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Cambodia Hotel Reviews
New York Times Continues Aggressive Coverage of Hotel Booze Beat
February 26, 2007 at 9:45 AM | 0 Comments
It's rough out there for travel junkies and road warriors. All that time away from home, checking into hotel after hotel, staying in new cities: it's enough to make you want a stiff drink. Or, apparently, not:
"Do you have nonalcoholic beer?" a guest asked a passing waiter. "Yes sir, we have beer," he was told. "But do you have nonalcoholic beer?" "Yes sir, we have beer," the waiter said again, politely gesturing toward the menu. "But do you have ... Oh, forget it. Bring me a beer."
That's the latest word from Stuart Emmrich who checked into the Hôtel de la Paix in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Wait, so a high level of service is now frowned on by the Times? (We give the waiter points for graciously doing his best.) Surely the hotel has something to make up for its lack of O'Douls? Indeed it does:
Even the standard rooms are huge: a soaring loft space with a large seating area, a comfortable, spacious bed on a wooden frame, and a terrazzo bathtub big enough for two (or three, for that matter), as well as a walk-in shower
The hotel spa and gym also get high marks, and an on-property cafe has free WiFi that draws tourists who don't want to drop $300 on a hotel room in Cambodia. Not paying inflated hotel WiFi rates: the quickest way to more beer money.
Related Stories
· Check In, Check Out: Siem Reap [NYT]
Cambodia Hotel Reviews
Where Brangelina Will Probably Stay on Their Next Visit to Cambodia
January 8, 2007 at 4:28 PM | 0 Comments
If Brad Pitt and Angelina ever want to get away without the kids to Cambodia, and they don't want to deal with other hotel guests, then maybe the The One Hotel in Ancient Siem Reap might be the best choice for this jet-setting humanitarian duo.
So what makes The One the one? It's single room. Yup, for $250 a night you can have this one-room hotel to yourself.
Think of it as your own stylish pied-à-terre. While the row house's wooden jalousies, potted plants and thatched roof are straight out of a Graham Greene novel, the neighborhood itself is of the moment, with art galleries, a day spa and owner Martin Dishman's funky lounge, Linga Bar, just across the street.
And since you got the place all to yourself, you can get whatever you want with four staffers serving you and another four serving your travel partner. Some other perks include a complimentary cell phone to use during your stay, a penthouse suite on the second-floor for guests that includes a breakfast area and an open-air jacuzzi, and a master bedroom with a king-size bed and a 32-inch flat screen TV.
Just make sure you bring someone with you when you stay here because one can make a very lonely number.
Related Stories:
· Cambodia Hotel: It's the one [CNN]
Bad Rate
Bad Rate :: Ummm, No Bad Rate in Phnom Pehn
November 14, 2006 at 12:22 PM | 0 Comments
[Ed. Note: This is the Bad Rate in our Good Rate/Bad Rate feature. The rates here were valid on November 14, 2006 and are subject to change. Enjoy.]
Each week in this space, we usually counter our listed Good Rate with a corresponding Bad Rate in the same city. This time, however, we've been stumped. The truth is, even looking at hotels during a major festival, it's hard to find a bad rate in Phomh Penh, Cambodia.
Traveling in developing countries isn't for those who need everything to be perfect all the time, but the irony is that hotel facilities and services in a country like Cambodia are often far better than you could expect at home. The English language proficiency might be iffy, but you'll have an army of people waiting on you even at the cheaper places. And you can't beat the prices. Here's what we found for November 15-18 on various booking services:
· Price range of $52 to $98 on Expedia
·Price range of $23 to $147 on Precision Reservations
·Price range of $25 to $290 on Travelocity
That last one was for a room at the Raffles Hotel Le Royal, which Precision Reservations listed at $147. The hotel's own buggy site took a while, but finally quoted us $140 double to start. (Expedia says it's sold out.)
This is the top hotel in town, putting up lots of foreign business people, World Bank types, and NGOs living high on the donation hog--and this is festival time, so demand is high. After that it drops down to $120 a night for a standard at the Prince D'Angkor Hotel & Spa in Siem Reap--pictured here--or $320 in the best suite. At Precision Reservations, which lists 27 available hotels, a half-dozen hotels of those three stars or more are under $60.
Related Stories:
· Raffles Hotel Le Royal reviews [TripAdvisor]
· Prince D'Angkor Hotel & Spa reviews [TripAdvisor]
· Good Rate: Cambodia's Reversal of the Currents Festival [HotelChatter]
Good Rate
Good Rate :: Cambodia's Reversal of the Currents Festival
November 14, 2006 at 12:11 PM | 0 Comments
[Ed. Note: Welcome to our Good Rate/Bad Rate feature where we look at hotel prices in the same city and decide which is better worth your hard-earned benjamins. The rate listed here was taken on November 14, 2006 and is subject to change.]
If you just happen to be near Cambodia this week, snag a reservation at the Bougainvillier Hotel Phnom Penh and check out the festivities from your riverfront room. We can't quite make out all that's going on November 15-17 from the official tourism site, but here's what's listed for the festival in WhatsOnWhen:
Strangely, the current of the Tonlé Sap river, which runs through Phnom Penh from the Tonlé Sap Lake to the Mekong, switches direction each November. During the heyday of the Khmer Empire, the rulers were thought to have the power to effect this reversal; nowadays, it's the occasion for fabulous boat races on the river at Phnom Penh.
Through Precision Reservations--one of the best sites for booking hotels in Asia--we found a good deal at Bougainvillier Hotel Phnom Penh. You can get a view of the river from your room, watching the boats glide by, decked out in a a very Asian large suite for $83. (The photo here is a view of a previous year's festival, from the hotel.)
This is an intimate, French-owned hotel in the prime tourist district, a few minutes walk from the Royal Palace. The French/Cambodian fusion cuisine in the restuarant gets high marks, and with prices from $4 to $14, you'll remember why there are major advantages to traveling in a cheap country.
Related Stories:
· Bougainvillier Hotel Phnom Penh reviews [TripAdvisor]
