Phnom Penh to Siem Reap: Bus, Flight or Boat (Times, Prices, Which to Pick) (2026)

The bus wins this trip for most people, and not by a little. Phnom Penh to Siem Reap is about 320 km on National Road 6, and a $17 to $25 Giant Ibis seat or a $15.50 Larryta van covers it in 5.5 to 6 hours, dropping you inside the town. The flight is 50 minutes in the air, but both airports now sit far outside their cities, so the door-to-door saving is two to three hours for five to ten times the fare. The boat across the Tonle Sap is a seasonal experience, not a transport choice.

Search results still describe a different country. They quote flights from a Phnom Penh airport that closed in September 2025 and to a Siem Reap airport 7 km from town that closed in 2023. They list Mekong Express departures that no 2026 timetable confirms, and a “daily express boat” that runs only when the lake is high. Very few say where the buses actually stop in Siem Reap, which decides whether the last leg is a walk or a $3 tuk-tuk.

This guide compares the bus companies with confirmed 2026 schedules, the flight, the private car and the boat, with times, prices and drop points, and closes with how to choose. It details one road into town from the Siem Reap airport to city guide, the hub for every arrival. Prices, hours and transport times below were checked against operator websites and official sources in October 2026.

The Distance Is Fixed, the Door-to-Door Time Is Not

The framing other guides miss: compare door to door, not vehicle to vehicle.

The bus leaves from a company office in central Phnom Penh and arrives at a company office on the edge of central Siem Reap. Door to door, a 6-hour bus is about 6.5 hours including the tuk-tuks at each end.

The flight starts at Techo International Airport, Phnom Penh’s new airport since September 2025, which sits well south of the city center, and ends at Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport, about 50 km east of the Old Market. A working estimate: the drive out to Techo, 90 minutes at the airport, 50 minutes in the air, 20 minutes in arrivals and 50 to 70 minutes on the road into Siem Reap. That adds up to roughly 3.5 to 4 hours, if the flight leaves on time. Air Cambodia has a reputation for schedule changes at short notice.

The private car is the honest middle: about 5 hours, door to door, with stops wherever you want them.

So the real question is whether two to three hours are worth $60 to $175 per person. For a traveler with three days, sometimes. For everyone else, the bus.

The Buses With 2026 Schedules

All the companies below run National Road 6 through Skun and Kampong Thom, with one or two stops of 15 to 30 minutes at roadside restaurants. All have air conditioning. None offers a toilet on the vans.

Giant Ibis

The honest verdict: the default choice, and the one to pick for a first trip in Cambodia. Giant Ibis is the premium operator on the route, with full-size buses, reserved seats, Wi-Fi, power outlets, water and a snack. Day departures from Phnom Penh are at 8:45 a.m., 9:45 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and night buses leave at 10:30 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. In the other direction, Siem Reap departures are at 8:45 a.m., 9:45 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., with night buses at 10:00 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. The company gives about 6 hours for 320 km. Fares vary by departure and bus type, and a March 2026 roundup put them at $17 to $25. Giant Ibis does not publish a fixed fare and shows live prices in its booking engine. The Phnom Penh terminal is near the riverside, and the Siem Reap terminal sits behind the Old Stadium on Khmer Pub Street in Sala Kamreuk, east of the river, about 10 minutes and $2 to $3 by tuk-tuk from Pub Street. The limitation: it is the most expensive bus, seats sell out on the morning departures in December and January, and its schedule page still lists a Bangkok service that cannot run while the Thai border is closed, which says something about how often timetables are pruned.

Larryta Express

The honest verdict: the most departures, and the best choice if the Giant Ibis times do not suit. Larryta runs 15-seat Ford Transit vans for $15.50 and full-size sleeper buses for $18.75. A March 2026 roundup counted 21 daytime departures from Phnom Penh between 6:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., and 15 from Siem Reap between 6:00 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. The vans take just under 5.5 hours with two stops. The limitation: a 15-seat van for five hours is cramped for anyone tall, luggage goes in the back where it fills up first, and the vans are faster partly because they drive faster.

Seila Angkor

The honest verdict: a dependable van service with the simplest timetable on the route. Seila Angkor runs 16-seat vans for $15, leaving every half hour from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. in both directions, 18 departures a day, about 5.5 hours. Seats can be reserved by number, so pick one near the front. The limitation: the same van trade-offs as Larryta, and no full-size bus or sleeper option.

Virak Buntham and the others

Virak Buntham runs minivans and sleeper buses on the route and is listed on booking platforms in 2026, though its fares were not published in the sources checked. Booking platforms also list smaller operators, with sample fares of about $17 to $26 in mid-2026. Mekong Express, a name that appears in many older guides, has no current timetable published online and was absent from a March 2026 roundup of operators on this road, so it should not be planned around. The Cambodia Post VIP van, from the Wat Phnom post office to the Siem Reap Post Office on Pokambor Avenue, had departures at 7:00 a.m., 9:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. for $10.50 in its last detailed review, from 2022. No 2025 or 2026 timetable is published, so confirm at the post office before counting on it. If it is running, it is the only arrival within walking distance of the Old Market.

