Hi
I'm wanting to visit Siem Reap for three nights on a trip in May and was wondering if anyone had experience (good/bad) staying at the FCC Angkor Hotel?
I have had quotes to stay at Le Meridian and other 5* hotels which are around $250USD per night - more than double what I thought I could get away with!! We aren't backpackers but don't need every luxury either. Other hotel recommendations would be welcome also.
Thanks everyone.

I think the FCC is a good choice. It had some maintenance/redecorating work done this fall, so should be in nice condition. Location is nice.

We stayed at the Victoria and liked it very much...great pool, nice rooms, great staff, walkable distance to market area. Room, extra bed, 3 breakfasts daily totaled $157.00/night according to the bill I just checked.

Many really like the Hotel de la Paix. It is slick and modern, with an interesting pool area that gives privacy to pool users by its design...though is better for dipping than for actually swimming, also because of the design.

Bopha Angkor is much less expensive and several here have stayed there...do a search here and you'll find comments.

I haven't seen it, but crosscheck saw and liked Hanuman Alaya. I really liked the look of the website but completely forgot about checking it when we were there.

In May it will be hot, very hot, so a pool, imo, is very important. A nice pool.

I really liked the Somadevi Angkor. Not sure of the cost, but it was well located (1 block from HDLP) and the pool was really great.

I stayed at the Bopha Angkor on my last visit a year ago, and it was really good value for money. I got one of the deluxe pool rooms for about $40 a night. There were a few nits you could pick about the maintenance, etc. but the room was huge and comfortable.

Journeys Within is less & has a big salt water pool w/ A/C in its villa style rooms w/ free laundry service... checkout Journeys-Within.com

Kim-
Thank you <b>so</b> much for commenting on the HanumanAlaya boutique guest house. It is exactly what we've been looking for! And thanks to crosscheck for the initial report-- I somehow missed both that and the HanumanAlaya hotel reviews on tripadvisor.
Liz

The FCC has a lovely bar/restaurant area - quite charming with an appealing quasi-colonial atmosphere. The pool looked very very small, which may be an issue for you. We stayed at the Heritage Suites and found it spacious, pretty and stylish. I think the cottage bungalow rooms would be best. The salt water pool was refreshing.

We enjoyed meals at the Raffles and La Residence, two more places you could look into.

I can vouch for the Bopha-Angkor if you are looking for comfort, an excellent location, a pool (I reckon a pool is a 'must') and a reasonable restaurant. It 's within easy walking distance of most places.

I also checked out the website for the Hanuman Alaya, which also looks excellent but not as well located.

The orient Express chain (the one of the Trans Orient Express train) has a superb &amp; very cost-effective hotel in Siem Reap. Reasonable size, exotic swimming pool, excellent rooms, very charming &amp; classy at attractive rate. I would definitely encourage you to try it.

We just got back from Siem Reap last week and we stayed at FCC for 7 nights. We really enjoyed it and would absolutely stay there again. Breakfast is included in the room rate and they will deliver it to your room as early as 4:30 am for those who are up early to do sunrise at the temple ruins. We found breakfast to be so generous that we could largely skip lunch (eggs, bacon, tomato, toast, croissants, juice, yogurt, and coffee -- a LOT of food). We found the staff to be lovely and we really enjoyed the small, boutique feel to the place.

Separately, if you are looking for a driver, we were very happy with the guy we used -- his name is Ros Phansy and can be contacted at [email protected] . His English is excellent, he is extremely professional and he did a great job at managing our itinerary so that we encountered minimal crowds. His rate is $25 per day and we found it to be well worth it -- being able to take a break from the heat in an air-conditioned car and grab a bottle of water out of the ice-filled cooler in the trunk was fantastic. He has worked quite a bit with photographers and was able to steer us to some really great spots to maximize the good light of early morning and late afternoon.

msf

I just booked 3 nights in May 16-19 at Raffles in Siem Reap today. 180 USD per night on their website for a Landmark Room. Also the Meridian was 120 USD per night at that time on their www.SPG.com website.