Mei Mei Da Hotel: Unbelievably Poor Customer Service

With more and more hotels opening, competition is getting tougher and hotels are taking steps to attract travelers. More focus is now placed in customer service and well-being of guests. So it came as a surprise that the Mei Mei Da Hotel in Siem Reap offered nothing but poor customer service. 

Here are the details of our stay in Mei Mei Da Hotel. 

Location

Mei Mei Da Hotel is located along an unpaved side street named Bakheng Road, off the busy National Highway 6 in Siem Reap. The hotel is about 700 meters from the Cambodian Cultural Village, 2 kilometers from the popular Pub Street, 5.4 kilometers from the airport, and 5 kilometers from Angkor Wat.

The alley leading to Mei Mei Da Hotel

Reservation
Mei Mei Da Hotel has its own website for information about the property. The website, however, cannot process reservations. Reservations directly with the hotel has to be made via phone or email. 

Bayon Temple: Face to Face with Giants

When you travel to Siem Reap, you cannot but miss the ancient temple of Bayon, else you will miss the chance to witness one of the most intriguing temples in Southeast Asia. 

Built nearly 100 years after Angkor Wat, Bayon served as the centerpiece of the sprawling Angkor Thom, the last and most enduring capital city of the Khmer Empire. Unlike its more famous cousin which was built for Hinduism, Bayon was built as a Buddhist site. It was constructed at the behest of King Jayavarman VII, who broke tradition and adopted Buddhism. 

Although it is located close to Angkor Wat we decided to visit Bayon last. We have done little reading about it before the trip so we didn't have many expectations of the temple. 

From afar, Bayon looks like a jagged pile of rocks

Seeing Angkor Wat for the First Time

A lot of travelers know about and want to see Angkor Wat in person but the beauty and magnificence of the temple will hit you even just through thousands of images found online. Just like us, these photos will inspire you to make plans and fly to Cambodia. 

Angkor Wat as seen from the inside gallery

So when Air Asia offered seats to Siem Reap at 0 BIG points, we did not think twice and booked a flight to finally cross off Angkor from our bucket list. 

It was our second day in Siem Reap when we arranged to have Pin Ton pick us up at our hotel at 4:30AM. It took us a little while to get our bearings when Pin Ton stopped the tuktuk, told us to buy our One Day Passes, and to meet him back at the parking lot of Angkor Enterprise. In less than 30 minutes we were back on the road to Angkor Wat. 

When we arrived at the site it was still pitch black so we followed the phone lights through the unlit dirt paths until we reached the pontoon bridge to cross the moat to the temple. We then entered through the main gate and walked our way to one of the ponds in front of the temple. We joined several others in waiting for the sun to rise over the temple's five iconic towers and see the skies filled with vibrant colors.

Going Inside Ta Phrom Where Nature Has Taken Over

If you fancy yourself as Indiana Jones or Lara Croft, then you can't go to Siem Reap and not see Ta Phrom.

Nearly 830 years ago, almost 80,000 people called this temple and its surrounding area home. Now, it sits empty and centuries of neglect have made it host to vegetation on the roofs and in the walls. 

Located amid the forest north of the Great Lake Tonle Sap in present-day Cambodia, Ta Phrom was a thriving monastery and center of learning called Rajavihara from the 12th to the 15th century. An inscription in one of its stone foundations records that it took 79,365 people to maintain the temple including 18 priests and 615 dancers. It also records that the temple owned considerable riches including more than 500 kilograms of gold, more than 40,000 pearls, and more than 4,500 precious stones and diamonds. It must have been very impressive in its day!

But as was the case with many temples of Angkor, the site was mysteriously abandoned. It was only rediscovered in 1860 and was selected to be preserved, leaving it in much the same condition in which it was found. Exactly the main reason why in 2000, Ta Phrom was used as a location for the blockbuster film, Tomb Raider. 

Ultimate One Day Angkor Guide: The Best of Angkor

Stretching over some 400 square kilometers, even dwarfing the city of Siem Reap, Angkor Archaeological Park cannot be covered in its entirety during just one trip. Most guides recommend at least a 3-day itinerary to get the most out of the park's iconic temples. But what if you are pushed for time, is it possible to do it in one? The answer is YES.

The steep stairs leading to a lotus bud shaped tower
of Angkor Wat

We only had a day to see the temples of Angkor, so we planned, got recommendations from our driver, and put together an itinerary to visit the main sites and even avoid the worst of the crowds. 

Tickets to Angkor

For foreigners to enter Angkor Archaeological Park, an entrance ticket needs to be purchased as either One Day, Three Day or Seven Day Passes. The rates since February 2017 are USD37, USD62, and USD72 respectively.

