travel news review

19 April '99
While tourism in other South East Asian countries targets wealthy tourists, Cambodia is realising the value of the backpacker. Industry information has indicated that backpackers on long trips around South East Asia - once assumed to be poor, grubby and undesirable - are more organised and often spend more money than older package tourists on short trips.

The Asian economic crisis has meant Cambodia is good value for the budget traveller, and Cambodian officials, keen to expand tourism, have started catering to the backpacker market. Last year saw the opening of two land border crossings with Thailand, allowing a stream of overland travellers into popular sites like Angkor Wat, and resulting figures show that 2.6 million tourists aged 15 -34 visited Cambodia that year. The Foreign Correspondents Club (FCC) in Phnom Penh has also tapped into this market, and will soon open an Internet CafΘ with email, cheap food and travel resources.

15 March '99
Direct long haul air links between Cambodia and Europe, Japan and China could be available by mid year. The flights would be an important step in plans to improve accessibility to Cambodia. New 747 flights will be made possible by the improvements to Pochentong Airport in Phantom Penh, due for completion in June.

25 January '99
The Cambodian government has announced it may end direct flights from Bangkok to Siem Reap, the closest airport to the temples at Angkor. Direct flights from Bangkok to Siem Reap by the Malaysian-owned Royal Air Cambodge and Bangkok Airways commenced last year. But government tourism authorities in Phnom Penh believe the direct flights have not benefited Cambodian tour operators, especially those based in Phnom Penh, as much as they have benefited the Thai airline and Thai tour operators. If the direct flights do get cancelled the options for travellers are to fly from Phnom Penh or travel by pick-up to Siem Reap. While sections of the road are not pretty, pick-ups complete the journey in about eight hours. The trip currently costs about US$7 in the cab, US$3 on the back.

23 December '98
A huge clean-up effort is under way in southern Cambodia after 3000 tonnes of alleged toxic waste was dumped by a Taiwanese construction company. It is not yet known if the waste is toxic, but claims of contamination prompted violent riots in Sihanoukville over the weekend, and further peaceful protests on Monday. The government has brought extra troops into the city, and is insisting that Taiwan remove the waste.

16 September '98
The Australia Embassy in Phnom Penh is advising travellers and residents in Phnom Penh to avoid political demonstrations in the city and generally exercise a high degree of security at all times. The demonstrations, which have lasted almost three weeks, are a protest against the recently elected Hun Sen Government. Travellers and residents should be particularly careful if they go out at night and to avoid any areas where there is a strong military or police presence.

28 July '98
The Australian Embassy in Phnom Penh has confirmed that the Cambodian government will eventually stop issuing visas to travellers who arrive at Pochentong International Airport. As there has been no official announcement of when this will happen, travellers who plan to arrive by air are advised to apply for a visa before they get to Cambodia. Visas cost US$20 for a month-long stay and a fine of US$3 per day is issued for visa overstays.

21 July '98
Preah Vihear, an ancient Khmer temple in northern Cambodia, will be reopened on 1 August 1998. The temple is located on a crest of the Dangkrek Mountains at an altitude of 730m (2394ft) on the Thai-Cambodian border. Cambodian officials have guaranteed that most of the landmines around the temple site have been cleared. Tourists can enter the temple from either the Cambodian or Thai side; entry costs US$2.50 and the temple is open from 8 am until 4 pm.

1 July '98
Two people have died as a result of a cholera outbreak in the northwestern town of Poipet. Health authorities are preparing for a possible outbreak of the disease in the town and surrounding areas and doctors from Medicin Sans Frontiers group have moved to the town, which is close to the Thai border. There is also an outbreak of dengue fever affecting most of the country at the moment.

10 June '98
The Cambodian national carrier, Royal Air Cambodge, has commenced direct flights between Phnom Penh and the Lao capital, Vientiane. The flights between the two capitals operate on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

13 May '98
The US Department of State has advised of the potential for politically-motivated violence, including unruly street demonstrations, as the 26 July general election approaches. The United States Embassy in Phnom Penh has advised that there has been dramatic increases in the number of armed robberies and assaults, often during daylight hours, in the capital Phnom Penh, and elsewhere in Cambodia. In several cases, Cambodians and foreigners have been robbed and shot. Travellers intending to visit Angkor Wat in Siem Reap province are advised to do so by air and to limit their movements to the city of Siem Reap and the main Angkor Wat temple complex. Foreigners who must travel to areas outside Phnom Penh by motor vehicle should do so in vehicle convoys between 9:00am and 4:00pm. Travel by boat should be avoided.

22 April '98
Pol Pot, the former dictator of Cambodia, has finally died at the age of 73. During his reign from 1975-79, two million (some sources suggest as many as three million ) Cambodians died from starvation, disease and execution in the course of Pol Pot's vain attempt to establish an agrarian utopia. The remnants of the Khmer Rouge army are under siege by Cambodian Government forces.