Optional "tour package" to Angkor Wat and Siem Reap
 

I'm now looking at a OAT 19 day trip in Vietnam. I am thinking I will do Bangkok and some of Thailand on my own, but this Vietnam tour starts and ends from Bangkok. I have the option of a three day add on after Viet Nam to Siem Reap and Angkor Wat. I definitely want to do that area, and I'm thinking I might be smart to let them "do the work for me", especially as I'll be traveling alone (or in this case maximum group of 16).

For $895 it would include the airfare from Ho Chi Minh City to Siem Reap and the airfare from Siem Reap to Bangkok afterwards. It included three nights hotel and pretty much all meals, mostly NOT in the hotel. You arrive in the morning on the first day so it is pretty much three full days there.

It includes small group tours of:
Wat Po Temple
Khmer Cuture show
Full day Angkor and Angkor Wat from morning to sunset
Tonle Sap Lake cruise
Bateay Srei
Killing Fields Memorial

What do you think. Should I be trying to orgainize this on my own? Since there is no single supplement and I get the airfares, private rooms with baths, and all the schlepping around included, it seems easy to do this. Or would I be missing something really great by not doing this on my own?

Oh, I should mention, that if I don't do this optional tour, they return me to Bangkok, so I would be doing my own Angkor Wat trip on my own to and from Bangkok, not from VietNam.

Is there some great small tour I could sign up for from Bangkok that might be better? I am not big on hiring my own driver and guide when I'm traveling alone, though.

Personally I'd do it on my own. Cambodia is very easy to find your way about in. A bit of research on this forum and you can put together a great tour. Accommodation is plentiful in Siem Reap and there are plenty of cars, tuk tuks and guides available. I'm not a great fan of the Tonle Sap Lake cruise myself. Is extremely touristy and feels exploitative.

Any idea how much the flight from Bangkok to Siem Reap would be round trip?
Am I the only one who feels uncomfortable hiring a private driver and guide when I am traveling alone? I only did it once, and I felt very odd, despite the fact the guide was very nice. I never thought I was a fan of "tours" but honestly I feel better with a guide in a small group than I do on my own with a guide.

bangkok air is the only flt directly to SR and it is expensive unfortunately...check it out... book way ahead too as they fill up..

i would do it on my own... at our age (and i think we are in the same ball park) you need a driver but could do without a guide if you so chose, but honestly i would have both---

dara and ponheary are often used and written about by fodorites... they also own a guest house and/or can arrange hotels at discounts for you...

lori carlson (offwego) runs a foundation in SR and helps at the guesthouse and is a good one you should be in touch with---she is from TX, btw...

do it all on your own and i feel confident you could do it either cheaper or certainly better...

logistics are easy honestly...

location of your hotel does not matter as the area is not that large...

You don't have to fly - see talesofasia.com for how to go overland from Bangkok to Siem Reap. The road used be a disaster quite often, but apparently no longer. It wasn't bad when I went the other way by car and bus, and that was back in '04.

Don't know the OAT routing, but you can also go overland from Saigon to Phonm Penh (boat or bus) and then on to Siem Reap (bus or car). If you have the time it's definitely worth seeing more of Cambodia than just Siem Reap - the temples are amazing, but from what I've read SR has become tourist central.

I understand what you mean about a car and driver and guide for one person. I don't think you need a guide for Angkor - buy Dawn Rooney's book instead. I used a tuk-tuk instead of a car.

OK, I'm leaning on doing this on my own now, mainly because I can add into my One World ticket a round trip from Hong Kong to Phnom Penh.
So more questions later, but how should I do this? Stay in Phnom Penh or in Siem Reap or some of both? How much time should I allow (I'm thinking 3 or 4 nights total maximum).
My urgency is getting my flights booked and I can work out more specifics later. And the flights between PNH and HKG are apparently not every day.

You need 3 days to do Angkor Wat justice. Stay in Siem Reap, which is 15 minutes away. I agree that a guide is not necessary. Just hire a car with driver.

I'm having a lot of trouble with flight availability for Phnom Penh after all, but what I've found would be arriving Phnom Penh on a Friday at 5:25 PM and departing there on Monday at 11:25 (last weekend in August). That really gives me only two full days, assuming I travel from PP to Siem Reap to stay the three nights. Is that what I should do? Is there anything I should be concerned with it being Saturday and Sunday?

Can you fly directly into Siem Reap?

No, and suddenly I'm realizing what a bad idea this is. I was not realizing how far it is from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap, so this actually makes no sense at all for such a short time.

So the bottom line which no one seems to want to answer -- how much would it cost to fly from Bangkok round trip to Siem Reap?

Meanwhile, I am not doing the Angkor Wat extension to OAT as I need to return home -- so if doing Angkor Wat it would be before I did Vietnam (but still from Bangkok and back to Bangkok)

I've been looking into flights from Bangkok to Siem Reap also. On orbitz roundtrip is $416. In this thread

http://www.fodors.com/community/asia...ary-needed.cfm

Kathie says it's around $300.

Bangkok Air is the only airline flying Bangkok to Siem Reap.
The cost will be around 11815 baht or $356 plus Siem Reap aiport departure tax of $25. Flights can be booked directly with the airline.
http://www.bangkokair.com/index.php

Just do it; you're so close, would be a shame to not come on and have a look.

Fly in, get a driver and a guide book or a driver and a guide and get out there. Really reco the guide for such a short stay, will help maximize time.... if you don't like being alone in a group, then do one of the tours that loads up a minvan full of single travelers and goes out. Not the best way to go IMHO but if you like a crowd, then those options are out there.

Using that bangkokair link above, I'm getting 10310 baht including the tax for Septemeber. That's about $310 total. I guess it's fine to go ahead soon and book online at that price?

I'm still open to an idea of where to stay in Siem Reap where they might help me do a driver and or guide or a small tour. I haven't yet checked out that guest house mentioned above.

stay at the guest house that offwego helps to manage or request that she helps you book something else??

The Sofitel is really nice.

I'm assuming any place in Siem Reap would assist in guide and/or driver or other plans for seeing Angkor Wat?

Be sure to bring a passport-sized photo of you to Cambodia. You'll need the picture to apply for the on-airport VISA required to get into the country.

I have not been to Cambodia in almost 9 years, but the hotel in which I stayed in Siem Reap was truly lovely and it still gets rather good reviews, so here it is, for your consideration.

Another thing: I flew to SR (from Saigon) with no plans and no guide or tour arranged. At that time, and perhaps still today, there were many drivers congregating at the airport ready to whisk you off for several days of touring. This is a very low stress destination and I think you will be just fine without any kind of tour.

http://www.angkorvillage.com/