The One Day Angkor Pass can only be purchased within the same day of your visit or the day before at 5:00PM. If you do the second option, you can already go into the park after purchasing the pass to watch the sunset from the temples. But this would cost an extra tuk tuk ride. 

The passes are exclusively issued by Angkor Enterprise located along Street 60, Krong Siem Reap. The Ticket Center is open from 5:00AM to 5:30PM daily. Cash and credit card payments are accepted. For more information, please visit the website here.

Small and Grand Circuit
There are two usual types of Angkor tours named after the groupings of the temples - the small and the grand (or big) circuit tours. 

Siem Reap: A Budget Travel Guide for Juans

Angkor Archaeological Park in Siem Reap sits high on the list of many travelers dream destinations. And why shouldn't it be? Consumed by the jungles of Cambodia and hidden for centuries, the city of Angkor is filled with limitless beauty, mystery, and wonder. 

Whether you want to snap amazing pictures of the iconic Angkor Wat, get lost in the ruins of the massive Preah Khan, or channel the spirit of Lara Croft or Indiana Jones in the famed Ta Phrom, there is a way to see Angkor and visit Siem Reap on a budget of less than PHP8,700. Here's our guide to doing it. 

Note: Exchange rate used is PHP52.10 for every USD1.

The iconic Angkor Wat at sunrise

The atmospheric Ta Phrom popularized by Tomb Raider

A two-story pavilion in the massive Preah Khan

Flights
Cost of flights vary depending on your itinerary and where you're flying from. When booked at least three months in advance, the usual cost of round trip flights from Manila to Siem Reap via Cebu Pacific is around PHP8,500 per person. Meanwhile, the cost of round trip flights for the same period from Kuala Lumpur to Siem Reap via Air Asia is usually around PHP5,500. 

Of course, there's always the option to look out for seat sales to book the lowest possible fare. Since we found a great deal on airfares to Siem Reap and Kuala Lumpur in Air Asia's Red Hot Sale, we decided to make a dual country trip out of it. We got our round trip Kuala Lumpur to Siem Reap flight for 0 BIG points and PHP2,261.15 in taxes and fees per person.  

Airfare: PHP2,261.15 total per person 
Travel Tax: None

Siem Reap: A Travel Guide for First Timers

With its magnificent temple ruins, lush jungles, and warm hospitality, Siem Reap easily figures a spot in many travel bucket lists. This is a place that fascinates and stands as an unforgettable travel destination. One that every Juan should take the time to visit. 

But before you go, it's best to know a few of the basics. So here's our guide for first time travelers to Cambodia's center of tourism. 

Ta Som Temple in Angkor Archaeological Park

The City
What once was a quaint village, Siem Reap is now one of the fastest growing cities in Cambodia. It is known as the gateway to the World Heritage Site Angkor and is the capital of the northwest Cambodian province of the same name. It is located north of Tonle Sap, Southeast Asia's largest freshwater lake. 

The name Siem Reap literally means the "defeat of Siam" as a reference to a folk tale of the victory of the Khmer kingdom over the Siamese soldiers. In the early 1900s, Siem Reap was ceded to French Indochina. This coincided with the rediscovery of Angkor that stimulated tourism in the area. The city's more recent history, however, is characterized by the horrors of the brutal Khmer Rouge regime. Although, it was one of the last places in Cambodia to experience peace, Siem Reap has recovered remarkably quickly. In a span of a decade, the city has been revived and now welcomes more than 2 million visitors a year. 

Travel Requirements
For most tourists to Cambodia, visa is required, but for Filipinos and citizens of other ASEAN countries, visa exemptions apply. Filipinos can stay in the kingdom without the need for tourist visa for stays no longer than 21 days. Passports also need to be valid for at least six months at the time of entry.

For more details, visit the Ministry of Foreign Affairs visa information website here.

Time Difference
Cambodia Standard Time, same as Indochina Time, is seven hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT +7). This means that the Philippines is 1 hour ahead of Cambodia. Make sure to adjust your watch to ensure you do not miss your tours and return flight.

Currency
Cambodia has an unofficial dual currency system. This means that you can transact in both US Dollar and Cambodian Riel. For most tourist-oriented merchants and grocery stores within Siem Reap, prices are quoted in dollars so you don't need to be concerned about getting the local currency. Note that the lowest dollar denomination used is USD1. So for change less than USD1, you will get the equivalent in Riel. During our travel, the exchange rate was at around KHR4,100 to USD1.

The Cambodian Riel

Tip: Bring some small dollar denominations for small transactions like tuktuk rides. If you get stuck with 100s, it is easier to get change in restaurants, bars, hotels, and shops.