Phnom Penh travel blog — The fullest guide for a budget trip to Phnom Penh, Cambodia

There are no golden sand beaches and shimmering suns, no hills and vast primitive forests, the capital of Phnom Penh is a noisy and crowded city with scars of peace in the past. Not a probable tourist city, but it is a great place for you to start exploring the Cambodian country. Referring Living Nomads for Phnom Penh self-sufficient travel experience and explore the land of the majestic and ancient temples and pagodas.

So, is Phnom Penh worth visiting, how to visit Phnom Penh, what to do in Phnom Penh and how to plan a budget trip to Phnom Penh for the first-time perfectly? Let’s check out our Phnom Penh travel blog (Phnom Penh blog) with the fullest Phnom Penh travel guide (guide to Phnom Penh, Phnom Penh tourist guide, Phnom Penh city guide, Phnom Penh guide) from how to get to Phnom Penh, best places to visit, best time to come, what to eat as well as top things to do in Phnom Penh to help you maximize your trip as follows!

Now, let’s discover the capital city of Cambodia through our Phnom Penh travel guide and Phnom Penh travel blog (Phnom Penh blog) — The fullest guide for a budget trip to Phnom Penh of Cambodia for the first-timers with Living Nomads below.

Phnom Penh travel blog: The cost of self-sufficient Phnom Penh trip

Cost of Moving

It is not hard to get to Phnom Penh. If you want to go by land, you can go to Pham Ngu Lao Street or Bui Vien Street (get from Ho Chi Minh City) and buy a bus ticket to get to Phnom Penh. The price of a ticket is about 9-10 dollars/ticket. You can go any hour of the day and only take 6 hours to go to the Cambodian capital. If you want to take a flight from Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City to Phnom Penh at a cost of 100-200 USD / ticket. However, if you want to save money when traveling self-sufficient Phnom Penh, the best way is to take the bus.

Many Phnom Penh’s tourist attractions are quite close together. You can walk up to just a few local trails, or if you want to be fast, you can use the tuk-tuk and … bargain. The price for these services is only 2-3usd / time/person.

Cost of stay

There are a variety of rooms for you to choose in Phnom Penh. Dorm rooms can be found in the West Sisowath Quay area and near the monument for prices ranging from 2-5usd. There are many other accommodation services such as homestay, hotel for less than 10usd with good quality.

You can find, check rates, reviews & availability for Phnom Penh hotels on Agoda.com or Booking.com.

Cost of eating

Cuisine in Phnom Penh is generally quite cheap and quite similar to Vietnamese cuisine. But most notably in Cambodia are insect dishes: puppies, spiders, scorpions, crickets … They look horrible but in fact, they contain very high nutrient content. You can eat at Phnom Penh at about 10 dollars per day.

Phnom Penh travel guide on a budget: Some tips on how to save cost of a self-sufficient trip to Phnom Penh

Moving by land

Instead of moving by airplane, experience for a self-sufficient Phnom Penh according to the “delicious – healthy – cheap” you should choose to go by road. Departure from District 1 center, it takes about 15 hours to move. You will arrive in Phnom Penh with only from 9 to 10 dollars.

Another route to savings and more fun that many visitors are choosing is riding a motorbike. Move through Moc Bai (Tay Ninh) border gate to get to Phnom Penh. All things you need to prepare are a good car, license, passport and gas money. Moving by motorbike, you do not have to rent a car when you arrive and you will not be bent on time.

Enjoy street food

Indeed, the cost of eating when traveling Phnom Penh is relatively cheap in Southeast Asia. The cost for a portion of just 2 – 3 dollars is enough. You can enjoy many famous dishes such as Nam Vang noodle soup, fried noodles, chrouk (grilled pork rice with thinly sliced cucumber), sandwiches (with papaya yarn). There really is not any advice for money saving tips in the way of eating when you visit here. Grilled skewers and fried insects are also one of the things you must try when visiting Phnom Penh.

Cost of drinking

Phnom Penh’s self-sufficient tourist experience shows that the cost of drinking in Phnom Penh is a bit more expensive. Every drink is usually a dollar, but alcoholic beverages sometimes cost about 3-4 dollars. Therefore, when going to the bar you should carefully consider avoiding spending too much.

Phnom Penh blog: Where to stay?

