Cambodia Trip: Shuttle Bus from Siem Reap to Bangkok, Thailand

Still not yet done with my posts about my trip to Cambodia but I figured I’d post an entry about how we got back to Bangkok, Thailand from Siem Reap.

I received a couple of notifications from readers about how to travel from Siem Reap to Bangkok so I’ll post this one quick as it was also an easy trip.

Still at our hostel (Bousavy Guesthouse), we asked for directions on how to get back to Bangkok. We initially planned on following our original steps on how to get to Siem Reap via train. But when we asked the owner, he offered to arrange a bus trip to Bangkok. We immediately agreed to their offer when we learned how cheap it was to get back.

8 USD – Siem Reap to Bangkok – Travel Time (8-9 hours)

We bought our tickets directly at Bousavy, arranged our pick-up for the bus and just went through with the trip.

cambodia border
back at the Cambodia border

Compared to the Bangkok to Siem Reap trip, we cut down our transportation expenses by almost half! We asked the owner of Bousavy Guesthouse why their bus line only has buses to Bangkok. He said that rules are more complicated from Bangkok to Siem Reap compared to Siem Reap to Bangkok.

border cambodia thailand
lining up at the Cambodia Immigration center

We arranged a tuk tuk pick-up to the bus station and at around 9am, we were already inside the shuttle going to the border. I sat beside a Spanish woman and practiced whatever PR skills I had left.

border thailand
heading to the check-point in Aranyaprathet, Thailand

Lined up at the immigration centers in Cambodia and Thailand and waited for about 30 minutes for all the passengers who also booked the same tickets to finish.

Staff from the bus agency gathered us in one corner and put stickers on our shirts with numbers so we could board their mini buses according to priority.

mini bus to bangkok
From a big bus in Siem Reap, we exchanged to mini buses in Thailand

There were a couple of stops in between but NOT to the point wherein we could sit down and eat a full meal. That’s why it is recommend that you bring some snacks and drinks so you can grab a bite to eat while your travelling inside the bus. Bread and chips and bottled water would suffice.

I sat at the middle part, beside all the passengers’ luggage, inside the mini bus which wasn’t such a hassle since I had more leg room to rest.

flags backpack
bags as seatmates and a backpacker with flags stitched on his bag – reminds me of flipnomad.com and his backpack

From 9am, we arrived in Thailand around 5pm or so. The mini bus reached its final stop a couple of blocks away from Khao San Road, which is considered the mecca for backpackers.

khao san road thailand
Khao San Road, can’t wait to write about you.

Will still be writing about my stories in Cambodia and I’ll be able to finish all of them soon. Hopefully, this guide from Siem Reap to Bangkok will be helpful to those who’ll travel between these two countries. One tip would be to ask your hostel for info as they may be able to arrange the pick up for your convenience.

Here’s a couple of comprehensive guides about Siem Reap:

Check out my other adventures here:


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soloflightEd.com is a travel blog by Edcel Suyo. He enjoys performing headstands and crazy stunts during his trips in the Philippines, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East. Now based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates and working to earn a living, he takes time to enjoy the city and travel during weekends.
For updates, Like his page on Facebook or Follow him on Twitter.
For questions, advertising, and other concerns, shoot an email to ed@soloflighted.com.


37 thoughts on “Cambodia Trip: Shuttle Bus from Siem Reap to Bangkok, Thailand”

  1. Nice read! Bilib jud ko nimo ed! 🙂 I want to travel to other countries with friends too. Hopefully soon, if I have the budget already. Lingaw kaayo ko nag basa sa imong mga post about your trips! Yayyyy! Good luck on your future adventures, ed!

    Reply
  2. @lakwatsera de primera: let's wear our colors proud! 😀 gusto ko rin nga magka-black na backpack para litaw na litaw ang flag. hehe. will write about it soon! hehe.

    @ada: thanks ada! kaya yan, bili ka na! 😀

    @dong ho: yeah, yung matagal lang samin is yung sa border, when we waited for the passengers na matapos sa immigration.

    @kai: thanks kai! if I travel out of the country, gusto kong magsolo na. hehe. thanks for reading! you changed site na diay?

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  3. Mag solo na ka para naay justice ang imong blog title na SoloflightEd? Lol. But that's good to hear! Exciting siguro kaayo na if mag solo ka na. Yayyyy! Hehe;) Yes ed, I'm starting my own food blog. Thanks for visiting! 😀

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  4.  
    I love going back to Cambodia without passing this border… worst/scariest border I've been to especially coming from Bangkok going to SR,  going back was ok though. 🙂

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  5. I'll take note of your trips in Bangkok and Cambodia.. I first planned to visit Malaysia then Thailand kaso malayo pala.. sa Cambodia na lang.. 😀

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    • @kai: haha, kelangan sad for a better learning experience. hehe 😀

      @nathalie: really? what made it scary? it just took too long for us and it was too hot a day.

      @pusang-kalye: nice di ba? 9 hours, nasa ibang bansa, natatakan pa yung passport mo! 😀 as for the backpack, i already have two. i just want a Philippine flag like claire. hehe

      @jeffz: thanks! yeah, mukhang malayo talaga ang Malaysia-Thailand. I think you’ll ride a train para mas mabilis pero kakainin yung travel time mo. I like Cambodia better and you feel richer too! hehe 😀

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  6. Ang cool naman nun, stitching flags of the countries you've been too on your beloved backpack!
    Btw, the mini van that you rode from the border to BKK, does it also looked like a pimped car inside? Parang discotheque sa loob haha. Kasi yung samin ganun and I love it cos it has so much leg room! Kaso we almost died of hindi kaaya-ayang amoy from our fellow backpackers 🙁

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    • @maryelogs: indeed cool di ba? fortunately it was a comfy ride and wala akong katabi except for the bags so di maamoy hehe. and the inside was clean and it looked new. leg room was really nice!

