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Does anyone know the most comfortable way to get from Bangkok to Siem Reap without flying? I have a friend coming to visit and she would rather save her money for diving or whatever instead of flying. Did some Googling but keep finding conflicting information and it is TOO HOT RIGHT NOW to even think.
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Jul 21, 2014 08:30
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Take the government bus (from Mo Chit) to the Rong Kluea market (if you ask around you'll get put on the right bus by telling people you want to go to Cambodia). At Rong Kluea get a motorbike taxi or a tuktuk to the border -- they may take you to a building called "Visa Center" -- ignore it, tell them you have a visa, and just go get in line at the border. After you cross the border you'll be in the unpleasant hub of Poipet -- arrange for a private taxi to take you and your friend to Siem Reap. You do this by just going "Taxi, taxi, private taxi, taxi, no bus, taxi" until one of the touts badgering you admits to being a taxi driver instead of a minibus salesman. Someone else will tell you where to stay in Siem Reap, the last time I was there was ten years ago maybe and it was easy and nice to stay near the "triangle," which was a group of guesthouses and bars. Now maybe that area is noisy or expensive, and you'll want to get up for the sunrise at the temples each day. I suggest hiring a motorbike (which will come with a driver) or two for the days you go to the temples. They drive you over to whatever temple you say, then wait patiently outside for you to come and get ferried to the next temple. It doesn't cost much. Avoid buying a package ticket that takes you from Bangkok all the way to Siem Reap, they sell these at Mo Chit and a lot of travel agencies on Khao San or Sukhumvit or whatever, but those are the very worst way to go and most likely to turn into a fart party. Your journey on the Thai side of the border will be okay, but it's a crapshoot as to how it will go from Poipet to SR, and you won't save any time or money by buying the package thing (probably will loose time because the Poipet -> SR leg will be on a lovely slow bus possibly with intermittent aircon instead of a zippy cab that costs just fractionally more than the bus would for two people anyway). Most of the real bad horror stories about Poipet are from the dark days when there was no loving road between Poipet and Siem Reap. You drove through rice fields and over bridges made out of planks loosely laid over irrigation ditches. They finished the highway and now the trip is tolerable and most of the griping about it is because people think they're supposed to or because they got hosed around with in Poipet. E: The town on the Thai side is Aranyaprathet. If you say you want to go to Aranyaprathet however your bus will (may) stop farther from the border than if you go to the market to begin with. It's not a big deal, but the "right" thing to do is to go to Rong Kluea to begin with. EE: Read Duckmaster's post about this as well http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3260679&userid=0&perpage=40&pagenumber=330#post432094001 raton fucked around with this message at 09:23 on Jul 21, 2014 |
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Jul 21, 2014 09:06
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How much money does the land route actually save? DMK-REP is under 3000 bht one way.
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Jul 21, 2014 09:23
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Negligent posted:How much money does the land route actually save? DMK-REP is under 3000 bht one way. It costs about $40 if you take a public bus to Aranyaprathet and then a taxi to Siem Reap from Poipet, or like $15 if you take public buses for each leg. This route sucks just because of its length and spending the extra $30-40 is really truly worth it. The last time I took this overland by bus it took about 10 hours. But that's just my beef with it, as far as busing goes it's not too bad I suppose. MothraAttack fucked around with this message at 11:06 on Jul 21, 2014 |
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Jul 21, 2014 10:54
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So we're in Phuket, specifically Patong. This place is like Thai Tijuana. I don't think we'll be staying past our initial two night hostel booking. What are some beautiful islands/beachy areas should we go to in Thailand that won't be so filthy and crowded?
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Jul 21, 2014 14:09
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Does anyone read this drat thread before deciding to go to Phuket  You can catch a ferry to Ao Nang or Lanta. I'd prefer Ao Nang personally, but that's me. You can cross over to the Gulf side and go to the remote-er beaches on Koh Phangan like Ao Thong Nai Pan. You can head South to the islands down around the Lipe Koh area. Many choices!
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Jul 21, 2014 14:20
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SEA ASIA : ASK ABOUT PHUKET ALTERNATIVES THEN GET BANNED
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Jul 21, 2014 15:34
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Be caberham and get banned MORE LIKE.
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Jul 21, 2014 16:16
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ReindeerF posted:Does anyone read this drat thread before deciding to go to Phuket +1 for Ao Nang. Railay and Phranang are some of the best beaches in the world and only a 10 minute boat ride away. I think I'm getting drug withdrawals after SE Asia. Been having cold sweats, insomnia and shakes the past few days. The sweats have gone away but I'm still shaking like Muhammad Ali.
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Jul 21, 2014 16:52
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Perhaps take this opportunity to stop taking drugs! I make no moral judgment, but less shaking and sweating sounds more comfortable.
