I finally contacted Ponheary about being our guide for Angkor. She is unavailable, but her brother Dara is, so we'll probably be using him. We also asked for a recommendation on a mid-range hotel, that's near other restaurants and bars. She suggested the newly opened Angkor Holiday Hotel. I looked at their web site (http://www.angkorholidayhotel.com/index.htm) and it looks nice. However, I haven't seen any reviews about it and it looks a little far from the center of town and pub street, etc. Does anyone know anything more about this place?

I don't know anything about that hotel, but we just got back from SR. Ponheary booked us at the Prince D'Angkor for $90 per night. It was nice and the pool was great. It's only a few blocks from the river and about 1/3 mile from the Old Market.

Thanks Gpanda. I'll check that place out. I've asked her for some more recommendations closer to town, so maybe she will suggest that one too. I think she is suggesting the Angkor Holiday because they are offering half price intro rates right now, so it's probably a good deal. It's at the intersection of 6th National and Sivutha, which looks a long way off from Pub St., etc.

Well, I looked at a map and Prince d'Angkor is in the same area as Angkor Holiday. Ponheary "guarantees" we will be happy with it, so I think we'll give it a try. The half price speciall seems like a really good deal.

honestly i do not see any need to be near the downtown area...there is not too much there...its easy to get around and if you have a driver he is glad to hang around in the evening to earn some extra money....maybe $5 for the evening...we did that and it worked fine...

Thanks Bob, I didn't realize the driver would stick around like that. I just hate being "trapped" at a hotel. We like to get out and walk around to check out restaurants, bars, etc. I think we'll be fine with the location of the Angkor Holiday though. I don't think we can beat the price for a brand new place with all the amenities it has. Depending on the room we pick it'll be between $50 - $65 US per night inclusive of taxes etc.

I looked at the Angkor Holiday Hotel website and the special deal going at the moment looks too good to miss! I think I would be happy to go along with Ponheary's guarantee. Location doesn't seem to matter much in Siem Reap - nothing is far from anything else. We used Dara as our guide and we didn't have to pay extra to have our driver, Mr Hong, take us to places in the evening. It was included in the daily rate for the driver.

that is reasonable for SR in any case....i paid a "tip" to the driver to hang around after his regular hours....it only seemed right to do so....he did not ask for it...

rhkkmk,

I mentioned it because Dara had specifically told us that it was part of the driver's day to take us in the evening if we wanted and that it was included in what we were paying - we were quite happy to use tuk tuks and on a couple of occasions told our driver he didn't need to wait for us, but he insisted.
We did give our driver a good tip, but only at the end of our trip as we were with him for several days.

LAF-tuk tuks only cost $1, so location is not really important. We knew nothing about Prince D'Angkor and just trusted Ponheary. We were very happy. Make sure you eat at the Red Piano.

Great advice everyone! Thank you so much. I told her to go ahead and book us one of those balcony rooms. They look nice.

LA FadeAway,

I'm booked with Ponheary on March 16th & 17th and she recommended the Angkor Holiday for me as well and I'm taking her up on her offer and staying there. Besides, what's a couple dollars for tuk-tuks when you save $40-$50 a night on the room?

Good point broncos 32! Please report back when you return. We won't be staying there until early May. Thanks!

I'll be taking plenty of pictures of everything during my entire trip, so you'll be able to get a good idea of what the property looks like too.

Sounds good, thanks!

broncos32, are you home yet? I'm anxious to hear your report about the hotel and Siem Reap in general!!

I'm so late in sharing information, I'm sorry!

I have returned and couldn't have had a more spectacular trip.

As for the Angkor Holiday location, I walked to the Red Piano the first night there and while I didn't feel it was a long or difficult walk, that was the only time I did it. Tuk-tuk's are everywhere and to be honest, it was easier to say "yes" once to a $1 ride than "no" 25 times by the time I covered the distance of the walk. I don't mean anyone was rude or pushy, just that they all asked.

As for the Hotel room, I was given a room on the top floor, facing the pool and it had both a double and single beds. While I wouldn't call it luxury by any means, it was certainly comfortable and I considered it a value compared to other rates I considered. The room had a TV, safe and fridge for snacks and sodas. I did make my arrangements through Ponheary, so I settled with her and she in turn paid the property. I think the only reason I got the nice room that I did was because of Ponheary.

Breakfast was included with my room and was served from about 6:00 until I think about 10:30 or so, but I was never there late enough to know when it ended. Breakfast was served buffet style and had many choices and seemed to have something for everyone. (made to order eggs, a noodle soup station, fruits, pastries, bacon, sausage, rice, noodles, salads, breads, coffee, teas, juices, cereal, and assorted other foods) If you have specific questions, please ask.

Thank you so much for the reply! How did you go about checking in, since it's booked through Ponheary? Did you still have to give a credit card deposit, but then just pay her cash? I think you've pretty much answered everything else!

Just stayed at the Angkor Holiday Hotel. While not 5-star, it was quite lovely and great value at $55 for a deluxe room. Good service, nice people and good location.

Since Ponheary picked me up at the airport and dropped me at the hotel while I was getting things out of the car she got my room keys. I didn't even think about it, but I don't think I even gave them a credit card, but I could be mistaken. Upon check-out, again Ponheary picked me up to take me to the airport and I gave her the cash for the room and she settled with the front desk while I was getting things into the car.

I have pictures of the room and property, but I don't know where I can post them on the web to share them.