Recommended Driver in Siem Reap/Angkor Cambodia
Jun 12, 2017, 11:00 am
#121
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 1,018
I used Synon's services last year, thanks to all the great feedback from you guys! He was very friendly, proactive and always had ice cold towels and water to hand 
I wrote a review on my blog, where I talk about costs, as well as posting up my full itinerary with photos: Touring the Temples of Siem Reap
I would particularly recommend heading out to Koh Ker for a day. It is a long drive but the temples are absolutely worth it and at $100 I think Synon's price was very fair indeed.
I wrote a review on my blog, where I talk about costs, as well as posting up my full itinerary with photos: Touring the Temples of Siem Reap
I would particularly recommend heading out to Koh Ker for a day. It is a long drive but the temples are absolutely worth it and at $100 I think Synon's price was very fair indeed.
Jun 16, 2017, 7:15 pm
#123
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: body: A stone's throw from SFO, mind: SE Asia
Programs: Some of this 'n some of that
Posts: 17,263
It's good to get out of the common temples and see some new ones. ^
Jun 27, 2017, 2:22 am
#124
Join Date: Sep 2012
Programs: Delta GM, AMEX Reserve
Posts: 184
Just leaving Siem Reap this afternoon after hiring Synon for three days based on the recommendations here. Happy to confirm all of the good reviews. He picked me up at the airport the day before and was on time for every pickup. Upon returning from each temple he was waiting with a frozen face rag and bottle of cold water. He offered to get me a guide which I declined as I prefer to wander on my own. If/when I return to Cambodia I would absolutely hire him again.
He is worth every penny and made my trip effortless and enjoyable.
He is worth every penny and made my trip effortless and enjoyable.
Jun 27, 2017, 4:46 am
#125
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 1,018
Just leaving Siem Reap this afternoon after hiring Synon for three days based on the recommendations here. Happy to confirm all of the good reviews. He picked me up at the airport the day before and was on time for every pickup. Upon returning from each temple he was waiting with a frozen face rag and bottle of cold water. He offered to get me a guide which I declined as I prefer to wander on my own. If/when I return to Cambodia I would absolutely hire him again.
He is worth every penny and made my trip effortless and enjoyable.
He is worth every penny and made my trip effortless and enjoyable.
Awesome to hear.
Aug 2, 2017, 4:00 am
#126
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: OSL
Programs: BA Gold | SK Gold | A3 Gold
Posts: 4,553
Here's my insight after spending 4-5 days in Siem Reap.
Used Synon for one day on the trip up to Koh Ker, and everything went smoothly, including the airport pick up a few days before. No complaints, but nothing "special" either. I got the impression (at least in July) that there's an abundance of people with all modes of vehicles willing to drive you anywhere. I did feel that $100 was steep for approx 8 hours away, considering petrol and labour are very cheap. Not sure what cars cost, but the Lexus vehicles in use are not very new.
Synon proposed using his brother for other days when we needed a tuk tuk - did this one day and found him to drive very, very slow.
For the next day I just found someone on the street the previous day whose tuk tuk looked nice, and he turned up at 5 AM at the hotel just based on a verbal agreement. Even at that time, it would have taken all of 10 seconds to hail one on the street.
I liked the flexibility of hailing one on the street when not leaving early (takes all of 10 seconds to get one), as this allowed one to both bargain and choose based on how the tuk tuk looked, rather than plan in advance and then be rushed because the tuk tuk is waiting outside.
Used Synon for one day on the trip up to Koh Ker, and everything went smoothly, including the airport pick up a few days before. No complaints, but nothing "special" either. I got the impression (at least in July) that there's an abundance of people with all modes of vehicles willing to drive you anywhere. I did feel that $100 was steep for approx 8 hours away, considering petrol and labour are very cheap. Not sure what cars cost, but the Lexus vehicles in use are not very new.
Synon proposed using his brother for other days when we needed a tuk tuk - did this one day and found him to drive very, very slow.
For the next day I just found someone on the street the previous day whose tuk tuk looked nice, and he turned up at 5 AM at the hotel just based on a verbal agreement. Even at that time, it would have taken all of 10 seconds to hail one on the street.
