Cambodia's Best Kept Secret - Sihanoukville

Welcome to this weeks blog

Cambodia is well known for its Angkor Temples, The Mekong Delta and its turbulent history however, not so much is known about its 'Jewel by the Coast' Sihanoukville, a beautiful beach resort, fast becoming a world class beach destination.

Sihanoukville is located on Cambodia's west Coast near to the border with Eastern Thailand and very accessible both from Siem Riep home to the Angkor Wat complex and the capital city Phnom Pehn. This makes for a very interesting range of combinations and touring programs throughout the region.

One of the most popular itineraries to consider begins in Bangkok (Thailand), then flying to Siem Riep to visit the Angkor Wat complex, travel from Siem Riep to Phnom Pehn either by air, road or by boat along the river into the Capital City and then finally by road to spend a relaxing few days at the beach in Sihanoukville. For more adventurous travelers options available include cycling through Cambodia and combining with Eastern Thailand and crossing the border to get to Sihanoukville.














The resort itself, began life as a port town, established back in the 1950's. Since then the area developed and has started creating a world class beach destination.
Today there is a variety of accommodation to choose from including five star hotels on Sokha beach to mid range in town and beach hotels, and budget guesthouses, particularly on Weather Station Hill.


The main attractions in Sihanoukville are the beach and its relaxed pace of life, the beaches are very beautiful indeed, bright sands and clear waters waiting for you to sunbathe on and swim in.Watersports including snorkeling and scuba diving are widely availble with boat trips to nearby islands and interesting activity to consider whilst here.

Like every beach resort, choices for dining are vast and Sihanoukville offers a large variety of choice, with fresh seafood, caught daily a particular specialty including crab, prawns and ocean fish.
With the influx of foreign tourism, more westernised eateries have arrived offering familiar cuisine including Australian, German, British , Indian and Italian restaurants, making the resort a good choice for anyone.















Sihanoukville at night, offers plenty to see and do, good choice of restaurants and plenty of bars with many smaller bars staying open until the early hours, especially in the Weather Station Hill area, downtown Sihanoukville . Some of the most popular are the beach bars on Ochheuteal, ‘Serendipity’ and Victory Beaches.

Sihanoukville has remained Cambodia's best kept secret, it is still a very relaxing, traditional style beach destination, not spoiled by over commercialisation, meaning that it retains its unique Cambodian Charm and hospitality.

Next time you choose to visit South East Asia and Indochina, consider booking a combination itinerary with Sihanoukville as your beach destination or take a tour which incorporates the area, Xplore-Asia are able to tailor-make this for you, so extending your beach stay is always an option with us!

Artisans De Angkor Siem Riep Cambodia

Welcome to this week's Blog.

Cambodia is a destination rich in history, culture and religion. It has been through turbulent times in the past, with the French occupation and the Khmer Rouge revolution however, Cambodia, has managed to retain its identity and culture. Nowhere more is this exhibited, than at Artisans de Angkor, a European Union sponsored business program, producing traditional local handicrafts for sale, across Asia and around the World.

Artisans De Angkor is in Siem Riep, home to the finest examples of Khmer architecture in the country, including Angkor Wat which is the main attraction that visitors to the area come to see.

A trip to Artisans de Angkor, is well worth including in your tour to the area, as it will open your eyes and provide a real-life insight, into the nature of the handicraft making business. The company employs graduates from the nearby 'Chantiers-Écoles de formation professionnelle' a professional training school that was set up with the aim to provide skills and training to unemployed people between the ages of 18 and 25, particularly after the reign of the Khmer Rouge, to make sure Cambodian arts and culture survived and could be showcased in the future.

Artisans de Angkor was then set up to provide the graduates with an employment opportunity, providing them with sustainable employment and income for themselves, their families and their local areas.

The best way to see Artisans de Angkor, is to take a fully guided tour, with the help of your fully knowledgeable guide, you will be shown around the whole process of producing fine local handicrafts including 100% fine Silk products, such as scarfs, bags, purses, wallets, cushion covers and excellent Silk woven paintings.

Also, Artisans produces a variety of lacquer ware products including statues, ornaments and containers, and amazing stone sculptures, all which you are able to purchase and take home as a souvenir of your visit to Cambodia.

Purchasing a souvenir or two from Artisans de Angkor, contributes to the sustainable employment and income of the regions people and keeps the fine arts and cultural heritage of Cambodia continuing, for now and into the future.

