Originally Posted by
fallinasleep
I'm trying to decide between Vientiane, Phnom Pehn or Rangoon for a short 2 or 3 day getaway later this month. With only 3 days max, that doesn't leave a lot of time to see much other than the major cities. Luang Prabang will have to wait. I'm using miles for an award tix, so the flights cost the same.
I have been to both PNH and RGN but that was 15 years ago, and I probably won't recognise these places much today (hopefully, there's no more need for the bouncers to carry around AK47s at the nightclubs in PNH).
For those who have been to two or all three of these cities recently, how would you rank them? I'm pretty happy just walking around during the day, visiting one or two major sites, seeing the locals going about their business, eating good food and sleeping in late.
If Cambodia/PNH is the place to go, does it make sense to visit Kep instead (there was a New York Times travel article hyping it in the past week)? Been to Angkor twice already so in no rush to go back to REP, at least not for a few more years.
Any other hotel/restaurant recommendations in PNH would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
I have been to all 3 recently.
I rank them as:
1) PNH
2) VTE
3) RGN
PNH has the better restaurants, more to see, and is quite an interesting place (it has changed a LOT in 15 years as you can imagine). I really like the Raffles hotel here- stay in the main building (i.e. the same one as reception is in)- very classy, recently rennovated- the hotel also has a good swimming pool (2 actually) and a wonderful breakfast. It costs < 200 USD so phenomenal value. Many good restaurants here. Pickup the LUXE city guide for Phonm Penh- it is very accurate for places to eat.
VTE- hmm... I want to like VTE, however it is very quiet- there really is not much to do or see here (walking around the centre area will take up about 4 hours if you really see EVERYTHING). There is a great Italian restaurant in VTE- don't recall the name, however there are not very many so you should be able to find it. I have not found a hotel in VTE I like if that matters.
RGN- super interesting due to political developments. I am not sure that I would go there to relax- from a "next big development" country perspective it is very good. I have stayed at the Traders Hotel- it works quite well and is a typical Shangri-La Traders property smack in the centre of town. I have also stayed at the Strand- I would say go to the Strand for a drink and stay at the Traders on the Horizon Club level.
Lastly about Kep- Ms. Travelsig really likes Kep. We stayed at the Knai Bang Chatt "Resort" which is a great bed and breakfast with 2 restaurants (also the next door "Sailing Club" is owned and operated by the hotel). Knai Bang Chatt is very sleepy- actually we are talking about Kep being a place with a pulse of zero. Even the dogs are too laid back to chase a cat. As everyone says- the crab is great- although after 2 days you will have enough crab.
The beach is OK to look at- however definitely not very swimmable or accessible- better just to look at. If you stay at Knai Bang Chatt you will use the great swimming pool there. Note there are only 11 rooms, so you really need to book in advance. No televisions, no bath tubs- there is wifi (free) however and some very interesting architecture. It works out to cost ~ $300-$350 USD a night including dinner at one of the two restaurants- I am not sure if it is really worth this price, however given the surroundings, the ambience etc- it does seem to be worth it. The staff are very nice and sweet. I wouldn't go here without Ms. Travelsig- there is really nothing to do in KEP.
I took a car and driver from PNH to KEP- it is a drive of about 3 hours including a bit of traffic getting in and out of KEP. There is a helicopter option to the Knai Bang Chatt for $3500 (not a typo) which is supposedly the way high flyers get down to KEP- however not being a highflyer myself I don't know how often the helicopter option really gets used (although the hotel said there are regular customers FWIW).