21 Days Cambodia Adventure Guided Motorcycle Tour

The tour leader will outline the rules governing travelling by motorcycle and will go over the details of the full journey.. The next day we make a sightseeing tour of Phnom Penh in order to get used to the motorcycle and the Cambodian traffic rules. In the afternoon we visit the Tuol Sleng Genocide (S-21) Museum. Between 1975 and 1979 thousands of citizens accused of counterrevolutionary thoughts were interrogated, tortured and all but seven were killed here. This former school still leaves a gloomy impression on oneself afterwards. Next, we go to the "Killing Fields" of Choeung Ek. Roughly ten kilometers outside the city, the prisoners of 5-21 were killed in the most brutal manner to save on bullets. Remains of clothing, teeth and bones are still scattered across the field. In memory of the events, a temple has been built on the site in which the skulls dug up so far are housed. If time permits, we can also visit the charming Wat Phnom temple. After this busy first day we end up at one of the many cafes along the Mekong River in Phnom Penh.

We rise early to start a beautiful and varied day. After just a one km ride we will take a ferry to cross the Mekong River. We avoid the traffic of Phnom Penh and follow narrow paths and roads. We ride along the Mekong River, through villages and pass many temples. In Kampong Cham we have a break to get a local lunch. Then we follow on our way. We ride through the back yards of the local population. After a visit to the Han Chey temple, with its magnificent views over the Mekong, we continue our way along the river, which we cross again on the way to Kratie. While staying along the river, we will enjoy a drink at the hotel.

For several years now we have had a new, adventurous route through the Mondulkiri and Ratanakiri provinces. Today we ride to Sen Monorom. This small town in the jungle is the capital of the Mondulkiri Province. First, we take the recently improved NH7 in the direction of Snuol. Next, we ride near the Vietnamese border to the east. Today’s journey is a mix of gravel roads and tarmac, through forests and along deforested farmland. Depending on the time, we will visit a small charcoal factory. Watch out for monkeys on the road!

Today we ride to Ratanakiri province, which is hidden in a corner bordering Laos and Vietnam. This is a sparsely populated green area with mountains, waterfalls, crater lakes and ethnic minorities ("Khmer Loeu", or "Highland Khmer"). There are also many gemstone mines. The road has recently been renewed into a good asphalt road and we ride north to the Tonle Srepok river. Next, we ride via wider gravel roads, through small villages, forests and plantations to Ban Lung. We will visit some waterfalls along the way, and we will end our day sipping our well-deserved refreshment overlooking a lake.

After the wonderful but tiring days of last week, we're taking it easy today. If you like, we can take a nice tour through the surrounding area, following narrow gravel roads and winding mountain trails near the foot of the Virachey National Park. Of course, you could just as easily decide to chill at the hotel with a book or go for a massage. What certainly shouldn't be missing from our program: a fresh swim in – or at least a visit to - the beautiful crater lake Yaklom. This is 4000 years old, and the lake is very popular with local families to picnic.

As nature awakens, we prepare ourselves for another adventurous day. We leave on time for our trip to Stung Treng. If the water level is low enough, we ride via Siem Pang and cross the Tonle Kong river to ride through to the Laos border. An alternative is we proceed further South, via the newly asphalted route 78. This area was bombed by the Americans during the Vietnam war. There were several "Ho Chi Minh paths here, routes that the North Vietnamese used to supply southern lines. Stung Treng is a characteristic place with its own atmosphere.

Early in the morning we cross over the Mekong River and set our course first towards the north, for wich we follow the mighty river upstream. We pass we few amazing fast currents and if we are really lucky we might sport a dolphin. Just before the Laos border we cross inland again. We follow a long gravel road that guides us through dense forest as well as rice paddies. We pass through a militairy area before we get to Chaom Ksan for a well deserved coffee. This is not far from our final destination at Sre Aem.

Another adventurous day in the countryside. In the early morning we can climb the hill at the Thailand border to visit the famour Preah Vihear temple complex. We are one of the few foreign tourists at the complex and can enjoy the breathtaking view over the Cambodian landscape from the top. This temple complex was the source of an armed conflict between Thailand and Cambodia in the late 80's, when Thailand claimed the temple to be theirs, since it is only few meters aways from the Thai border. There are only a few tourists making their way to this temple complex as it is too far out of the way on regular tours. After the ride down we will have lunch back in Sre Aam. After lunch we proceed south following small gravel roads through paddy fields and dense forest. We end today's ride at the small settlement near the temples of Koh Ker, which we will visit the next morning.

