Things To Do In Phnom Penh – Budget Travel In Cambodia

Visit Phnom Penh, the capital city of Cambodia and experience a busy vibrant city with a dark, recent past.

Before my arrival in Cambodia, my only knowledge of the country was its dark and relatively recent history under the Khmer Rouge which resulted in the Cambodian genocide of the late 1970s. Phnom Penh was central to the atrocities that occurred during that period. Our Cambodian experience was about to get off to a tough start.

Things To Do In Phnom Penh | Food And Drink In Phnom Penh

Visiting Phnom Penh

There are many reasons to love Phnom Penh. The capital city has a pleasant promenade that runs alongside the Mekong River. There are many bars and restaurants in its more touristy areas. There are also Wats and palaces to keep the typical tourist happy. The local people are extremely friendly and welcoming to tourists, obviously recognising the importance of tourism to the economy. However, despite the obvious signs of investment, it is still quite a run-down city with clear signs of poverty.

Phnom Penh History: Khmer Rouge Regime

Phnom Penh cannot escape the fact that it is most famous for being one of the key locations in the Cambodian genocide of the Khmer Rouge regime under the leadership of Pol Pot. The city was evacuated shortly after the regime took control of the country. Thousands of residents were made to relocate to the countryside where they were forced to work the fields under terrible conditions. The infamous ‘Killing Fields’, where Cambodians killed other Cambodians, are dotted around the country. The most famous one being on the edge of Phnom Penh. The S21 prison, a former school where prisoners were tortured to confess crimes they had not committed, is in the city centre.

A visit to Phnom Penh has to include both the ‘killing fields’ and the ‘S21 prison’, in my opinion. It is a very important piece of recent history, and one that teaches very important lessons that should not be forgotten.

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Things to do in Phnom Penh

We based our activities around the history of the Khmer Rouge and the Cambodian genocide. The rest of the time we spent exploring the streets of Phnom Penh. These are some of the Phnom Penh attractions.

Central Market

This market was built in the 1930s in an art-deco style with a dome in the centre with four hallways branching out. The market is surrounded by street stalls, including a number of street food vendors. We had some interesting snacks here. Unless you know Cambodian, be prepared to point and hope for the best as not many people speak English. (Map).

Choeung Ek Genocide Centre (The Killing Fields)

See ‘Cambodian Genocide’ post.

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (S-21 Prison)

See ‘Cambodian Genocide’ post.

Tuol Tompoung Market

Often misleadingly called ‘Russian Market’, we stopped off here on the way back from the killing fields. I’m not really sure why this is a so-called tourist attraction. To me, it was no more than a typical market with nothing unusual or exceptional about it. (Map).

Wat Ounalom

We came across this by accident as we were walking along the riverside. No admission for this temple. (Map).

Wat Phnom

A Buddhist temple situated bang in the centre of the city and 27 metres above the ground. There was a small fee for admission but it was worth it, if only to see people buying various pieces of meat to stick the jaws of a stone lion and then be beaten with bamboo for their efforts! (Map).

Food And Drink In Phnom Penh

This was our first city in Cambodia so we were eager to try out some of the local dishes (although some of the street food was a little too extreme for our tastes). As we were located outside the city centre, most of the food places catered for local tastes meaning there were some interesting dishes! Even the grills in the street food night markets offered mainly intestines, heart and lung, rather than meat. However, we still managed to find some great places to eat and drink:

Biking Cafe & Khmer Noodle

This is a must try as they served excellent food. They only had a small number of dishes but what they did have was done to perfection. A free salad buffet came with the curries and noodles. Wonderful Khmer food. (Map).

Capital Guesthouse & Restaurant

We came here on our first night as it was late and it the closest place to our guesthouse. The food was decent but nothing amazing. The staff were about to close and made us feel a little awkward. (Map).

Coffman Coffee

This was very close to our guesthouse and we had great coffee in a nicely air-conditioned space at good prices. (Map).

Eleven One Kitchen

An eco-friendly cafe located near the ‘Russian Market’. No single-use plastic here which is something that needs to happen more in Phnom Penh, and everywhere else! The food here was great. I had a chicken, potato and broccoli curry pie and Joanna had a vegan amok. (Map).

Mere Cafe

We came here for our first coffee. It was a nice place and great for doing some blogging! It was also the first place where we realised Cambodia was not going to be as cheap as we expected. An americano cost $2.80! (Map).

Pelican Food Company

We were not expecting to find Polish pierogi in Phnom Penh but that’s exactly what we did find in this bakery that was partly owned by a Polish woman. Whilst it wasn’t the greatest pierogi in the world, it was nice to find a little taste of home for Joanna. (Map).

Tech Cafe

Great coffee in this place but what was more impressive was the price. Only $1 for an americano which was by far the cheapest we had in Phnom Penh. (Map).

Zeppelin Cafe

As you might imagine, this was a rock bar. It was easy to miss, as it was on the second floor, but it was definitely worth checking out. It was empty when we arrived but filled up pretty quickly. Great music in here. (Map).

Is Phnom Penh Worth Visiting?

Phnom Penh is an interesting city with a devastating past. I appreciated the opportunity to learn about the Cambodian genocide in a place where it actually took place. However, I did not fall in love with the city like I had so many other places and I can’t quite put my finger on why. If we had stayed more central, maybe I might have had a totally different experience and opinion. I would recommend it to people interested in learning about the horrors of the Cambodian genocide.