Getting there and away

Train

The train station is at the western edge of town. The train to Phnom Penh takes 18-24 hours.

Bus

To/from Phnom Penh
The road to Phnom Penh is sealed in its entirety and is one of the best roads in the country. Share taxi ($5 a seat) takes 3-3.5 hours, bus ($4 a seat) 5-6 hours. Share taxis arrive at the taxi stand at the northern end of town.

To/from Pailin
This road is hard base about as far as Phnom Sampeau and then deteriorates. When the road is okay it takes around 2 hours by share taxi, but a bad run can take as long at 7 hours. It has never taken us more than 3 hours. 200B per seat. Share taxis and pickups leave from Phsar Leu at the southern part of town.

To/from Sisophon
Share taxis and pickups leave from the taxi stand at the northern part of town and cost 100B per seat. The trip takes 1-1.5 hours. From Sisophon you can continue onwards to either Poipet and Thailand or to Siem Reap and Angkor.

To/from Siem Reap
It is generally quicker, safer and more comfortable to travel between Battambang and Siem Reap by road, but nowhere near as pretty as the boat. Share taxis are 200B per seat.

Boat

To/from Siem Reap
Boats run from Battambang to Siem Reap across the Tonle Sap and while an incredibly beautiful trip -- particularly the Battambang to Tonle Sap portion -- there are significant concerns about the safety of this trip. Dodgy operators overloading non-seaworthy boats is the unfortunately the norm. The trip takes 3-7 hours depending on weather, the water levels, how overloaded your boat is and the quality of the boat. They leave in the early morning and cost $15 per person. It is generally quicker, safer and more comfortable to travel between the two by road, but nowhere near as pretty.

Getting Around

Battambang is no bigger than a few kilometres head to tail, so nearly everything is within walking distance. Motodops within the town limits are 500-1,000 riel per trip.