This morning we will visit the temples of Koh Ker, these have long been hidden in the jungle and were only opened to the public early 2000. The complex is related to the Angkor Wat temples but far more remote and much less visited by tourists. After the visit we ride to the big town of Siem Reap, because of its proximity to the temples, the town became a tourist hotspot. We stay in the lively down town area, with lots of restaurants and bars to chose from.

Today we visit Angkor Wat. The temples of Angkor are a source of inspiration and pride for all Cambodians and appeal to the imagination of most of the visitors. The period of the Angkor empire spans 600 years, during which more than 70 temples, palaces, libraries, and other buildings were built, spread over 350 square kilometers. Angkor Wat is one of these temples but nowadays refers to the whole area. It is simply not possible to visit all the temples of this gigantic complex in a single day. Your tour leader, however, can advise which temples are best visited at a particular time and which temples must not be missed. This day at Angkor Wat will most certainly be one of the highlights of your trip!

Today we 'dance' around highway 6 to Sisophon and 5 to Battambang. The chaos on the highway can be a true challenge, but we will avoid a lot of it by taking gravel routes north and south of it. Battambang is the second city of Cambodia and has many UNESCO-protected French colonial houses. These are located along the Sangker river. The famous bamboo train is also in Battambang. Depending on our time of arrival, we will try to join one of its rides.

If it has been raining recently, today can be a strenuous and challenging day. Riding to and crossing through the Cardamom Mountains can be a muddy event. Even though Cambodia has received lots of tourists for many years, the Cardamom Mountains is discovered by very few foreigners. The mountains form the border between Cambodia and Thailand and have long been a Khmer Rouge stronghold. At the beginning, the gravel roads are wide and flat, but they will be getting more bumpy and smaller when we get into the mountains. Agricultural plains turn into tropical rainforest. We spend the night in a simple guest house in the small village of Veal Veng. We will need to order food and drinks ahead of time so that the guest house can prepare these for us on time.

Today the route can get pretty challenging as well, especially when a rain shower has changed the surface into slippery smooth red clay. We take our time for this adventurous route through the green forest. The civilized world will be very far away for a while. We will also have a provisional lunch along the way. After lunch, we will look for the new Chinese road, a concrete block path that will take us to Koh Kong. If we have time we will see if we can take a refreshing dive in the sea somewhere along the way. Koh Kong is a small town on the coast of the Gulf of Thailand, a few kilometers from the neighboring country.

We leave Koh Kong, but not the adventure: We mix our ride between curve coastal asphalt roads and small jungle trails to Sre Ambal. We will ride through dense forest and pass waterfalls, while we find our way to Sre Ambel. We will ride along the Gulf of Thailand and Botum Sakor National Park. Sre Ambal, Nesat village is a small but upcoming village, situated along the Sre Ambal river and the Gulf of Thailand (or rather the Bay of Chakk Kampong Som). It is a very biodiverse area, consisting of swamps, mangroves and habiting a large community of waterbirds. Since the '80s, villagers of this tiny town have been harmoniously living with the environment, using traditional farming and fishing methods. They have been joined by a colorful mix of expats building new homes.

We follow highway number 3. Several times you have beautiful views over the coast. We stop for lunch in the town of Kampot. After a trip past the abandoned villas and the beautiful view from Kep's National Park, we arrive at the beautiful hotel early in the afternoon and enjoy its beautiful views over the coastline. If you like seafood, then you've come to the right place. Kep is a very suitable place to recap all the adventures of the past few weeks. You can relax here, or of course we can also take a nice trip by motorcycle.

A relaxing day at the beach in Kep. But if you ride we can visit the close by town of Campot which still has some French heritage.

We are back on the road again. We are in the lowland delta part of the country. In the morning we just ride through the paddy fields which are stretched out, as far as the eye can see. It is not very far to the town of Takeo. We will park our bikes at the hotel, have lunch and go to the riverside. We jump in some small boats and sail in the direction of the Vietnam border. Just before the border is the temple complex of Angkor Borei. Since the complex is built on an island in the swampy delta the easiest way to visit is through waterways. We take some time to visit the complex before returning to Takea where we will stay for the night.

On our last motorbike day, we will ride through very narrow tracks through the paddy fields, almost touching the rice. We get back on the main road just before the outskirts of the capitol. The traffic gets busier and we have to stay close to each other in order not to lose anybody. Early afternoon we get back to the hotel and we hand our bikes over. For the rest of the afternoon we can use to stroll along the riverside or visit the presidential palace.

Depending on your flight schedule, you may still have time to explore more of the city. Your tour leader can provide more sightseeing tips for you. Then it is time to say goodbye.