PHHOM PENH to BANGKOK FOR $10.50 ONE WAY!!

In addition to the departure tax, Cambodia also charges a $20 visa
fee. That makes a cost of just getting into and out of the country
$45, which is a lot more than almost every country in the region.


so... if you're too cheap, or just too poor, to contribute $45 to the
Cambodian government, don't go... i guarantee you you won't be missed...

Do you realise that $45 is over a month's salary for most Cambodians?
Its hardly 'cheap' to consider that a bit excessive when compared to
the corresponding charges made by other countries in the region.

Thailand and the Phillipines get millions of tourists a year, and have
much more diverse and developed economies than Cambodia. Cambodia has
to earn revenue where they can - i.e. Angkor and visa/airport fees.

William Boyd wrote in message ...
George Moore wrote:

The following is in the April of 2004 issue of Phnom Penh's Bayon
Pearnik Magazine. A bus or share taxi ride from Phnom Penh to Bangkok
is cheaper than the airport tax in Phnom Penh! (S)CAMS is the airport
authority in Phnom Penh. Enjoy your read.

QUOTE

Plenty of people are now complaining about the $25 airport tax being
levied by (S)CAMS. The highest in the region and a complete rip-off in
most people's opinion. This is probably due to (S)CAMS thinking they
have you by the family jewels. Well here at the Pearnik we hope to do
our bit of keeping as much money as possible out of their grubby
little fingers.

PHHOM PENH to BANGKOK FOR $10.50 ONE WAY!!

Interested? Thought you would be. A Bangkok return trip for less than
the cost of the departure tax here is not to be sniffed at. The only
requirement to use this dirt cheap option is time. About 12 -13 hours
of it. But still. Go out through Poipet or Koh Kong and back the other
way you can see plenty of scenery in aircon comfort (not an insane
taxi crammed with eight people and the kitchen sink). Gone are the
days when the road to Battambang resembled a motocross track.
Admittedly they are still not tarmac super highways but they are
getting there. With the improvement in roads bus company's now offer a
variety of options on routes to Thailand:

Phnom Penh ? Bangkok, $14 with Neak Krorhorm Transport, corner street
108 and Sisowath ( riverfront ), Tel 023 219497 / 012 841565. Departs
at 7am, takes between 12 ? 13 hours and drops you off at Khao San
Road.

Phnom Penh ? Bangkok, $14 with Ho Wah Genting bus company, corner
street 67, S/W of the Central Market. Tel 023 210359 / 016 850780,
departs 6.40am, takes between 12-13 hours and drops you off at Khao
San Road.

Phnom Penh ? Poipet ( border Thailand ) $6 with GST bus company, #13
street 142, S/W of the Central Market. Tel 012 895550. Departs 6.30am
arrives 3pm. Moto to Aranyaprathet bus station 20 Baht, bus to Bangkok
160 Baht. Total cost about $10.50 !!

Phnom Penh ? Koh Kong $15 direct bus ( 25 seat ) with GST bus company,
departs 7.30am arrives about 3pm. Minibus to Trat 100 Baht. Bus to
Bangkok 190 Baht including iced soft drinks, takes you to Ekkahmai bus
station next to the Sky Train on Sukumvit.

Phnom Penh - Koh Kong, $15 in a minibus from Local Adventures. Over
the border then same as above. Taxi's are an option if you want to
leave a little later and they are faster but book the front seat to
yourself to avoid being crushed (this means you have to pay double as
they normally put two people in it). Koh Kong should be $18-20 for the
front seat. To Poipet it's more difficult as you may have to change in
Sisophon (beware of rip-offs when having to change vehicles. Agree the
price with the second vehicle first and deduct it from the first
vehicles price if they have said it is to Poipet) $12-14 for a front
seat. Taxi's take about 7 hours to Poipet and around 6 hours to Koh
Kong All of the above provide return routes to Phnom Penh. There are
plenty of stop offs along the way for conveniences, so if you have the
time forget the airport tax and take the Cambodian tour. Kevin Bolton
+ ED/

UNQUOTE

Thanks to the guys at the Pearnik in Phnom Penh for this update. See
their web site on

http://bayonpearnik.com

Don't they have rail service ?

As a matter of fact, a video clip is online now about the rail line in
Cambodia in the area around Battambang. See it on

www.going-networks.com/videoclip/Norry.wmv

Enjoy your ride.

http://rectravel.com/khlavn

On Tue, 6 Apr 2004 11:36:33 GMT, Thomas F. Unke
wrote:

Chris Blunt writes:


Importing almost 100% of all equipment to build and run an airport
from first world countries are actual costs. And these costs are not
cheaper just because Cambodia is poor.

