Our Cambodia Mountain Bike Adventure is a fantastically varied mountain bike odyssey. Cambodia's recent embittered history contrasts starkly with the grandeur of the Angkorean past. The Cambodia Mountain Bike Adventure takes us the length of this unforgettable country to show you all of Cambodia, past and present.
Starting at a very sleepy Thai border that skirts the foothills of the Cardamon mountains, we mountain bike deep into the Khmer heartland to explore rural Cambodia. Discover the fading colonial outpost of Battambang and journey by boat across the Tonle Sap (Great Lake), which is the beating heart of agricultural Cambodia.
The highlight is, of course, mountian biking among a thousand years of history at Angkor, and we take three days to explore the extraordinary Cambodian temple complexes before taking another boat south.
Enjoy the French colonial charms of Phnom Penh, before mountain biking back into the countryside where we discover a people as beautiful and extraordinary as their land. Riding the quiet back roads south, we take time to stop and take in the great views that abound on the way to the old French Colonial retreat of Kep. We have time to relax, as we spend the morning on Koh Tonsay (Rabbit Island), a wonderful tropical island just a short distance offshore. After a picnic lunch on the beach we head back to the mainland and continuing to Kampot. We also have a day to relax at the beach in Sihanoukville before a final day mountain biking in the Kirirom national park. We then fly back to Bangkok to end a truly memorable trip
TRIP PROFILE
We mountain bike just under 600 km, mostly on a mixture of tarmac roads in reasonable repair and red, vehicle-width dirt trails. Most of the bike rides are on flat terrain, except day 1 and 2 where the road does undulate -- although nothing too difficult -- through some very pretty and interesting countryside.
Outside of Phnom Penh traffic is light and we often bike the roads with ox carts and other cyclists and mountain bikers. The trip is point-to-point and fully supported by air-con minibus (no. of vehicles depends on size of group) which will shadow the bike riders for the entire journey.
This bike ride is mainly on quiet back roads and we try to avoid the highways wherever possible. Getting out of Phnom Penh will require caution and anyone who does not feel comfortable biking with the traffic may ride in the vehicle.
Departure Schedule |
| Departs | Days | Itinerary | Price | Note | |
| Dec 14, 2008 | 13 | Itinerary 1 | £1387 | Departure guaranteed! | Register |
| Feb 8, 2009 | 13 | Itinerary 1 | £1387 | | Register |
Itinerary 1
Day 1 Arrive/meet in Bangkok. Drive to border. Ride Ban Pakkard to Pailin.
Day 2 Ride from Pailin to Battambang.
Day 3 Cross the great Tonle Sap to Siem Reap, home to Angkor Wat.
Day 4 Ride the Grand Circuit, which includes visiting all the major temples, including Angkor Wat itself, the neighbouring ancient city of Angkor Thom with the awe inspiring Bayon temple of the multiple stone faces and Elephant Terrace, and (everyone's favourite) Ta Phrom, still engulfed in jungle.
Day 5 Ride to Bantay Srei, the delicately carved pink sandstone Hindu temple, and the River of a Thousand Lingas.
Day 6 Ride to a mediaeval floating Village on the vast Tomle Sap lake, then take the express the boat to Phnom Penh.
Day 7 Cycle to the Killing Fields with its glass pagoda full of skulls and visit the school-turned-torture chamber-turned museum of Khmer Rouge atrocities, Toul Sleng.
Day 8 Departing south from the capital we ride to Takeo.
Day 9 Ride the back roads to the Fench colonial seaside resort town of Kep.
Day 10 Morning free or enjoy a boat trip to Rabbit Island. Afternoon cycle to Kampot, the historic former port city.
Day 11 Ride the home stretch along the coast to Sihanoukville, modern-day Cambodia's primary beach resort and port.
Day 12 Free day to enjoy the beaches or to explore Sihanoukville environs.
Day 13 Transfer to Kirirom National Park and ride to a waterfall.
Day 14 Transfer to Phnom Penh in time for the afternoon flight to Bangkok or you onward destination.
ENDS
Single supplement: GBP 185
Bike Hire: GBP 80
Total Distance: 579 Kilometres
Duration: 14 days / 13 nights
Number of Cycling Days: Six full-days and four half-days.
Road Surface: This tour follows a mix of asphalt roads and vehicle-width dirt roads, which may be smooth, gritty, stony, rocky, rutted, loose or hard-packed.
Support: Entire trip supported by air-con minibuses to carry cyclist, luggage and bikes. Group Size: Minimum 4. Maximum 16.
Staff: cycling leader, plus English-speaking Cambodian guide, drivers and assistants. For groups of ten or more a Cambodian bike guide also joins.
Accommodation: 6 nights 3-star hotels, 6 nights tourist class hotels, 1 night guesthouses. All hotels have en suite facilities and a/c, except 2 nights fan and shared facilities. Whenever possible we try to use hotels with charm and local character.
Food: All meals are included from lunch on day 1 to lunch on day 14 except lunch on day 12 and dinner on day 4 and 12.
** Please note that the boat trip from Battembang to Siem Reap may not be possible if the water levels are too low, in which case we will transfer by road.
Departure Schedule |
| Departs | Days | Itinerary | Price | Note | |
| Dec 14, 2008 | 13 | Itinerary 1 | £1387 | Departure guaranteed! | Register |
| Feb 8, 2009 | 13 | Itinerary 1 | £1387 | | Register |
