Traveling is a lot of fun but can be expensive as well. To find out exactly how much we spent during our round the world trip we painstakingly keep track of all of our travel expenses and analyse them for you. In this post: our travel expenses in Cambodia.
Because we wanted to reach Chiang Mai in time for Loy Krathong we were only able to spend 7 days in Cambodia which meant sticking to its most popular cities: Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. We are glad we included Cambodia in our trip though, because even in such a short time we learned a lot about its terrible history and had plenty of time to explore the beauty of Angkor Wat.
This short stay cost us $722.86 (€679.46) in total which corresponds with an average of $51.63 (€48.53) per person per day. As always we’ve got a breakdown by category for you:
Average Spending Per Person Per Day
Accommodation costs could have been lower, but we opted for a nice hostel with swimming pool in Siem Reap to celebrate Birthe’s birthday. It was definitely worth the extra few dollars for us.
Expenses for tranportation and sights are a bit higher than usual which can almost entirely be attributed to Angkor Wat. A 3-day pass is $40 per person and you also need to pay for transportation to and around the temple complex (unless you go by bicycle). That being said, Angkor Wat is definitely worth every single cent of this.
At $5 per person per day “travel documents” is taking up a large part of the budget as well. There’s only 1 expense in this category: the Cambodian Visa ($35 each if “arranged” for you by the bus company). This obviously won’t have that much of an impact when staying in Cambodia for a longer period.
But let’s take a closer look at the largest piece of the pie:
Average Spending PPPD for Food & Drinks
Lots of eating out in Cambodia (and admittedly quite a bit of Western food) had its toll on the budget. Our accommodation didn’t have breakfast included either, which increased the food cost as well.
The night life in Siem Reap was quite fun so we also enjoyed the occasional beer there. Indulging in 2 of our favorite Belgian beers was also a bit expensive, but worth it.
So which one’s the most expensive city? Siem Reap or Phnom Penh?
Average Spending PPPD by Location
Even though our swimming pool hostel in Phnom Penh had its impact, Siem Reap is definitely more expensive if you’re going to visit Angkor Wat (which you should). Both cities can be done on a budget though, especially if you cut down on the restaurants. Seeing that these are probably the most expensive cities in Cambodia you should be able to bring the average expenses even further down by just spending more time in the country. Lots of things left to explore!
Cambodia has its own currency but everything is actually advertised and paid in USD, at least in the cities we’ve visited. Nearly every ATM just gives you dollars as well, although they do tend to add a steep $5 fee. Just make sure to treat your bills well. A tiny tear and no one will want them anymore. Any change under $1 will be returned in Cambodian Riel with 4000 Riel treated as $1. You get the hang of it soon.
Great costing tips!