Are you really so naive as to believe that all of that $45 goes into
maintaining the airport and not into the pockets of corrupt government
officials?

1. The airport tax is not 45$.

The $45 referred to is made up of the $20 visa fees plus $25 departure
tax.

2. Taxes paid in Thailand or other countries also go into the pockets
of some officials to some degree.

Does that make it right?

3. Get some basic knowledges about economy before calling others
"naive".

On Wed, 7 Apr 2004 08:35:42 GMT, Thomas F. Unke
wrote:

Chris Blunt writes:


1. The airport tax is not 45$.

The $45 referred to is made up of the $20 visa fees plus $25 departure
tax.

Visa fees and airport tax are different things and should not mixed up
just because you think it makes your argument stronger.

I'm not mixing them up. If you read back you'll see that what I
originally said was: "In addition to the departure tax, Cambodia also
charges a $20 visa fee. That makes a cost of just getting into and out
of the country $45, which is a lot more than almost every country in
the region."

2. Taxes paid in Thailand or other countries also go into the pockets
of some officials to some degree.

Does that make it right?

As you have mentioned Thailand as a better example (means: cheaper
airport tax) than Cambodia, I assume so.

See: I pay several ten thousands of US$ tax every year in my home
country. Most of this money goes to people who don't deserve it. But
that's the way all economies work.

They may not deserve it in your view, and I'd probably agree with you
on that. State benefits properly provided in accordance with the law
are quite different from corrupt officials helping themselves to
government money.

If you would be an underpaid airport official in Cambodia who has to
feed a family on 50US$ salary a month, you also would look for other
sources of income.

You appear to be justifying official corruption, in which case we're
poles apart in our views.

Unfortunately, its not the poor ordinary workers you mention that
benefit from this. The ones who gain are the government officials who,
because of connections in the right places, have already been able to
secure relatively well-paid jobs compared to ordinary people. The
ordinary people loose out because money that should be going into
public funds is being creamed off by those in powerful positions.

Ask the average Cambodian if he thinks that's ok.

On Thu, 8 Apr 2004 16:43:20 GMT, Thomas F. Unke
wrote:

Chris Blunt writes:

I'm not mixing them up. If you read back you'll see that what I
originally said was: "In addition to the departure tax, Cambodia also
charges a $20 visa fee. That makes a cost of just getting into and out
of the country $45, which is a lot more than almost every country in
the region."

You are not forced to fly into or out of Cambodia. As I said, you mix
up airport taxes and visa fees. Different things for different
reasons.

You're not forced to, and that's precisely the point of the Bayon
Pearnik magazine article on which I was commenting. They were
describing how you can do a round-trip Phnom Penh/Bangkok trip for
less than the cost of the (S)CAMS departure tax. It was in that
context that the departure tax appeared expensive.

BTW: Visa fee alone for India is about 60 US$. To talk about "the
region".

on that. State benefits properly provided in accordance with the law
are quite different from corrupt officials helping themselves to
government money.

The laws in Cambodia define visa fees and airport taxes. What is
different to the West?

Nothing is different to the West. I was making a distinction between
official corruption and obtaining legitimate benefits from the state.
You appeared to be saying that state benefits in the West go to
undeserving people and using that to justify corruption in Cambodia. I
see them as entirely different things.

You appear to be justifying official corruption, in which case we're
poles apart in our views.

I'm not justifying, I give an explanation. I have no doubts that the
money for visas or other taxes in Cambodia goes to some degree into
the pockets of some officials. It is still very low level corruption,
compared to what is happening regularly in many Western countries,
nothing to make a fuss about.

I'm sure there is corruption in the West also. So what? That doesn't
make corruption anywhere right. I never suggested that Cambodia was
corrupt while western countries are totally honest. It was you who
introduced this comparison with the West, not me.

I'm much more upset about for example the chief of the German Central
Bank (best paid government official in Germany) who stayed 4 days in a
hotel for 10000 US$ and got it paid by a large bank. That sort of
corruption is typical for most Western countries (except for a few
scandinavian countries which are relatively corruption free.)

I agree completely.

Ask the average Cambodian if he thinks that's ok.

I haven't met a Cambodian who would mind to make a quick buck, if he
has a chance to.

The question I was suggesting you ask was whether the ordinary
Cambodian is happy that corrupt officials help themselves to public
funds that could otherwise be used for development projects to help
ordinary people. If you're quite sure that's acceptable to them, then
I'll acknowledge that I was wrong to raise it as a problem.