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  7. hi! my name Julius from Indonesia.
    I will go to Siem reap on next august, and will continue my trip to Bangkok like you did.
    Please give me some advice, 'cause i have read many post that telling me there are many bus crap from siem reap to bangkok. I was planning to take a shared taxi to the border and continue with government bus to bangkok, but your trip seem more easy and cheaper, so i'm thinking to use your way 😀

    What i want to ask is: how can i find a trusted bus company? could you give me some suggestion?
     is there any problem along your trip from siem reap to bangkok? especially at the border?

    Please give me some advise, and reply to my email.
    Thank you.

    Reply
  8. Hi Julius, thanks for the comment. Basically, the article above shows how we were able to travel from Siem Reap to Bangkok. It was thru our hostel and they were the ones who set up everything properly. We had full trust with our hostel as they also had rates listed in their reception as well as schedules of the bus trips. Once you go to Siem Reap, there are bus agencies in the downtown area so I don't think that it's that much of a worry. It's the scammers who tell you that you need to get a Visa (when you're Asian and you don't need one) that ticks me off. We don't have the name of the bus company but we had tickets at 8 USD from Siem Reap to Bangkok. Hoep this helps. Sent an email as well! 😀

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  9. You got lucky with the shuttle bus. I was made to use a non-air con bus (we weren't told ahead of time that it was no A/C) at nalanghap ko lahat ng alikabok ng Cambodia. By the time we got to Sisophon, sinisisophon na ako. Kaya pala ganun ang name ng town. Lech!

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  10. thank you! VERY helpful! I thought it would be such a hassle to cross from Siem Reap to Bangkok but I guess not. Thank goodness I stumbled upon your blog post!

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  11. I like your blog, and I gained much idea on how to go to bkk from siem reap.  BTW, was the $8 really from Siem reap to BKK? Included na po ba yung mini bus? I've been searching the Web, and lahat almost the same suggestions taxi-bus or train and not as cheap as you mentioned.  Actually we're planning our next trip from Ho Chi Minh – Phnom Penh – Siem Reap – BKK.  Thank you po for sharing.

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    • @grace: thanks for dropping by and leaving a comment! I was also surprised that we got it only at 8 USD. but yes, our hostel took care of everything for us. 8 USD from our guesthouse to the waiting area for the bus in SR, going to Khao San Road in Bangkok. We switched to a minibus at the border. 😀 just clarify with other agencies na lang to make sure that it’s the same cost. 😀

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  12. hi! I'm planning on going to Bangkok from Siem Reap but would you know what time is the earliest trip out? I have read about the train from Aranyaprathet leaving in the morning but the border does not open until 7am?

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    • @yannie: hi yannie. we didn’t take the train from Aranyaprathet to Bangkok as we used the bus to travel to Thailand. We rode the bus at around 8am from SR to BKK. You may want to go to seat61.com for more info. 😀

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    • @yannie: umm nope, it’s 9 hours from Siem Reap. I think 3 hours from Siem Reap to Poipet border. then at border, it took us about an hour plus to wait for our other companions. Then from Aranyaprathet to Khaos San Road in BKK, it was about 4 hours. 😀

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  13. great! because i'm actually planning to get out of SR by 3 or 4am so that we can cross the border when it opens and be on the 8am bus to BKK 😀 I'll tell you about my trip when its through! HAHA!

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  14. thanks for the tip kasi i'm planning this octobe,  manila – siem reap – bangkok – saigon – manila. basically siem reap to bkk via land crossing and bkk to saigon via air. definitely your tip is really helpful. kasi wala akong mahanap na budget airline from sr to bkk. 🙂

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  15. kasi nakakastress magbasa ng mga blogs about this crossing, honestly i already cross cambodia via poi pet from bkk before pero i just go on for stamp lang and head back to bkk. kaya i haven't seen the inside of poi pet except the casino at the border. kaya when i read the others blogs or revirew nakakastress to think what to do, i mean kasi parang lahat is saying na panay scammers and so on sa cambodia and absolutely your tips is a total relief. now i know there is more simple and less complicated crossing at a more reasonable price.

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  16. Good afternoon. Tanong ko lang po kung kaya ng half day (7am-12pm) yung temples na nasa Day 1 schedule ng Bou Savy Guesthouse? Thank you 🙂
    South Gate of the Angkor Thom, Central Angkor Thom (Bayon, Baphoun, Terrace of Elephant, Terrace of Leperking), Takoa, Ta Prom, Banteay Kdey, Srah Srang and the World Heritage Angkor Wat.

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  17. Very helpful as myself and the family are currently in Sihounakville and will be heading to Siem Reap, then heading to Bangkok. I’m glad I found you on Twitter. Thx for posting this info.

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  18. Hi sir, sa Bou Savy lang po ba available ang shuttle service na iyan? Isang bus line lang po kasi ang nakikita kong nagsservice ng Siem Reap to Bangkok and 10hours pa po byahe. Plano ko po kasi ganyan na rin ang sakyan ko. Salamat sir!

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  19. hi ed… your blog is a great help. do you happen to know what is the last trip of the bus going to Bangkok so we can extend our sight seeing in siem reap. also, im wondering if this bus trip to bangkok good for more elderly (45-60 years old) folks?
    your reply will be much appreciated.

    Reply

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