6 of the 7 Continents For The Budget Traveler: Cambodia, it's not just about Angkor Wat!

Ahhh, look at the photo above, good old Angkor Wat, the reason we all come to Siemp Reap, maybe even the reason you come to Cambodia altogether. But I can tell you on a month long trip in South East Asia, the week we spent in Cambodia had so much more to offer than just the temples. And don't get me wrong, Angkor Wat is amazing, and certainly visit, but we spent only a day visiting the temples and spent the rest of the time seeing the actual city, visiting other attractions, and more important meeting the people. Here's my go to advice on making the most out of your time in Cambodia and of course doing it on a middle class travelers budget!

To even say budget feels funny, Cambodia is one of the cheapest places i have ever been, the deals are non stop. We stayed in a 4 bedroom airbnb condo/mansion about a 5 minute tuk tuk ride or 15 minute walk to pub street, which is definitely where you will want to be around. Total cost was about $60 a night total,
Pub Street is where it's at for the nigh life of course, but by day you can enjoy $1 massages, day markets, night markets, local food, as well as international cuisine, souvenirs, strange food like fried spiders, and of course a fish massage! It tickles a lot just to warn you!
By night the choices of where to party on Pub St are unlimited, it starts getting crowded around 6pm and some nights goes till 7am! Save some money and enjoy a few drinks at the Tuk Tuk bars before the main event!
The floating village was another highlight, but as always it wasn't the tour that made it, it was our guides, we ended up cutting the tour half way to just go drink beer on a house boat with the rest of his friends. But I will say before happy hour began, the sites are amazing to see how the people live there. A definite do not miss.
Another day we headed out to rural Cambodia for an Ox Cart village tour, this was probably the most culturally immersive part of the trip besides the house boat party, you meet locals, visit inside their homes, see how they live off the land, you really feel like a cousin or distant relative rather than a tourist. Well okay maybe we stuck out a little...

Visiting the markets is of course another must do, but lucky for you they are everywhere so you won't need to go out of the way to find one! Prices are of course always negotiable, but personally I rarely negotiate a super cheap price, the extra dollar I would save to buy a stick of gum in my country will go a lot farther for the person I am giving it to. This pic below may have been my best ever, it was free.
We paid respects as well at the killing fields from the Cambodian genocide.
Your money will go very far in Cambodia, so for a rare change we ate at very upscale restaurants. We generally used TripAdvisor or google reviews to pick them. And as dining is a cyclical business I'll leave choices up to you when you are there, but it was nice for a change from always eating street food and bar food to be able to go to a nice restaurant and order anything you want without remotely thinking it was going to affect your budget.

All of that was great, some notable things we didn't do because we didn't have time was shoot a rocket launcher in the jungle and take the microlight flight over the city. Maybe next time. But as always, the best part wasn't about the sights, it was about the locals. I want to thank my friend Chanta I met and her sisters for making the trip one I will never forget. We saw the Siem Reap beyond Pub St and beyond Angkor Wat. Some of these nights were under the influence of local beer and I unfortunately can't remember all the details to repost! But I do know that when you meet a genuine Cambodian that is ready to show you his or her country, the back alleys, the homes, the local restaurants no backpacker will ever see, the towns that lead to the city center, etc... You will feel for just a glimpse, what it is truly like to be a part of this amazing country.