I liked the flexibility of hailing one on the street when not leaving early (takes all of 10 seconds to get one), as this allowed one to both bargain and choose based on how the tuk tuk looked, rather than plan in advance and then be rushed because the tuk tuk is waiting outside.
Feb 6, 2018, 4:44 pm
#127
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: Berkeley, CA
Programs: United, Copa, Hyatt, Hilton, SPG, Marriott, Hertz, Avis
Posts: 10
Hi all, Just wanted to add an update here on Synon as there didn't seem to be many recent posts. I just got back from a few day trip to Siem Reap. After looking at the Park Hyatt's pricing for driver's guide and looking at all the reviews, I went with Synon and glad I did. He was friendly and very prompt. As listed earlier, it's $30 for the day and he included airport pickup the day before. We were lucky I think as I didn't end up making the arrangements with him via email until a couple of weeks before. He said business has been slow so I especially wanted to plug him here since we loved working with him. As advertised, cold lemongrass scented towels, cold water and a nice Lexus. It's really fascinating looking at the Park Hyatt pricing - they have all these fancier vehicles - BMWs, etc. Seems like overkill. Even the Sedan price was a bit higher. Where it really paid off was that Synon works with some guides. Pretty last minute, we had him arrange to have someone come. It was $35 for the guide who was great. It was a heck of a lot of information and I probably absorbed only a quarter of what he told us but extremely helpful as we knew relatively little about the temples going in. It well money very well spent.
A few tips on working with Synon:
A few tips on working with Synon:
- Know that he's very responsive by email ( [email protected] ), but his English is somewhat limited. We were able to converse with him reasonably well but it's probably good to chunk out your request in small pieces to make sure you get your questions answered. He apologized for his English in the car. Hey, it's a lot better than my Khmer!
- It's a little nerve wracking to just know he'll show up but he was prompt, waiting outside the airport with a smile and a sign and easy to spot. Super prompt at the hotel as well.
- Know what you want to do ahead of time. I had read up but we changed our plans a few times. Synon was great at doing what was asked but didn't necessarily have a set list of recommended places to go. We had asked him about a few places on the way to the airport for a final stop and he ended up coming up with something. But the point is that he's not a guide - just the driver and has the connections to guides. I actually appreciated that since we knew he wasn't just taking kickbacks and taking us places out of self-interest.
- Since he is on the payroll for the day, he can take you other places. The big helpful thing for us, was that he took us to a cell phone store on the way in to get sim cards ($4 for 2 GB). Not that we couldn't figure this out, but it was just so helpful to have him take us there while getting our bearings.
Feb 6, 2018, 7:31 pm
#128
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 1,018
Hi all, Just wanted to add an update here on Synon as there didn't seem to be many recent posts. I just got back from a few day trip to Siem Reap. After looking at the Park Hyatt's pricing for driver's guide and looking at all the reviews, I went with Synon and glad I did. He was friendly and very prompt. As listed earlier, it's $30 for the day and he included airport pickup the day before. We were lucky I think as I didn't end up making the arrangements with him via email until a couple of weeks before. He said business has been slow so I especially wanted to plug him here since we loved working with him. As advertised, cold lemongrass scented towels, cold water and a nice Lexus. It's really fascinating looking at the Park Hyatt pricing - they have all these fancier vehicles - BMWs, etc. Seems like overkill. Even the Sedan price was a bit higher. Where it really paid off was that Synon works with some guides. Pretty last minute, we had him arrange to have someone come. It was $35 for the guide who was great. It was a heck of a lot of information and I probably absorbed only a quarter of what he told us but extremely helpful as we knew relatively little about the temples going in. It well money very well spent.
A few tips on working with Synon:
A few tips on working with Synon:
- Know that he's very responsive by email ( [email protected] ), but his English is somewhat limited. We were able to converse with him reasonably well but it's probably good to chunk out your request in small pieces to make sure you get your questions answered. He apologized for his English in the car. Hey, it's a lot better than my Khmer!
