During the Ho Chi Minh – Phnom Peng bus ride, the ferry is chartering visitors and cargo across the Mekong, Neak Luong in Cambodia.
How To Get From Ho Chi Minh to Phnom Penh?
When you want to travel from Ho Chi Minh to Phnom Penh, you have 2 options: you can do the border crossing overland by bus or take a plane. A bus ride takes about 6 hours and costs around $12. Flying is a lot faster and takes only 1 hour from Ho Chi Minh to Phnom Penh Airport. Flights start from $67.
Taking the bus however is a lot more sustainable for the environment. Taking the bus vs flying is often ten times less polluting than taking a flight on short distances like this.
Another advantage of taking the bus from Ho Chi Minh to Phnom Penh is the experience of course. Crossing the border overland makes you more aware that you are travelling to a new country. This is when the new chapter of your trip starts.
A cross-border trip offers a new travel experience. Why not have at least one in your itinerary? This route from Ho Chi Minh to Phnom Penh is one of the more popular ones and is also pretty straightforward.
Some popular bus companies that operate this route include Sint Tourist, Mekong Express and Giant Ibis Transport, Sinh Tourist. If you prefer a cheaper option you can also opt for Sorya bus. Their tickets costs only $12 and includes pick-up if you are staying in District 1 in Ho Chi Minh.
The journey takes about 6 hours. See here an overview of the preferred bus companies:
Neak Loeung:
Neak Loeung is a busy commercial town in Prey Veng Province, Cambodia. Located on the Mekong and astride National Highway number 1, it is the commune centre for Neak Leung commune and the capital of Peam Ror District. The town can be reached by car ferry from Kampong Phnum in Kandal Province or by boat along the Mekong river.
Due to its strategic location, the town and port of Neak Leung has been a significant battleground at various times in Cambodia’s history. In August 1973, during the Cambodian Civil War, Neak Leung was propelled to the centre of international attention when an American B-52 Stratofortress mistakenly dropped its 20-ton load on the town centre.
Phnom Penh:
Phnom Penh formerly known as Krong Chaktomuk Serimongkul (Khmer: ក្រុងចតុមុខសិរីមង្គល means “The City of the Brahma’s Faces”) or shortly known as Krong Chaktomuk (Khmer: ក្រុងចតុមុខ),[8] is the capital and most populous city in Cambodia. Phnom Penh has been the national capital since French colonization of Cambodia, and has grown to become the nation’s economic, industrial, and cultural center.
Once known as the “Pearl of Asia,” it was considered one of the loveliest French-built cities in Indochina[9] in the 1920s. Phnom Penh, along with Siem Reap and Sihanoukville, are significant global and domestic tourist destinations for Cambodia. Founded in 1372, the city is noted for its historical architecture and attractions. It became the national capital in 1434 following the fall of Angkor, and remained so until 1497. It regained its capital status during the French colonial era in 1865. There are a number of surviving French colonial buildings scattered along the grand boulevards.
On the banks of the Tonlé Sap, Mekong, and Bassac Rivers, Phnom Penh is home to more than 2 million people, approximately 14% of the Cambodian population.
Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City, also known by its former name of Saigon, is the most populous city in Vietnam with a population of 8.4 million (13 million in the metropolitan area) as of 2017. Located in southeastern Vietnam, the metropolis surrounds the Saigon River and covers about 2,061 square kilometres (796 square miles). From 1955 to 1975, Saigon was the capital of the Republic of Vietnam, commonly known as South Vietnam.[6]
Ho Chi Minh City is the financial centre of Vietnam and is classified as a Beta+ World City by Globalization and World Cities Research Network.[7] It is home to the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange, the largest stock exchange by total market capitalization in Vietnam and the headquarters of many national and international banks and companies.
The main passenger airport serving the metropolitan area is Tan Son Nhat International Airport, the busiest airport in Vietnam handling over 38 million passengers in 2018.[10] Of the routes the airport offers, the Ho Chi Minh City – Hanoi route is the busiest in Southeast Asia and the sixth busiest in the world, serving 6,867,114 customers in 2018.