Below are some best cheap, budget, mid-range and upscale hotels with good ratings and reviews you can refer to.

The Plantation Urban Resort and Spa (Address: 28 Samdach Preah Thoamak Lekhet Ouk St. (184), Phnom Penh 12206, Cambodia / Phone: +855 23 215 151), a 4-star hotel with room rates from $63/night. (Check rates and reviews on Agoda.com or Booking.com).

G Mekong Hotel (Address: No 419, Preah Monivong Boulevard, Khan 7 Makara (Orussey Market Area), Phnom Penh, Cambodia / Phone: +855 23 999 388), a 4-star hotel with room rates from $33/night. (Check rates and reviews on Agoda.com or Booking.com).

Pavilion (Address: 227 Preah Ang Yukanthor Street (19), Phnom Penh, Cambodia / Phone: +855 23 222 280), a 4-star hotel with room rates from $58/night. (Check rates and reviews on Agoda.com or Booking.com).

Blue Lime (Address: 42, Street 19z (off Street 19), Phnom Penh, Cambodia / Phone: +855 23 222 260), a 3-star hotel with room rates from $37/night. (Check rates and reviews on Agoda.com or Booking.com).

Patio Hotel & Urban Resort (Address: 134Z Rue Pasteur No. 51, Phnom Penh, Cambodia / Phone: +855 23 997 900), a 4-star hotel with room rates from $37/night. (Check rates and reviews on Agoda.com or Booking.com).

Aquarius Hotel & Urban Resort – Phnom Penh (Address: Preah Ang Phanavong St. (240), Phnom Penh, Cambodia / Phone: +855 23 972 089), a 4-star hotel with room rates from $35/night. (Check rates and reviews on Agoda.com or Booking.com).

White Mansion (Address: #26 Street 240 Corner Street 51 Phnom Penh, 12207, Cambodia / Phone: +855 89 372 700), a 4-star hotel with room rates from $73/night. (Check rates and reviews on Agoda.com or Booking.com).

Tea House (Address: #32, Street 242 Phnom Penh, 12211, Cambodia / Phone: +855 23 212 789), a 4-star hotel with room rates from $35/night. (Check rates and reviews on Agoda.com or Booking.com).

One Up – Banana Hotel (Address: Street 51 Corner 288 BKK1 Phnom Penh, 12302, Cambodia / Phone: +855 23 211 344), a 3-star hotel with room rates from $17/night. (Check rates and reviews on Agoda.com or Booking.com).

YK Art House (Address: 13 A St 830, Phnom Penh, Cambodia / Phone: +855 70 740 051), a 3-star hotel with room rates from $19/night. (Check rates and reviews on Agoda.com or Booking.com).

You can find more, check rates, reviews & availability for Phnom Penh hotels on Agoda.com or Booking.com.

Phnom Penh travel blog: Experiences you should not miss in Phnom Penh — Best places to visit and top things to do

Wat Phnom

Wat Phnom is one of the oldest temples in Phnom Penh. It is also considered the most sacred temple in Cambodia. Visiting this temple you can see the whole city of Phnom Penh because this is the highest point in the city. You can also learn about the history of the city and the legendary legends of Cambodia.

Independent monument

The monument and square are located at the intersection of Phnom Penh’s two largest roads, Sihanouk and Norodom. The monument is a traditional stupa, mimicking the architecture of Angkor Wat temple and other famous historical buildings of Cambodia.

Royal Palace of Cambodia

This is one of the symbols of the royal Cambodian. This is also the place where the king lived and worked and where ceremonies were held. It is a complex of primitive white and gold buildings, flower gardens and the famous Silver Pagoda. Today, you can come here to admire the magnificent, luxuriant and rich architecture of Phnom Penh.

Royal Square

It is one of the places that attract visitors to take pictures. Located near the palace, you can visit this place after visiting the palace. In addition, the most feature of this area is a very friendly and sociable

Silver Pagoda

Silver Pagoda (original name: Wat Preah Morakat) is the most prominent temple in the Royal Palace of Cambodia. The pagoda is called the Silver Pagoda (also known as the Golden Pagoda-Silver Pagoda) by the legend of 5329 pieces of silver on the floor, each piece is handmade and has an accurate weight of 1.125 g. In addition, the temple also has thousands of statues of gold, silver, copper are carved finely.

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