Please visit our website for details of tours that include Artisans de Angkor and the Cambodian region in general.

www.xplore-asia.com

Responsible Travel and Tourism

Welcome to this week's Blog

Our theme this week is Responsible Travel and Tourism.

Many hotels, resorts, attractions , tour operations and industry suppliers claim to be eco friendly and promote Responsible Travel & Tourism, but really is everyone doing enough to justify their claims?












These days we live in a world where development in an environmentally friendly way is of the upmost importance. Tourism in the past has been seen to have had both positive and negative impacts on the world's environment as a whole, whilst creating much needed infrastructure and employment this has sometimes been done at the expensive of the natural environment.
Nowadays, because of the global warming issues we currently face, we as an industry are recognizing this and waking up to the reality, that we all must change our outlook and act with responsibility, hence this week's title, Responsible Travel and Tourism.












There are many ways you the traveler can act with responsibility on your holidays and be friendly to the environment, firstly, travel in a more eco friendly way, consider cycling, hiking and trekking as alternatives to buses, cars and trains for shorter distances. Try to choose hotels which offer eco friendly programs, where they promote the use of re-cycled materials throughout the hotel and have eco friendly programs. Some hotels have even gone as far as having their room designs based completly on recycled materials, being used to decorate and facilitate rooms and furnishings.

Responsible Travel is also about supporting the local economies and environment of the people and the places in which they live by bringing a sustainable income to the regions. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the hill-tribe villages throughout Asia and Indochina.

These people have had their own ways of life for generations such as the Black Hmong in the Sapa Valley in Vietnam. By respecting their ways, we can learn alot from these tribes people, as they too have to live off of the land and what the land naturally gives them. Encouraging purchases of souvenirs produced locally by these people, also acts responsibly, as it supports their own sustainable growth and development of their local economy.













Trying adding to your holiday adventure, by including a tour that visits Hill tribe villages, handicraft workshops, or take on the experience for yourself, and stay a few days with the locals, on one of the many authentic Home-stay programs available.
Choose a tour where the operator has a firm commitment to Responsible Travel and Tourism and their programs reflect this, such as the Mekong Discovery Trail in Cambodia, which runs tours through the Cambodian Jungles, alongside the Mekong River from the Laos Border all the way to Phnom Pehn. This program was set up to bring a sustainable income to the people in the region through tourism, and Xplore-Asia is actively involved within the operation and training for the program in this region.















Tree planting programs in Southern Laos are another aspect of Responsible and Sustainable tourism development on-going in the Indochina region. Both Cambodia and Laos offer outstanding cycling and trekking experiences too, allowing you to contribute to responsible tourism, first hand.

Choosing your operator is of paramount importance, one which cares for the environment and offers tours that actively reflect this. Now you can select your operator easily by referring to 'green travel market' a website that list Responsible Travel and Tourism operators throughout the world.

This website has been set up as part of a program organized by the Non-profit making organization 'Sustainable Travel International' whose main goal is to provide unbiased information, industry training, assistance and accreditation to the Responsible Travel and Tourism Industry as a whole, providing a recognized logo worldwide, to assure you the traveler, that the hotel, tour, product that you have bought, is up to standard and satisfies the quality and guidelines laid out, to be classed as a Responsible Travel and Tourism Operation.













Xplore-Asia has proudly recently been accepted by’ Sustainable Travel International‘as a valid organizer of Responsible Tourism Tours and programs, and over the coming weeks and months will be contributing to the development of STI’s programs with submissions and will also be listed on the Green Travel Market website, where you will find more information on Green and Responsible programs in general.

www.xplore-asia.com

Xplore Asia Launches New Escorted Tours and Tailormade Programs Brochure

Exciting News from Xplore-Asia.

New Escorted Tours and Tailor-made Programs brochure has just been launched and is now available! Please visit our website to download your own personal copy and find out about the New Tours and destinations on offer in 2010.




This year Xplore Asia will take you on Adventurous,Cultural and Historical tours to new parts of Asia. Thailand, Malaysia, Borneo and Indonesia are new Destinations for 2010-2011.

Discover the wonderful' Coastal Road' That runs the length and breath of Thailand, from Bangkok to Nakon Sri Thammarat, it's Thailand's Route 66! Passing through Banana and Rubber plantations,stunning beaches and everyday villages The Coastal road tour will give you a full insight into the lives of the people and the region of the South. This Tour is ideal for people who have discovered the North and are yet to Discover the South!