Night buses

The honest verdict: a saving of one night’s accommodation, paid for with the next day. Giant Ibis runs night buses at 10:30 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. from Phnom Penh, and Larryta runs full-size sleepers. Arrival is about 4:30 a.m. to 5:30 a.m. Sleeper berths are narrow, and on some buses the berths are doubles, so ask whether a solo ticket means a shared berth. The limitation: hotel check-in in Siem Reap is usually 2:00 p.m., so either book the room from the night before or plan to sit in a café until lunch. The Angkor Wat sunrise on the morning of arrival sounds efficient and is miserable in practice.

The Flight

The honest verdict: worth it for a short trip with a fare under about $100, and not otherwise.

Airlines. Air Cambodia, the airline called Cambodia Angkor Air until January 2025, flies Phnom Penh to Siem Reap about twice a day on ATR 72 turboprops, with a scheduled time of about 50 minutes. A March 2026 roundup gave fares of $80 to $200 one way. Cambodia Airways added the route in late June 2026, with two daily rotations between Techo and Siem Reap on ATR 72-600 aircraft. Fares on both move with the date and how far ahead you book.

The airports. Techo International Airport opened in September 2025 and replaced Phnom Penh’s old airport near the city. It is well outside the center, so allow for a long drive through Phnom Penh traffic before check-in. At the Siem Reap end, Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport, code SAI, is about 50 km east of the Old Market. The fixed-fare taxi counter charges $35 for a sedan for 1 to 3 passengers and $40 to $45 for a minivan, and the shuttle bus costs $8. The full arrival, including night options, is in the Siem Reap airport to city guide.

The arithmetic. A $100 flight plus a $35 taxi in Siem Reap plus a taxi to Techo is around $150 per person for a trip that takes 3.5 to 4 hours. The Giant Ibis bus is $17 to $25 and 6.5 hours. Two people save about $250 by taking the bus and lose about three hours.

The limitation: schedule changes. Air Cambodia is known for moving or cancelling flights at short notice, and a cancelled 50-minute flight can cost more time than the bus would have taken. Do not book a flight that connects tightly to an international departure the same day.

The Private Car

The honest verdict: the right choice for three or four people, and the only one that can stop at Sambor Prei Kuk.

A private car costs about $80 to $100 from a Phnom Penh hotel to a Siem Reap hotel, with about $90 the common online price, and more around Cambodian holidays. Online bookings usually send a four-seat SUV. Guesthouse and agency bookings are more often a Toyota Camry, sometimes with a commission built in and an extra stop at a relative’s shop. A 7-seat minivan costs about $125 and a 14-seat people carrier about $170. The drive takes 4 to 6 hours, about 5 in normal traffic.

The detour that justifies it: Sambor Prei Kuk, a UNESCO-listed group of pre-Angkorian brick temples about 30 km north of Kampong Thom, roughly at the halfway point. The detour and a visit add a few hours to the day. No bus stops there.

The limitation: driving standards on National Road 6 are poor, overtaking on blind bends is routine, and a fast driver is not a good one. Ask for a driver who will keep to the speed limits, and wear the seat belt in the back. Road deaths in Cambodia rose 11 percent in the first half of 2026, according to the Interior Ministry, and the risk is covered in is Siem Reap safe?.

The Boat Across the Tonle Sap

The honest verdict: a day on the water, not a way to save time or money, and only in the right months.

The boat route runs up the Tonle Sap River from Phnom Penh and across the lake to a landing south of Siem Reap near Chong Kneas. Cambodia River Express runs the service for about $49 per person, with a journey of about 7 hours that can stretch further when the water drops. Passengers often sit on the top deck in the sun. Other operators sell boat-and-bus combinations that switch to a road vehicle partway, via Kampong Leng, for $44 to $49, and one late-2025 description says this combination has largely replaced the all-boat trip. The boat-only operator advertises the opposite. Confirm which version you are buying.

When it runs. Only when the lake is high enough. Operators describe a season of roughly mid-year to February or March, and suspend the Phnom Penh route in the dry months, when boats ground on sandbanks. The Tonle Sap reverses its flow every year, filling from about June and draining from about November, and the Tonle Sap lake guide explains the cycle and what it does to every boat trip on the lake. No 2026 timetable is published online.

The arrival. The landing near Chong Kneas is about 11 km from town, about 25 minutes by tuk-tuk. Drivers wait for the boat and quote high. 2026 listings put a one-way tuk-tuk between town and Chong Kneas at $3 to $4, so agree the fare before loading bags. The floating villages guide explains why Chong Kneas itself is the village to skip on a dedicated trip.

The limitation: 7 hours or more with limited shade, a price two to three times the bus, and a schedule that depends on water levels. Life jackets and safety standards vary by operator. If the lake is the point, a half-day boat trip from Siem Reap to Kampong Phluk gives most of the view in a fraction of the time.

Choosing: The Short Version

• Bus for most people, on the 8:45 a.m. or 9:45 a.m. Giant Ibis, or any Larryta or Seila Angkor van if those are full.
• Flight for a three-day trip with a fare under about $100, and never on a tight connection.
• Private car for three or four people, for Sambor Prei Kuk, or for a family with small children who need to stop.
• Boat in the high-water months, for the river and the lake.
• Night bus only with a hotel room booked from the night before.