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Jul 21, 2014 17:35
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I don't post in this thread that often but I do love the North coast of Koh Phangan. Bottle Beach, is very chilled. I met some great people there in 2010. I was there in the low season though. Other places I liked then were Koh Lipe and Koh Lante. After the islands I avoided heavily touristic spots during my four months in Thailand. My favourite town was Trang and my favourite city was Bangkok - I didn't stay on Khao San, but I did stay on Soi Rambutri, just over the road from Khao San. I stayed in a place called "My House" which cost me I think 250b per night, fan room with western style toilet. The night porter dude is cool and will sell you beer when you roll in at 4 in the morning. I really liked Phimai https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Phimai+History+Park/@15.4851676,98.9491235,7z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x8f81ccfb46760047 (I think that's what it's called - a place in the East with old Khmer ruins - I rented a bike there and cycled around the town for a day or two, it's a bit like a Thailand version of York if you're from the UK. Go see the big tree there. [EDIT] what image hosts do people use these days? Ted Ed Fred fucked around with this message at 18:06 on Jul 21, 2014 |
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Jul 21, 2014 17:53
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Ted Ed Fred posted:I don't post in this thread that often but I do love the North coast of Koh Phangan. Bottle Beach, is very chilled. I met some great people there in 2010. I was there in the low season though. Other places I liked then were Koh Lipe and Koh Lante. After the islands I avoided heavily touristic spots during my four months in Thailand. My favourite town was Trang and my favourite city was Bangkok - I didn't stay on Khao San, but I did stay on Soi Rambutri, just over the road from Khao San. I stayed in a place called "My House" which cost me I think 250b per night, fan room with western style toilet. The night porter dude is cool and will sell you beer when you roll in at 4 in the morning. That sounds great! Try http://imgur.com for your images.
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Jul 21, 2014 18:18
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ReindeerF posted:Does anyone read this drat thread before deciding to go to Phuket I always enjoyed Ao Nang personally too. Lots of options when you get there.
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Jul 21, 2014 18:25
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Bottle Beach 2010 - http://imgur.com/iliKtZ1 http://imgur.com/LKm3AGy A massive spider that was eating a cockroach when I came to take a piss the morning after the night before... http://imgur.com/guB14CA Can't believe it's been four years since I was there. Hopefully I'll be back out in SE Asia within the year! Ted Ed Fred fucked around with this message at 18:41 on Jul 21, 2014 |
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Jul 21, 2014 18:38
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Speaking of foo-ket, I'll be there on business from at least August 5th through the 12th, maybe longer, if anyone else is stupid enough to travel there! My partner facility there said that the taxi mafia is done since the military took over, so I asked, "Great, how much is a taxi from the airport?" 650 Baht, same as before. Thank white Buddha for the junta.
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Jul 21, 2014 21:26
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retpocileh posted:So we're in Phuket, specifically Patong. This place is like Thai Tijuana. I don't think we'll be staying past our initial two night hostel booking. What are some beautiful islands/beachy areas should we go to in Thailand that won't be so filthy and crowded? +1 Ao Nang If you come to Ao Nang let me know and I will buy you a beer. Sorry you're in Patong. HELLO YOU WANT MASSAAAAAAAAGE?
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Jul 22, 2014 01:54
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About to leave Phnom Penh, had an awesome trip, thanks for all the suggestions. Couple of questions: 1. I really liked the vibe of Siem Reap, is there anywhere in Thailand like that? (Temples not necessarily needed) 2. Anyone been to Koh Rung Sanloem? Got some friends heading there next month and considering joining.
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Jul 22, 2014 03:32
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1) [ignore me - I miss Phnom Penh so much I answered the wrong question]. 2) I'd heard about this, but hadn't been yet as I've avoided that whole Sihanoukville area. Maybe Tytan or duckmaster has? Tytan's on a trip right now, so you might need to PM him. ReindeerF fucked around with this message at 04:51 on Jul 22, 2014 |
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Jul 22, 2014 03:39
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Gail Wynand posted:1. I really liked the vibe of Siem Reap, is there anywhere in Thailand like that? (Temples not necessarily needed) Siem Reap has probably changed a lot since I was there. Want to give us a rundown on what you liked?
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Jul 22, 2014 04:38
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I love kampot and slightly off snooky ville.
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Jul 22, 2014 05:58
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Chiang Mai has a river, tuktuks, live music venues with cheap drinks and white people which is kind of similar to Siem Reap
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Jul 22, 2014 06:10
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Gail will miss the endless busloads of Korean package tourists who cause constant traffic jams in Chiang Mai, though, so it won't be an authentic experience.
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Jul 22, 2014 06:18
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Negligent posted:Chiang Mai has a river, tuktuks, live music venues with cheap drinks and white people which is kind of similar to Siem Reap As for Sihanoukville, yeah I can do without any town nicknamed "Snooki" but the islands sound relatively unspoiled. Also, I would be going with 6 American ladies.
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Jul 22, 2014 06:35
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If I fly into Bangkok on a 60 day tourist visa with 20000baht on hand, am I going to run into any problems? I've been in Thailand twice this year already on landing visas, but left after a week each time. Should I also bring a bank statement?
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Jul 22, 2014 07:20
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Cambodia has been on my radar for sometime. I'm not particularly interested in the beach since I just came back from Bali. If I go for a weeklong trip, with 2 days (besides travel days) for Angkor, what should I do with rest of the time? Can you elaborate on what makes PP cool?
