Vietnam or Cambodia?
The practical differences, drawn from our own write-ups rather than from a brochure. We are not going to tell you which is better - they are different trips. What follows is what actually changes between them.
Places written up here 324 79
UNESCO listings among them 22 22
Cost level Budget Budget
Busiest month in our write-ups April December
Currency Dong (VND) Riel (KHR), US dollar widely used
Plugs and voltage A, C, F - 220 V A, C, G - 230 V
Everyday languages Vietnamese Khmer
Driving side right hand side right hand side
Region South-Eastern Asia South-Eastern Asia
Capital Hanoi Phnom Penh
Vietnam
Energetic, entrepreneurial and warm; the street is where life happens, on tiny plastic stools.
What we have written up
- An Dinh Palace palace
- An Hien Garden House garden house
- Angel Eye Mountain rock formation
- Ba Be Lake lake
- Ba Danh Pagoda pagoda
- Ba Den Mountain mountain
Worth knowing before you go
- Cash matters at markets; cards spread fast in cities
- Tipping is not expected but small notes are welcomed
- The dong has many zeros - check note colours carefully, 20k and 500k look similar
Cambodia
Gentle smiles carry deep history; the sampeah greeting sets the register.
What we have written up
- Ang Trapeang Thmor reserve
- Angkor Thom and the Bayon archaeological site
- Angkor Wat archaeological site
- Banlung town
- Banteay Chhmar temple
- Banteay Kdei temple
Worth knowing before you go
- US dollars work everywhere; torn notes are refused - keep bills crisp
- Tipping is not traditional but a dollar means much
- Tuk-tuk hailing apps exist in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap
Counts describe this site, not the countries: "places written up here" means how many pages we have finished, and it keeps growing. Currency, plugs and languages are practical facts and change rarely; check anything visa-related with the relevant official source before you book.