The same logic applies in reverse, and the guide to leaving Siem Reap for Phnom Penh, Bangkok, Laos and Vietnam covers the onward routes. Battambang, which some travelers add between the two cities, is covered in Battambang from Siem Reap.

Booking and Holidays

Giant Ibis, Larryta and Seila Angkor all sell online. A day or two ahead is enough most of the year. The exceptions are Khmer New Year in mid-April, Pchum Ben in late September or October and the Water Festival in Phnom Penh in November, when Cambodians travel home and seats sell out days ahead. December and January morning departures also fill.

Pay in US dollars, with riel accepted for small amounts at the roadside stops. A clean $20 note matters, because torn notes are refused, as explained in money in Siem Reap. Carry valuables in the cabin, not in the hold or the back of a van.

By Situation

You have three days in Siem Reap and a flight home from Phnom Penh

Fly one way, if the fare is under about $100, and take the bus the other. Book the flight on a day with no other connection.

You are traveling on a budget

Any daytime van at $15 to $15.50, or Giant Ibis at the lower end of its range. Bring water and a jacket for the air conditioning. The money saved covers a three-day Angkor Pass at $62, as set out in what Siem Reap costs per day.

You are a family with young children

A private car at about $90, with stops whenever needed, or Giant Ibis for its full-size bus and fixed seats. Not a van and not the boat. The family logistics in town are in Siem Reap with kids.

You want to see the Tonle Sap

The boat, between about August and February, if the operator confirms the date. If not, take the bus and spend a half day on the lake from Siem Reap instead.

You are arriving late in the day

Take a bus that arrives before dark, ideally the 8:45 a.m. or 9:45 a.m. Giant Ibis. Have the hotel address in Khmer on the phone, and agree the tuk-tuk fare before getting in. The fares are in getting around Siem Reap.

What It Actually Costs

Option	Price	Per	Time	Drops at	Confirmed in 2026
Giant Ibis, day bus	$17 to $25	Person	About 6 h	Khmer Pub Street terminal, Sala Kamreuk	Yes, official schedule
Giant Ibis, night bus	$17 to $25	Person	About 6 h	Same	Yes
Larryta Express van	$15.50	Person	Under 5.5 h	Company office	Yes, March 2026
Larryta sleeper bus	$18.75	Person	About 6 h	Company office	Yes, March 2026
Seila Angkor van	$15	Person	About 5.5 h	Company office	Yes, March 2026
Cambodia Post VIP van	$10.50 in 2022	Person	About 5.5 h	Siem Reap Post Office	No 2025 or 2026 timetable
Air Cambodia flight	$80 to $200	Person	50 min, 3.5 to 4 h door to door	SAI, 50 km from town	Yes
Cambodia Airways flight	Varies	Person	About 50 min	SAI	Yes, from late June 2026
Private car	$80 to $100	Vehicle	4 to 6 h	Hotel door	Yes
Private minivan, 7 seats	About $125	Vehicle	4 to 6 h	Hotel door	Yes
Cambodia River Express boat	About $49	Person	About 7 h, more at low water	Near Chong Kneas	Seasonal

What is not included: the tuk-tuk at each end, $2 to $3 from a bus office and $3 to $4 or more from the boat landing, the $35 taxi or $8 shuttle from SAI, food at the rest stops, and a tip for a private driver, which is welcome but not fixed.

What Other Guides Get Wrong

1. “The flight takes 45 minutes, so fly.” The flight does. The trip does not. Techo is far south of Phnom Penh and SAI is 50 km from the Old Market, so the door-to-door time is 3.5 to 4 hours.
2. “Fly from Phnom Penh International Airport to Siem Reap International Airport.” Both closed: the Phnom Penh airport in September 2025 when Techo opened, and Siem Reap’s old airport in October 2023 when SAI opened.
3. “Mekong Express is the reliable operator.” No current Mekong Express timetable for this route is published, and a March 2026 roundup of operators did not include it. Giant Ibis, Larryta and Seila Angkor have confirmed schedules.
4. “There is a daily express boat.” The boat runs only when the Tonle Sap is high, roughly mid-year to February or March, and some operators now switch to a bus partway.
5. “The bus arrives at the bus station.” Siem Reap has no central bus station. Each company drops at its own office, and the difference between Giant Ibis’s Sala Kamreuk terminal and an office on the edge of town is 15 minutes and a few dollars.
6. “The night bus saves a day.” It saves a night’s room and costs most of the next day, unless the hotel room is already yours at 5:00 a.m.

Where to Go Next

Whichever way you arrive, the Siem Reap airport to city guide covers the road into town and the drop points, and getting around Siem Reap gives the fares once you are there. If the trip started further away, the Cambodia visa guide explains the e-Visa and the e-Arrival card for both airports. For where the car or tuk-tuk should stop, where to stay in Siem Reap matches neighborhoods to travelers, and the three-day Siem Reap itinerary turns an afternoon bus arrival into a first evening.