Phnom Penh is the capital city of Cambodia with a population of over 2.2 million people. The city is the country’s economic and industrial center and has experienced a lot of development over the last 10 years but is Phnom Penh safe to visit?
Phnom Penh is a safe city to visit and it does attract tourists from all over the world but remember that Cambodia is not a rich country. So there are incidents of pickpocketing, scams, and robbery. Like anywhere else in the world you do need to use common sense and not make yourself attractive to criminals.
In this post, we will go through is Phnom Penh is safe to visit. Let’s get started!
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Is Phnom Penh Safe To Visit?
Phnom Penh is a safe city to visit and it does attract tourists from all over the world. The one thing to remember is that Cambodia is relatively poor and that increases the risk to tourists. So based on this fact you need to ensure that expensive phones or jewelry are not visible.
There are incidents of pickpocketing, scams, and robbery so like anywhere else in the world you do need to use common sense and not make yourself attractive to criminals.
Is Phnom Penh Safe At Night?
Phnom Penh at night is relatively safe at night but like all cities, you need to use common-sense precautions such as not walking into dark alleys or areas with bad lighting.
Is Phnom Penh Worth Visiting?
Phnom Penh is worth visiting. The city is developing very fast in a major hub and has an energetic vibe. If you enjoy exploring places and learning about the local history you can visit the Palace, Museums, and Tuol Sleng.
At night you will find bars spread around the city with Street 51 and Riverside being the main areas.
Is Phnom Penh Expensive?
Phnom Penh is not cheap compared to other places around Cambodia but is cheap if compared to Western countries. The city can cater to all budgets within reason and you can budget for transport and food.
Each of these costs can be reduced if you stay in an inexpensive hotel, use grab, and eat from the local markets.
You can get expect to pay around $0.75 upwards for a beer and a meal for about $4.
Are Phnom Penh People Friendly?
Yes, the Cambodian people, in general, are friendly. The locals from Phnom Penh are friendly but they are from a busy city so are not as friendly as the Cambodians that live elsewhere in Cambodia.
Do People In Phnom Penh Speak English?
The official of Cambodia is Khmer but English is used around Phnom Penh. In touristy areas, English is widely used in restaurants, bars, shops, and public buildings but a lot of Cambodians don’t speak English. So as you leave touristy areas there will be problems communicating with the locals.
When Should I Go To Phnom Penh?
Phnom Penh is a good place to visit all year round but the best time to visit is from November to January as the weather is just at the right temperature to go sightseeing.
Tips To Still Safe In Phnom Penh
Generally speaking, Cambodia is a safe place to visit and so is Phnom Penh. But because Phnom Penh is a popular tourist destination there will be a higher risk of being pickpocketed or scammed.
These tips can help to improve your safety in Phnom Penh, these are our tips.
Do Not Show Off Any Expensive Stuff
Pickpockets and thieves are watching tourists to see who is worth targeting. A tourist who is wearing an expensive watch, jewelry, expensive phone, and so on is worth targeting as opposed to a tourist who has no visible watch or fancy phone.
It is always safer to make sure to keep your expensive items like watches and phones out of sight as this will reduce the chance that you will be the target.
Choose A Good Hotel
It is always a safer option to stay in a good hotel so that you will have peace of mind that your things will be safe in your hotel room. And also make sure it has a working hotel safe.
Also, do not forget to make a photocopy of your passport and bring a copy of your passport around with you. With your passport safely locked in your hotel.
Especially important when you are enjoying the nightlife in bars and clubs.
Avoid Walking Alone At Night
At night criminals can blend in with tourists very easily or appear as helpful locals. It is important to avoid walking alone at night. If you want to visit bars or clubs, just bring your wallet and no cards and keep them in your front pocket. The same as for your phone.
USEFUL TRAVEL RESOURCES
Book Accommodation
Booking.com has a large range of properties from hotels, hostels, guesthouses, and resorts where you will find the best deals. Airbnb and Hostelworld also have a good range of places to stay at good prices.
Booking Flight
Skyscanner is a flight search comparison website that searches millions of flights all at once. Ultimately it is the best flight comparison website online at the moment.
Booking Transportation & Things To Do
Rome2rio and 12Go are useful to plan how to get anywhere by searching train, bus, car, and ferry routes. Especially useful in countries like Vietnam or Thailand. While Klook is great for exploring things to do in each place.
Travel Insurance
Travel insurance is cheap and more than likely you will never need to use it but you will have peace of mind if something does happen, you are covered in case of an emergency. World Nomads have great customer service and competitive prices.
Check out our resource page for the best companies to use when you travel.
Wrapping Up
Finally, Phnom Penh is a safe city to visit and it does attract tourists all over the world but remember that Cambodia is not a rich country. So there are incidents of pickpocketing, scams, and robbery. Like anywhere else in the world you do need to use common sense and not make yourself attractive to criminals.
And that’s it for now! I’d love to know if this guide on is Phnom Penh safe has helped you. Let me know if you have any questions and let me know if you go.