Classic Malaysia and Discover Borneo, mark our first entry into this culturally rich and diverse Nation. From the bright neon lights, Diverse shopping malls and Exotic markets of KL, to the Jungle Clad mountains of Borneo, colonially rich Penang, to tranquil and beautiful Langkawi, whilst discovering the Tea Plantations in the Cameron highlands, Malaysia as they say is 'Truly Asia' with its rich mix of culture and people, spices and natural beauty!

In Indochina we offer a you an array of touring options, from those with time for a short stopover passing through, choose from a variety of tours,treks and adventures in Laos and Cambodia. Visit our website for more information or contact our local offices.

For more in depth touring, consider one of our three escorted tours, for 2010.

Choose from 'The Journey through Indochina, 21 days touring the region, taking you from Bangkok through Laos, discovering Vietnam , the Mekong delta river and into Cambodia to visit the capital of today and the capital of yesterday 'Angkor Wat' at Si em Riep. This tour, truly gives you a full insight into the region as a whole.

Take 16 days exploring on the 'Trails of Indochina, this tour starts from Bangkok, heads north to cultural rich Chiang Mai in the north of Thailand and crosses the border into Laos, where you begin the trail, through Indochina heading for Vietnam and a full discovery of the country, from Hanoi to Halong Bay, Danang and Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh, now is the time to 'discover' these two developing nations.

Finally, 'The Gateway to Indochina' focuses on the southern part of the region, offering a round trip of adventure from Thailand, through mysterious Laos and South, alongside the Mekong River into the Kingdom of Cambodia, where you will visit the Capital city Phnom Penh, and the Ancient city of Angkor Wat, in Siem Riep, before returning to Bangkok.

This tour offers everything, history, culture, great sightseeing and the added bonus of nature, you get the chance to see the Niagara of the East , Khon Phapeng in Laos, and the Irrawaddy Dolpins near Kratie, part of the Mekong Discovery Trail.

This is only a selection of the 'New Touring options' from Xplore-Asia, for a more in-depth look, please download the new brochure and Xplore the website.

Xplore Asia looks forward to the opportunity of you, Xploring Asia with us.

www.xplore-asia.com

The Golden Triangle, The Emerald Triangle and ?

The region where Myanmar, Laos and Thailand meet is well know as the Golden Triangle; made famous for its history of Opium Production. The region where Laos, Thailand and Cambodia meet is called the Emerald Triangle. Several Thai towns in the area make a great visit including the town of Khong Chiam the most eastern point in Thailand with excellent sunsets.

The area close by has been in the news recently because of skirmishes between the Thai and Cambodian border police and a row over ownership of the land around Preah Vihear. The actual temple is located in Northern Cambodia but only easily accessible from Thailand. It is remarkable set on a cliff overlooking Cambodia several hundred meters below. It has been open since 1998 and we hope to develop our tours here in the future.

But what should the region be called around where Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam meet be called. On the Laos side have various ethnic villages including that of Phu Vong with the ethnic groups famous for their tattooed faces and earrings. The Cambodian side is dominated by the town of Ban Lung. This area is stunning with the Yeak Laom. A volcanic circular crater lake and the Siem Pang area and the border with Vietnam makes up part of the Virheay National Park.

Over the coming year Xplore-Asia will be developing adventure and wildlife tours to this region in association with the Mekong Discovery Trail. We will also be posting a featured article on each area on our blog.

Crime in Phnom Penh

Recently in Phnom Penh there has a been an increase in petty crime, it certainly feels that way. Having been in the country the last year or so and speaking to the locals and expats the same familiar story emerges from stories like these:

"I was in the market and two guys grabbed my purse and ran away no body even helped" or

"I was walking back home it was quite late but it was only 5 mins to my hotel, when I was robbed losing a small amount but also all my credit cards and passport".

Yes it seems that there has been a surge in theft in the Cambodian Capital. The reason for this could well be the economy. A lot of local people talk about the factories closing down and many jobs being lost. People do have to eat so they turn to easy pickings, tourists or even locals who have let there guard down. Or it could just be in Cambodia the police don't really enforce the law on the locals so some people see opportunistic theft as an easy way to make a quick buck!

Whatever the reason the city is much safer than it used to be, however one should be careful and think twice about walking home late at night or taking one of those motorbike taxis with a driver you don't know! They could take you anywhere.

This all being said Phnom Penh is a city and every major city has crime so the standard precautions apply to Phnom Penh as would do in any other city. Don't try to be too flash or walk about with your wallet in your back pocket or a fancy looking watch on your arm. If you must be walking around at night try to keep to the main roads but preferably take a tuk tuk from one place to another.