Practical Information

Visa

Cambodia

Travellers from the UK, US and EU normally need a visa to enter Cambodia. Please note, visa requirements often change and it is your responsibility to obtain any required visas for this trip. Therefore, we recommend that you check with the nearest embassy or consulate of your chosen destination(s), including any countries you may be transiting or transferring through.

Some local governments provide guidance on what visas their citizens need. To help, we’ve gathered a selection of useful links below.

• Australia: www.smartraveller.gov.au/destinations/asia/cambodia
• Canada: www.travel.gc.ca/destinations/cambodia
• United Kingdom: www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/cambodia/entry-requirements
• USA: www.travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Cambodia.html

Important advice regarding e-Visas:

Please note, e-Visas are not accepted at all border checkpoints when travelling overland into Cambodia.

This applies to the following borders/trips:

• Tinh Bien,Vietnam/Phnom Den, Takeo, Cambodia border: Thai Indochina Explorer (Trip Code: AOX) and Southeast Asia Express (AOK)
• Xa Xia, Vietnam/Prek Chak, Cambodia (Ha Tien crossing): South East Asia Adventure (Trip Code: FIJ)

You can only purchase a tourist visa on arrival at these borders as e-Visas will not be accepted.

More information can be found at:

• https://www.evisa.gov.kh/
• https://www.evisa.gov.kh/information/port_entry/3

Visa on arrival:

For obtaining a visa on arrival, you will need $30 USD in cash and 2 passport photos. You will be required to fill in a small application on arrival with your personal details including the address of the first hotel you stay at in Cambodia.

Applying for your Cambodia tourist e-Visa:

If you choose to apply for a Cambodia tourist e-Visa before arrival, will need to add in the following information to your application:

Address During Visit (Address in Cambodia):

Ohana Hotel

Address: 4&6 Street 148 Phsar Kandal, Phnom Penh 12204, Cambodia

Phone: +855 23 989 671

Intended date you enter Cambodia:  The AOA: Cambodia Adventure tour commences on day 1 of the itinerary in Cambodia.

Please ensure you allow for any pre tour accommodation you may have booked if you are intending to arrive into Cambodia before your trip commences.

Supporting documents: You can submit your Exodus trip invoice and/or booking confirmation with your application.

Vaccinations and Health

Cambodia

There are no required vaccinations. However, recommended vaccinations include hepatitis A, tetanus, typhoid, cholera, hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis, rabies and tuberculosis. You will also need a yellow fever vaccination certificate if you’re arriving from a country with risk of yellow fever transmission or transiting for more than 12 hours through a country with risk of yellow fever transmission. Please confirm your vaccine recommendations and requirements with your doctor or travel clinic.

Dengue fever, a tropical viral disease spread by daytime biting mosquitoes, is a known risk in places visited. There is currently no vaccine or prophylaxis available, so take the usual precautions to avoid mosquito bites.

Local Time

Cambodia's time zone: Asia/Phnom_Penh (UTC +07:00)

Electricity

Cambodia's electricity: Plug types A (two flat pins), C (two round pins) and G (three rectangular pins) – 230V, 50Hz

Money

Cambodia's currency: Cambodian riel (KHR); however, US dollars are widely accepted

ATM Availability

ATMs are widespread in cities and are the easiest way of obtaining money. They typically dispense US dollars. Credit card acceptance is common in the cities at restaurants and shops catering for tourists.

If you would like to bring cash there will be ample opportunity for you to change this. British pounds and US dollars are both easily exchanged. As you will probably be carrying much of your money in cash, we strongly recommend using a money belt.

Extra Expenses & Spending Money

You will need about 975,000-1.3m Cambodian riel (US$240‐US$320) for all other meals, which will allow you to eat well. Apart from the food, you should allow money to cover drinks (more if you like a beer/alcohol) and souvenirs.

Optional excursions

There are a number of optional activities, which your leader can help arrange for you and advise of costs locally. The below are approximate costs.

Phnom Penh

• Mekong River sunset boat trip: From 40,600 riel (US$10) per person

Kampot

• Seeing hand massage: From 24,300 riel (US$6) per hour

Siem Reap

• Khmer cooking class: 81,200 riel (US$20) for three hours
• Phare The Circus: 73,000 riel (US$18) per person
• Flight of the Gibbon zip‐lining and canopy walk: 490,000 riel (US$120)
• Tonle Sap Lake floating village boat trip: From 61,000 riel (US$15) per person

Tipping

Tipping is entirely at your discretion but is customary in Cambodia. To take the hassle out of tipping, the leader will suggest you contribute to a tipping kitty of approximately US$27-US$34 per person. This is used by the leader to tip drivers, staff at hotels, on boats etc but it is not used at restaurants. If you do not wish to contribute to a central pool for tips you are, of course, free to do so.

