2 Weeks in Cambodia – Backpacking Itinerary – TREKwithBECK

If you are travelling through Southeast Asia, I am sure that Cambodia will be on your list! Visiting incredible, historic places like Angkor Wat and the Killing fields, as well as the beautiful Cambodian islands. I spent just over two weeks travelling through here on my World Tour and although it wasn’t my favourite destination, it was beautiful. 

I’ve altered this Cambodia itinerary from my original one, as there were some places which I didn’t find to be all that impressive or interesting. I did spend a few days in Kampot, but I found the activities and scenery not as impressive as places like Koh Rong. Which is why I have altered this itinerary to spend more days on the islands. 

Despite what is on this Cambodia itinerary, the only other two places I would recommend checking out are Kampot and Battambang. 

This itinerary can also be used following my 2 week in Laos itinerary, with a border crossing from Pakse to Siem Reap.  

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How to get to Cambodia 

There are two ways to get to Siem Reap, which is the start of this Cambodia itinerary. You can either fly directly into Siem Reap from your home country or another destination. Or you can cross the land border from Thailand or Laos. Crossing via land is a much cheaper way of getting to Cambodia, however it is much longer.

If you are flying, you can get cheap flights from multiple places in South East Asia – some prices for as little as $50 AUD! Flying is much quicker and more reliable than taking a land crossing, however it is more expensive and may not be in the backpacker budget.

I always use Skyscanner to help find the cheapest flights possible on my travels! 

How to travel around Cambodia 

The best and easiest way to travel around Cambodia for this itinerary is via bus or minivan. There is a railway line that runs through parts of Cambodia; however, I didn’t use this on my travels as I heard it had heaps of delays and was exactly reliable. 

Most of the buses and minivans were very comfortable, all with AC and provided bathroom/snack stops. The best bus company I dealt with was Giant IBIS and I would highly recommend booking this company where possible. The buses were clean and ran on time. 

I have provided information on how to get between each destination on this itinerary! I booked all of my transport through 12go Asia, it can also be booked through your accommodation or local transport agencies. Keep in mind that some travels days will be long and I always don’t plan activities on travel days, incase there is some complications!

DAY 1 -4: Siem Reap 

First up on this Cambodia itinerary is of course Siem Reap! A trip to Cambodia wouldn’t be complete without visiting this remarkable place. Here is where you will find Angkor Wat and the surrounding temples. I highly recommend spending 2 days exploring the temples here. I did the ‘Grand Circuit’ one day and the ‘Small Circuit’ the other.  

The first day of this itinerary is here for travel, whether that’s travelling from your home country or from Laos (like I did). Don’t plan to do anything on this day, as you will most likely be exhausted. 

There are plenty other things to do in Siem Reap other than just explore the temples, you can visit the night markets (which are the best in Cambodia), eat street food, visit Pub Street or just stroll around the streets! There is plenty to do here, so if you don’t want to do anything but the main temple of Angkor Wat, you will still have plenty of things to keep you entertained.

DAY 5 & 6: Phnom Penh 

Photo by Piseth Mao on Pexels.com

Phnom Penh was very much a miss in my opinion, but it is worth coming here for a day to visit the historic and very emotional Killing Fields. This is a very confronting experience, but it is something I would recommend every backpacker experiencing. Other things you can do in this city are, take a cruise along the river or visit the night markets. 

This was the one place in Cambodia where I didn’t feel very safe walking around by myself. I got abused several times because I didn’t buy anything from street vendors and felt very harassed. This was just my experience and I wanted to let other solo travellers know about this, so they can make the decision whether to stop here or not. I might of just had a once off bad experience here! 

You can either catch a bus or minivan to Phnom Penh from Siem Reap, both will take roughly 6 hours. Like always, these can be booked at your accomodation or 12go Asia. I would recommend going with Giant Ibis, as they offered a very comfortable experience. You can also choose to fly, but this will be much more costly than travelling via bus or minivan.

DAY 7 – 11: Koh Rong 

Koh Rong is a beautiful island that is great for relaxing and partying! This is a place which is a must on any Cambodia itinerary. I highly recommend you try and get accommodation at Nest Beach Club or Nest Jungle. This is the main party place on the island, and the hostel hosts “Nestival” every Saturday, which is a must if you are on the island. The hostel is also located right on one of the best beaches on the island and hosts games every night. It is the best place to stay in my opinion!

