Lonely Planet Cambodia

by Nick Ray, Lonely Planet

-- essential information for travellers visiting Phnom Penh, the Temples of Angkor and Cambodia's fascinating countryside
-- expanded coverage as more of Cambodia opens up to travellers
-- indispensable details and illuminating background information on history, culture and politics

Genres: Travel, Reference, Nonfiction, Asia, Guides

352 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1992

Reviews

[Carol Dobson]

The Lonely Planet books are always wonderful travel guides. They are informative and interesting and enjoy a sensitivity to the area they are describing. I have never been to Cambodia but this book made me visualise its rice paddies, its sugar palms, its south coast fringed by tropical islands and the occasional fishing village, the Cardamom mountains and the huge Mekong River.
The temples of Angkor, in particular that of Angkor Wat, the world's largest religious building, is described as the 8th wonder of the world, only matched by Petra or Machu Picchu. To quote the book:' the Khmers packed the equivalent of all Europe's cathedrals into an area the size of Los Angeles.'
The architecture is often French particularly in the province of Kampot Battambang; whilst the languages found there are Khmer, English, Chinese and French. The street snacks comprise such delights as deep-fried tarantulas and roasted crickets. I could probably manage a roasted cricket, but not too sure about the tarantula. Is it whole? Does it have hairy legs and little beady eyes? Something visually unappealing is not necessarily not tasty.
I found the politics section of the book difficult to read. So much sadness and suffering. On April 30th, 1970, American and Vietnamese forces invaded the country to attack Vietcong and North Vietnamese troops. For the next 4 years US B52s carpet-bombed large areas in the east. Thousands were killed and many more became refugees. Then followed civil war. On April 17th, 2 weeks before the fall of Saigon,the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh surrendered to the Khmer Rouge who attempted to turn the country into 'a peasant-dominated agrarian cooperative. Year Zero was proclaimed. Currency was abolished and there were practically no postal services.' Many died.
On December 25th, 1978, Vietnam invaded Cambodia. 2 weeks later the Pol Pot government fell. In 1984 the Vietnamese 'overran the rebel camps and the Khmer Rouge retreated to Thailand.'
All you need to know to travel Cambodia is here in this small book. For the moment my journey is literary, but perhaps.......

[Stephanie]

i found it quite humerous that i read the following extract while laying beside a pool in a cambodian resort--------cambodia is awash with pirated books and poor photocopies, including lonely planet titles. we know you wouldnt dream of buying a photocopied lonelt planet guide,be warned, if this is a photocopy, it may self-destruct in five seconds. i found that funny because i was reading at the time a photocopyed version of it. now dont judge me its not like i dont like supporting business. i was going to buy an ogrinal copy but even though i work at a book shop and get a staff discount lonely planet books are too damn expensive besides i would rather support a penniless cambodian then give in to an evil Corporation like lonely planet because thats what they are, they were going to charge 40 bucks when i could by it for 3 from a cute cambodia kid with dirt and flies on there face now who would you choose? care to comment?

[Jonathan Frodsham]

Really good, interesting and Informative, a great insight.

[Mailene]

found this handy when i went backpacking to south east asia. start-off from singapore then took the train to malaysia then another train headed to cambodia, laos, vietnam summing up your last stop at thailand. though, lonely planet hasn't really been updated recently, still a bestfriend when you're off the road.

[Elise Leite]

Love Lonely Planet books. They are the most intuitive travel books out there.

[Katherine]

If you're going with or without a tour guide, it is worth it to read about Angkor Wat and what exactly does the bas reliefs mean.

[Nicole]

Not sure what all the hype is with Lonely Planet guides...? Blah at best. There are much better guides out there :) *also, I had the paperback version, not ebook*

[Satu]

Lonely Planet and the Rough Guide are dull and boring while you're planning a trip, but on the go they are invaluable. I had this and two other ebooks borrowed from my library during my trip. So lightweight, easy to search and bookmark and most importantly available offline.

It was a bit difficult to find a suitable app. Pocketbook was able to handle DRM and the links in the book, where others failed. Zooming the maps did not work, but they were offered as download as well.

