a few words in Khmer (Cambodian), even if it’s only ‘hello’ and ‘thank you’, it goes a long way.
2. * If you intend to buy a Lonely Planet before you come out -don’t bother. There are lots of people (usually landmine victims) that sell them, they’ll be more grateful that you buy a book from them than Amazon will ever be.
3. Even though there is some good stuff in the Lonely Planet, don’t live by it, use it as a basic template. Remember that it’s only 1-2 people’s opinion. Check out sites like TripAdvisor.com and WikiTravel.org also restaurants and cafes will have free guides which are more up to date and written by people that live there.
4. Give the ‘The Killing Fields’ film a miss, it gives little explanation of what happened. Read Survival in The Killing Fields by Ngor Haing it’s an amazing but horrific first hand account of what happened in Cambodia.
5. Bring small pocket change (pence/cents), you can dish them out to the kid sellers when you’re not interested in buying their bracelets or books. Their money is in note form, so they hardly see coins and the kids went nuts for them.
6. It is generally safe but it’s not unheard of that drive-by bag snatching occurs. Make sure your bag strap is around your torso and the bag in front of you, as opposed to on your shoulder by your side. I happen to witness one a few metres in front of me and the bag was snatched off a girl’s shoulder as smooth as silk.
7. It does get tiresome and annoying that amputees constantly approach you to sell you postcards and books, but appreciate the fact that they’re earning their keep as opposed to the able-bodied beggars here at home.
8. Remember to use your eyeballs, appreciate being there in the moment. Break the routine of thinking about composing shots and angles, leave the camera at the hotel for a day. The sad reality is that you’ll probably spend more time looking at the scenery on a computer screen than you will with your eyeballs.

Have you been to Cambodia? How was your experience?

Please comment and share below, thanks in advance.