If you want to do a Cambodia family tour you will need to be ready to get a visa for entry. If you have any doubt on requirements a Cambodia travel agencywill certainly be able to advise you. Visa are fairly standard in many countries but there is certainly no intention to prevent tourists seeing this wonderful country. It has been fairly recent that significant numbers have started to take Cambodia tour packages or indeed look at the whole region and book Indochina tour packages.
Visitors can now get visas on arrival at the airport, Phnom Penh usually though there is an international airport at Siem Reap near Angkor as well. Previously control was retained by Cambodian Embassies around the world, but no more. Naturally the State wants to know who is entering the country so that all arrivals need to have a photo, a photocopy of their passport and be able to pay a small fee at immigration.
There are also border crossings where visas are available and that has certainly helped tourists who want a Cambodia Vietnam tour; the Moc Bai – Bavet Border is the main crossing point that can handle tourist movement. There are also border crossings with Laos and Thailand where visas are issued, the common ones being:
• Aranvapathet-Poipet
• Trtat-Koh Kong
Visas are valid for three months from the date of issue, not entry. Given that that is now usually the same date it matters little. However, Cambodia has introduced electronic visas that can be bought online. Travellers can buy using a credit card before they start their journey; the obvious advantage is that they will avoid any queues. The visa is not instantaneous and you can expect to wait three business days before you have a reply. You need to print off two copies and retain the visa part; one for entry and one for exit. It is more expensive to get an electronic visa but you may like the convenience.
The visa actually allows a visitor to stay for 30 days, single entry. It is possible to extend a tourist visa once for a further 30 days for payment of a further fee; this can be done conveniently at Phnom Penh’s Airport’s Department of Immigration Office. However, there are agents who will also arrange this for you because it is certainly not worth overstaying illegally.
There are some nationals who don’t currently require visas, effectively neighbours; Vietnam, Laos and Thailand as well as those from Singapore, Malaysia or the Philippines. Likewise, there are some nationals who need to apply for a visa before travelling. In each case the following nationals need proof of a return ticket, a photocopy of ID and a sponsorship letter:
• Afghanistan
• Algeria
• Bangladesh
• Iran
• Iraq
• Nigeria
• Pakistan
• Saudi Arabia
• Sri Lanka
There is a business visa which allows multiple entry and can be extended for up to a year but tourists rarely need that, even though they are more convenient for people staying for an extended time in Indochina.