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Jul 22, 2014 07:31
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Atlas Hugged posted:If I fly into Bangkok on a 60 day tourist visa with 20000baht on hand, am I going to run into any problems? I've been in Thailand twice this year already on landing visas, but left after a week each time. Should I also bring a bank statement? Anarkii posted:Cambodia has been on my radar for sometime. I'm not particularly interested in the beach since I just came back from Bali. If I go for a weeklong trip, with 2 days (besides travel days) for Angkor, what should I do with rest of the time? Can you elaborate on what makes PP cool?
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Jul 22, 2014 08:16
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Basically PP is a rougher more laid back version of Bangkok with cheaper booze and better Western food.
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Jul 22, 2014 08:27
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Gail Wynand posted:Yeah that's kind of what I was going for. Kampot, go to bokor hill. Then spend time at kep. 6 ladies? Waaaaa I want to come. Hey Gail are you still based in Singapore? I will be there late August
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Jul 22, 2014 09:03
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Yep, I'm in Singapore until 2016 at least, shoot me a PM if you want to hang out - though late August may conflict with the aforementioned return trip to Cambodia.
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Jul 22, 2014 09:12
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Gail Wynand posted:Basically PP is a rougher more laid back version of Bangkok with cheaper booze and better Western food. There's grinding poverty there and there's also beautiful French colonial architecture and some remaining New Khmer Architecture from guys like Van Molyvann (still alive!) and there's the pretty riverfront and the lemongrass fields and other farms and ranches across the Naga Ferry that are fantastic running / biking country. And the people, by and large, can be lovely to the point of being goofy. I mean there are assholes everywhere and the smiles are often part of the service, but I find more genuinely friendly, giggly, goofball friendly Khmer people than I do Thai or Laos or what have you. It's very much a city of contrasts and that's part of what makes it so fascinating, for me anyway. I rent a mountain bike and just ride all over the place - go to the old train depot where you can see the old trains, check out Chroy Changva across the river, cross the Naga ferry and go meet people in the rural communities on the Areyksat side.
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Jul 22, 2014 09:24
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Some people have had to show 20,000 baht cash even with an advance visa. I think it depends on the border, but I'm not sure about airports. I guess better safe than sorry. And man, second time in six months that wily teenagers have tried to hit me with something from a speeding motorbike. Kids these days.
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Jul 22, 2014 09:56
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Haha, wtf!? I've never remotely been approached violently or aggressively. Are you wearing flip flops with the King's face on them or something?
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Jul 22, 2014 10:29
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Well I was wearing my Bhumibol speedo, so there's that. But yeah, I think kids just like trying to spook me or something.
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Jul 22, 2014 10:42
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Gail Wynand posted:Yeah that's kind of what I was going for. Sihanoukville always feels kinda sleazy to me, but yeah the islands are supposed to be pretty nice from the people I know who have been there (never been myself). As always I would recommend Kep over Sihanoukville, but if your lady friends like a bit of nightlife then yeah Snooki might be the better option. As for the Phnom Penh chat, the thing I really like about the place (other than Khmers being awesome people) is the variety of stuff there in such a small area - it's basically impossible to get bored there. Yeah a lot of the expats and tourists are sleazy, but unless you really like hanging out at the riverside or Golden Sorya then they're pretty easily avoided. I'm counting down the weeks until I get to go back there 
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Jul 22, 2014 10:47
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You're supposed to tell people to hang out at Golden Sorya and wait for them to come back to the thread bitching! EDIT: "And be sure not to miss the Heart of Darkness!" ReindeerF fucked around with this message at 11:12 on Jul 22, 2014 |
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Jul 22, 2014 11:05
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How can you forget Walkabout?
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Jul 22, 2014 22:13
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Do not miss Walkabout! Actually, I did always enjoy going to the Joker Draw. Not because I thought I would win or something, but because the crowd who turns up for the Joker Draw is loving hilarious to ogle. Watching Raksmey go nuts when her pensioner boyfriend wins the scooter is a hoot. Then go around the corner to Zeppelin for dumplings. Best dumplings in town! Like $1.25 for a plate full and the owner is a character. ReindeerF fucked around with this message at 03:40 on Jul 23, 2014 |
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Jul 23, 2014 03:37
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ReindeerF posted:Perhaps take this opportunity to stop taking drugs! I make no moral judgment, but less shaking and sweating sounds more comfortable. I'LL TAKE ALL THE DRUGS IN THE WORLD! No, I kid. I'm staying clean for a while to come. In Japan now so I need to put my money towards living and India/Middle East aren't really the places for that kind of thing, which is where I'm off to next.
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Jul 23, 2014 11:27
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Whats the dopest national park in south to mid Thailand that's not in the middle of nowhere? The ko islands are loving amazing but its time to move on
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Jul 23, 2014 11:57
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Profondo Rosso posted:Whats the dopest national park in south to mid Thailand that's not in the middle of nowhere? My friend went to the Similan islands and she loved it. The only other one I can think of in that region is Sam Roi Yod. I'm sure there's more, I just don't know about it.
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Jul 23, 2014 13:14
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