[Eservices]

Lonely Planet's Cambodia guide is a must-have for anyone planning a trip—packed with practical tips, cultural insights, and hidden gems. It helped me map out my journey from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap with ease. One pro tip not to overlook: apply for the Cambodia eVisa online [ https://www.evisagov.co/official/en/a... ] before you go. It saves tons of time at the border and lets you focus on exploring this beautiful, history-rich country stress-free.

[Geo Vittoratos]

Good guidebook that I got at a used bookstore. Hilariously there is a warning in it about how many things in Cambodia are counterfeits and I should make sure to get the real Lonely Planet book… I looked at the guidebook next to all my other Lonely Planet guidebooks and realised that it WAS a fake. I weirdly love it even more, with it’s badly facsimiled pages but surprisely sturdy binding.

[Bre]

One of the better Lonely Planet guides, we devoured this one and wrung every bit of information from it.

[Isabel Lopes]

Emprestado à Fátima Saraiva.

[Jonathan Somoza]

Useful if you traveling to Cambodia!

[Alexandra]

*ebook*

[betweenbookmarks.andsignposts (Leora)]

Highly recommended. Detailed descriptions of what to see and visit, when to see it and how to get there and where to stay. Gives detailed and important historical and cultural information, need-to-know and interesting facts. a Traveller's dream guide

[Christin]

Lots of useful information (specifically maps!), but a little out-of-date. In LP's defense, it's a bit hard to stay up-to-date in a country like Cambodia, where everything is changing so fast. (Hopefully for Cambodia's sake, it'll keep changing for the better). As always, it's meant to be a guide, not an end-all-be-all-source-of-everything-worthwhile, so remember to use it as such and it'll be helpful along your travels, if not definitive.

Also I'd say that LP in general would do well to stop reviewing as many high end hotels (one place mentioned was $300/night. In Cambodia!) and give us more reviews of budget accommodations (even if they're bad reviews, I'd like to know that kind of thing!).

[Aileen]

Very informative book and covers all the bases that one needs to know about Cambodia.

[anie]

looking at my old pictures folder, and i found this book captured with my Cambodian fried rice... feels like going back to the street of Siem reap. How I miss that journey. anyway, read this borrowed book (it's belong to my trip mate, and it's a copy book cost only 3 dollars) and it really gives a lot of useful information and tips

[Khalid Abdulla]

I'd say it's 50% useful and 50% misinformed and outdated information. I think the author never visited most of the cities they wrote about or took any time to travel the country because most of the advice and info when you reach there is wrong. You could use it for wishy washy inspiration but not for useful practical travel information.

[Linnea McGowan]

Big up to my mom for sending this (and three other Lonely Planet Guidebooks!) to me when I was living in China! I loved the suggestions in Cambodia, but my travel buddy and I managed to get into trouble... I mean "adventures" all on our own! VERY helpful through the Wats of Ankor.

[Kari]

I bought this while I was touring the ruins in Angkor Wat. I had thought I was getting such a good deal (brand new - only $5!) but when I got back to the hotel and started reading it I realized it was photocopied. Oh well, it was still in good condition and will be useful...

[Johanna Øybø]

The new style of Lonely Planet lacks essential information, like how to get around, population of cities and villages and basic information about the area.
A lot of the places for viewing animals that are recommended in this book keep animals caged.

[Zoë]

This book had really good suggestions. Also totally worth it for when you visit Siem Rep and all the Wats. It gives a good overview of the histories of most structures in Angkor.

[Christina]

I want to go to Cambodia!

[Roniq]

My first Solo trip and this book was priceless there for me.
I love Cambodia and will be going back to this amazing place.

[Greg]

These books are more or less indispensable for getting around the world.

[Patrick Cowsill]

The guidebook, thanks to the Internet, is dying a quick death. We went to Cambodia when my wife was two months pregnant.

[Patria]

yak...sudah ngasah clurit... siap backpacking ke Kamboja!!!! bawa termos kopi buat ngopi2 di Angkor Wat

[Melissa]

[2006.11] 2005 edition used for Dec 2006 SEAsia trip planning.

[Sarah]

Siem Reap was incredible! I can't wait to go back to Cambodia. It is truly a beautiful and amazing place!