Cambodia forum

Cambodia - Boat from Siem Reap to Battambang during February

losligato

newbie
Posts: 2

I am planning to take the boat from Siem Reap to Battambang in mid-February. I heard that this may be aproblem because it's the dry season. Has anyone taken this boat during this same time of year? If, so were there any problems with the lake being dry?
Any advice would be appreciated.
Mandyh

#1 Posted: 1/2/2007 - 14:32
steviej

tuk tuk driver
Posts: 231
Located in:
Private message

Hi Mandy,

I'm looking at doing the same in late March/early April and I'm bargaining on a long, long day.......................................................
...........................all part of the fun and adventure!!!! ;-)

TTFN
stevie

#2 Posted: 1/2/2007 - 17:27

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TheSnowQueen

motodop
Posts: 24

DONT DO IT!!!! Took this marathon journey about a week ago and it was hellish. Billed as 3 hours, took 7.5. Overloaded boat with some tourists forced to sit on the front prow (no shade, no seat, no cushions). Inexperienced captain kept banging into the side of the banks and near-missing oncoming vessels more than once. (Even less 'rules of the river' than rules of the road!!)

The water was so low that, having initially started the journey in quite a civilised fashion, after about 1.5 hours, the whole boatload was transferred onto three smaller boats for the remaining 5 hours of the journey. I can't imagine there'll be more than a cupful of water by end Feb or later. Locals get pissed off with the boat anyway as it causes washes and waves over their little house boats moored on the banks.

Also, I think the Lonely Planet reviewer of this trip must have been on magic mushrooms when he/she took the trip, describing it as 'some of the most scenic' in Cambodia. The river banks were piled high with rubbish and although one or two villages were scenic, in the main, it was considerably less scenic than, say, the Mekong at Kratie or the riverbank at Phnom Penh.

#3 Posted: 3/2/2007 - 22:40

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The Snow Queen - Open Mind + Open Heart = Open Door www.mytripjournal.com/vixandalan
TheSnowQueen

motodop
Posts: 24

By the way, it's not the Tonle Sap lake that would be dry (although it does reduce in size from 13000 sq km to 2500 sq km during the dry season), it's the river that joins Siem Reap to Battembang.

#4 Posted: 3/2/2007 - 22:59

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The Snow Queen - Open Mind + Open Heart = Open Door www.mytripjournal.com/vixandalan