- It's a little nerve wracking to just know he'll show up but he was prompt, waiting outside the airport with a smile and a sign and easy to spot. Super prompt at the hotel as well.
- Know what you want to do ahead of time. I had read up but we changed our plans a few times. Synon was great at doing what was asked but didn't necessarily have a set list of recommended places to go. We had asked him about a few places on the way to the airport for a final stop and he ended up coming up with something. But the point is that he's not a guide - just the driver and has the connections to guides. I actually appreciated that since we knew he wasn't just taking kickbacks and taking us places out of self-interest.
- Since he is on the payroll for the day, he can take you other places. The big helpful thing for us, was that he took us to a cell phone store on the way in to get sim cards ($4 for 2 GB). Not that we couldn't figure this out, but it was just so helpful to have him take us there while getting our bearings.
Feb 8, 2018, 3:33 am
#129
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: body: A stone's throw from SFO, mind: SE Asia
Programs: Some of this 'n some of that
Posts: 17,263
If anyone wants a great tuk tuk driver: reliable, early, adaptable with superb decisions (read picks out great temples and remembers what you've been to over the years) contact me. He's a wonderful guy and my go-to driver for 6 years now; has dealt with inumberable friends as well to high accolades.
Cheers
Cheers
Jun 14, 2018, 1:51 pm
#130
Join Date: Aug 2016
Posts: 91
I wanted to chime in with another positive review for Synon. We hired him based off the reviews here and he was excellent. Very friendly, always early/on-time for all pickups, and a nice vehicle stocked with cold water and towels. Highly recommended.
Also does anyone have a link to his tripadvisor page? I meant to write a review on there but I can't seem to find him.
Also does anyone have a link to his tripadvisor page? I meant to write a review on there but I can't seem to find him.
Last edited by Doctorslices; Jun 14, 2018 at 3:04 pm
Jun 16, 2018, 8:32 am
#131
Join Date: Jan 2010
Programs: Virtuoso, Marriott Stars/Luminous, Hilton Impresario, IHG Luxury & Lifestyle, Hyatt Prive etc
Posts: 2,004
I believe numerous FTers have tried to set him up with a page but TripAdvisor won't allow. I looked into the rules and understand why not so will try to sit with Synon in September to work on his website so TripAdvisor will allow his listing.
Jun 16, 2018, 11:01 am
#132
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 1,018
Very nice to hear this update!
His facebook page seemed easy to find...though no one would know his name unless they check a source such as this FT page.
Jun 29, 2018, 8:29 pm
#133
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: AMS
Programs: FB Platinum (STE+), BA Gold (OWE), A3 Silver (*S), Hyatt Globalist, HH Diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 20
Wanted to add another positive review for Synon.
We hired Synon at short notice over Chinese New Year and had a wonderful experience. We were extremely lucky to find him available for two and a half days. Synon is very responsive, reliable, and flexible, and provides great service. For the half day that he was already booked, he arranged a substitute driver for us.
He has a comfortable car, always well-stocked with cold water and towels.
Synon was happy to think through itineraries with us and suggested some local stops/delicacies along the way. We went to the floating village of Kampong Khleang (worth the extra distance over the other two options), and took him along on a boat trip, which he seemed to genuinely enjoy.
You can check out his website: Good Car Driver in Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia
We had a great experience simply exchanging emails: [email protected]
We hired Synon at short notice over Chinese New Year and had a wonderful experience. We were extremely lucky to find him available for two and a half days. Synon is very responsive, reliable, and flexible, and provides great service. For the half day that he was already booked, he arranged a substitute driver for us.
He has a comfortable car, always well-stocked with cold water and towels.
Synon was happy to think through itineraries with us and suggested some local stops/delicacies along the way. We went to the floating village of Kampong Khleang (worth the extra distance over the other two options), and took him along on a boat trip, which he seemed to genuinely enjoy.
You can check out his website: Good Car Driver in Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia
We had a great experience simply exchanging emails: [email protected]
Dec 11, 2018, 1:36 pm
#135
Moderator: Travel Buzz
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Sunny San Diego
Posts: 3,099