In addition, a tip for the leader at the end of the trip is greatly appreciated if you are happy with the service you have received. As a guideline, we recommend a contribution of US$3 per day for your leader but this amount is just a suggestion and entirely up to you. Our local staff are paid well and fairly for their work with Exodus.

The tipping kitty explained above is entirely separate from any contribution to the tour leader.

People, Places & Planet

We work hard to create trips that improve life for the people and places we visit and look after the planet we explore. Find out more about our sustainable travel ethos and practice here, and find out about the work of the Exodus Travels Foundation here.

Some sustainable travel highlights of this trip include:

People

How this trip helps improve life for local communities.

• The use of a local guide means our customers will be well informed about local traditions, and cultural-social sensitivities.
• This trip brings income and opportunity to the destination community through the inclusion of locally owned hotels and restaurants, the emphasis on eating locally produced food and support of other local enterprise.
• Throughout the trip, we stop at small factories producing rice paper, dried banana, prahoc fish paste, kraline and rice wine to further support small local businesses.
• We also visit Angkor Silk Farm, where Artisans d’Angkor have helped rebuild Cambodia’s traditional art practices after the Khmer Rouge genocide and is now employing more than 900 artisans and 1,300 staff.
• The trip includes a cycling tour of the local businesses around Battambang. This is run by a social enterprise called Soskabike, which provides employment and business opportunities for locals with our support.

Places

How this trip helps protect and conserve local landscapes and nature.

• By travelling in a small group, led by a local guide, we ‘tread lightly’ to minimise our impact on local resources and the environment. On this trip, some parts of the itinerary stay in smaller towns using accommodation outside of busy cities.
• Our trips adhere to ABTA’s industry-leading animal welfare guidelines to ensure the best possible practices with regard to working animals and wildlife viewing. Our animal welfare policy can be found here.
• We work with our partners on the ground to proactively eliminate or reduce waste, for example eliminating all single-use plastic water bottles and instead providing refills for reusable bottles.
• We provide clients with a reusable cotton tote bag at the start of the tour, made in Cambodia by HUSK organisation, offering an alternative to single-use plastic bags and a souvenir to take home.

 Planet

How we seek to keep the carbon footprint of this trip low.

• Read about Exodus Travels’ Planet Promise here, including our rewilding and carbon compensation commitments for every customer who travels.
• Accommodation and restaurants in the itinerary use locally sourced food which has not been transported long distances.
• Vegetarian and/or vegan options are available at majority of accommodation and restaurants.

 Tips for sustainable travel on this trip

• Leave no trace: We do all we can to ensure we leave no rubbish behind in the wild and beautiful places we visit; we ask that you do the same. If there are no recycling facilities in-country, we’d ask you to consider bringing recyclable materials home with you.
• Plastic waste reduction: Please bring your own reusable water bottle on this trip; filtered water will be provided where tap water is not drinkable.
• Cultural respect:
  • You will be expected to cover your legs and arms (to the elbow) during visits to temples and sacred sites so packing a sarong or other suitable clothing is recommended. Also remember to remove hats when visiting a sacred site.
  • Do not rest your chopsticks upright in a bowl of rice as this symbolises the burning of incense, which is usually reserved for times of mourning.
  • One should not show the soles of their feet or touch someone’s head, both are considered disrespectful.

Important Information

Water safety

This trip includes time by a lake, river or sea, where there may be opportunities to swim. You should always seek local advice before deciding whether to swim. Open-water or wild swim spots should be treated with extreme caution. Information on how to keep yourself safe while swimming is shown here.

Your safe participation 

When booking this trip, you should be confident in your ability to participate in all activities described in these Trip Notes. If you have any doubt about your suitability, please call the Exodus office and ask to speak to one of the experts on this itinerary. 

Although our leaders are well trained to deal with different capabilities, if they have any concerns about someone’s ability to safely take part in an activity, or their impact on other people’s enjoyment, we authorise them to take necessary action which, in some circumstances, may involve asking someone to miss that activity. 

By booking this trip you agree to our Booking Conditions which clearly state that our leaders have the authority to do this. In these rare instances we will ensure anyone sitting out is safely provided for and offered alternative options where possible. Refunds will not be provided for activities missed and customers may be liable for additional costs incurred.