After traveled for 2 weeks in Myanmar, our next destination is Cambodia. First we fly from Mandalay to Bangkok, stayed in Kao San Road for a night then catch the early van or bus to Siem Reap. We have read about the experience of border crossing isn’t easy… (You can read more safety tips and things to be careful when crossing the border from Travelfish.org) We have ready our heart and pray that things will go smoothly… We bought the Bangkok-Siem Reap bus tickets from the travel agency next to the guesthouse where we stayed. The van will come and pick us up from our guesthouse. That was easier than we thought. So everything is arranged.
From Bangkok we travel to Aranyaprathet (Thai border) by van, then walk across border to Poipet and from Poipet, catch a shared taxi to Siem Reap. Here’s the stories…
A van come and pick us up and head straight to Aranyaprathet.
Passing by towns… did you notice the eiffel tower on top of the building?
Arrived in Aranyaprathet.
Tuk Tuk ladies in Aranyaprathet.
The long ques at Thai immigration. It took us 1 hour.
Thai border to Cambodia.
Waiting patiently together with a few Japanese from the same van.
Walking towards Cambodia… It’s really exciting when we see that Angkor Wat “representative”!
The first thing I notice in Cambodia is Casino and hardworking people carrying loads of goods crossing border…
Walking towards the Cambodia immigration
Very long que again.. it takes us another 1 hour waited here…
Finally inside the immigration building.. everything is manually done… thank god we have fan here…
Gone pass the immigration, going to the bus station by free shutter. My new friend Ryo Hirahara from Japan giving victory sign.
We did it.. we have crossed the border! Bye bye Poipet!
The tourist bus station
Currency exchange with slightly expensive rate…
The taxi journey from Poipet to Siem Reap, land clearing with open burning..
Finally we are in Siem Reap, a tuk yuk come and fetch us from outside the town to our guesthouse. Thank god we have arrived at our destination safely. What a long day!
Life About Travel 
You made it, woohoo!
Yeah! It wasn’t easy but when we look back… it was such a great experience đŸ™‚
Well done.. seems you survived the notorious border crossing relatively unscathed!
Yea.. we did pray hard for a safe crossing and really thank god for that. Seems like you have stayed a long time in Thailand! Read about your motorbike and dog experience… you’ve a brave moment I guess.. Hope that you are now fully recovered from that.. God blessed. Looking forward to hear more stories đŸ™‚
Thanks for liking my post FRESH. I love your photo of the tuk-tuk-it is the biggest one I have ever seen!
Haha yea and a lot of woman driver.
Very well done and informative travel blog
Thanks for stopping by dear. Do keep up with us.
I will def be back!
Hi Danny and Viv!
stumbled upon your blog through tripadvisor. đŸ™‚ I’d like to ask where exactly can we catch vans from Bangkok to Aranyaprathet? are these public vans? đŸ™‚ and was the trip faster than taking a bus? đŸ™‚
looking forward to your reply.. Thanks!
We stayed at the Kao San Road the night before we go Siem Reap. We simply walk to a travel agency for a bus ticket.. and yeah they are actually van lol.. The van will pick you up from the hostel. It’s that simple.
I see, so it’s from a travel agency. Will ask around when we arrive in our hotel. We have 4 days and we’re planning to alot 2 days and 1 night in Siem Reap.
The travel from Kao San Road to Siem Reap will take almost a full day.. (the van will pick you up at 7am) go all the way to Thai border (about 3 hours).. The que is normally very long at Thai border, you will need to spend about 1 to 2 hours at Thai border and another 1 to 2 hours at Cambodia border. After crossing Cambodia border, you will take a free shutter to the bus station and there you can share a cab with other traveller to Siem Reap (2-3 hours ride). We reached Siem Reap at about 6-7pm at night.. If you can spend 3 days 2 nights in Siem Reap then you will have a full day in Siem Reap. Then you can do a small circuit to cover Angkor, Ta Prom, Bayon…