On Koh Rong you can visit multiple beaches, go snorkelling or even on a boat tour. One of the most famous things to do on the island is swim with the bioluminescence plankton, which is truely a bucket list activity. I booked a full day tour with “Adventure Adam” who offers fantastic tours on the island. This cost me $30 for a full day or snorkelling, local fishing, a BBQ lunch and other activities.

Getting to Koh Rong from Phnom Penh is going to take about a day of travel. Firstly, you will need to catch a bus or minivan from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville, this will take anywhere between 3-6 hrs (depending on the organisation, van travel in Asia is unpredictable). You will then need to catch a ferry from the Pier in Sihanoukville to Koh Rong. 

The best way to book this transport is to book it together through your accommodation in Phnom Penh or on 12go Asia with “connections guaranteed”. This means you will make all your connections as they are with the same company. 

DAY 11 – 13: Koh Rong Sanloem 

This tiny island is one of my favourite places in Cambodia, maybe even more than Koh Rong! The island has barely any cars or transport, making the best way to get around by walking. You can easily walk to multiple beaches on the island, which will take anywhere from 30mins to 1.5hrs. You can also opt for a water taxi or rent a scooter.

Although there isn’t much to do on Koh Rong Sanloem, it had some of the most pristine beaches I have seen in South East Asia. Some even reminded me of Australian Beaches! This is a great place to relax for a few days and explore the island, sit on the beach with a cocktail and watch some beautiful sunsets.

There are island tours available, which can be booked at your accomodation. These include a mixture of a land tour and some snorkelling.

There is only one way to get to Koh Rong Sanloem from Koh Rong, and that is via the local ferry. This is essentially a long boat and can only be booked while on the island. You can book this usually through your accommodation or from one of the vendors in Kaoh Touch. 

I booked from a vendor (only later to find out that my accommodation, Nest booked these ferries). This one-way transfer cost me $10 USD and has two drop off points – M’Pai Bay or Saracen Bay. Be warned, this can be a very bumpy journey if there is any swell! The trip took about 1 hour, and we only stopped at Saracen Bay. 

There are only two ferries a day, one at 7am and the other at 1pm – these times can change, so make sure to book the day prior to find out what time you need to be at the vendor or ready at your accomodation.

Day 14: Phnom Penh and Onwards 

Today is a travel day back to Phnom Penh, so you can catch a flight back to your home country or for your onwards travel! If you are heading to Vietnam after Cambodia, you can also catch multiple buses that run from Phnom Penh to Ho Chi Minh or simply fly (like I did). Phnom Penh is a good place to end this itinerary as it has the largest airport, with the most outgoing flights to multiple destinations.

That concludes this Cambodia itinerary!

To get back to Phnom Penh, you must prepare yourself for a travel day. You will need to firstly catch a ferry from Koh Rong Sanloem to Sihanoukville. When booking this ferry, make sure you book from the beach which is closest to your accommodation on Koh Rong Sanloem, otherwise you will have to do a bit of a trek to get to the other beaches. 

The three beaches the ferries run from are: 

• M’Pai
• Saracen Beach 
• Lazy Beach

The ferry takes anywhere from 1-1.5hrs, depending on the swells and organisation. From the Pier in Sihanoukville, you can choose to catch a bus, minivan or taxi to Phnom Penh. This will cost anywhere between $10-$25 AUD, taxis will cost much more. This trip also takes anywhere between 3-7hrs. I would recommend staying the night in Phnom Penh and a catch a flight the following day. OR if you need to leave this day, you can ask your minivan driver to drop you off at the airport. 

You can book this transport on 12go Asia or at your accommodation on Koh Rong Sanloem. 

Conclusion

Although Cambodia wasn’t my most favourite place I visited in South East Asia, it still is worth visiting at least once! The best things I did were visit Angkor Wat and the islands. If you are short on time, I would recommend visiting Siem Reap and Koh Rong island. Cambodia is also a little bit more expensive than other countries in Asia, so just keep that in mind. Although, I was still able to spend less than $1.5k AUD for over 2 weeks travelling this country.

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