Last fact-checked: 4 September 2026
Cambodia is generally a safe country for tourists, particularly if you are travelling through the established visitor circuit of Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Kampot and the southern islands. That does not mean there are no risks, or that every part of the country should currently be treated in the same way. It means that for most travellers, the things most likely to cause problems are considerably more ordinary than the things that tend to make Cambodia sound frightening from a distance.
I travelled through Cambodia in April and May 2026, spending time in Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Koh Rong and Kampot. I flew internally, took tuk-tuks, travelled by road and ferry, wandered through cities, visited temples before sunrise, rode around an island and spent time outside the major tourist centres. Cambodia never felt like a country where I needed to spend the entire trip looking over my shoulder.
There are, however, things I would take seriously. Road safety is one. Phone and bag snatching in cities is another. Medical access becomes more important once you leave the major centres. There are also genuine landmine risks in particular rural and border areas, and the current security situation along the Cambodia–Thailand border means parts of the country should presently be avoided altogether.
That distinction matters.
Cambodia is not a country where you need to be frightened of everything. It is a country where you need to understand which risks actually deserve your attention.
Cambodia safety at a glance
If you are trying to decide whether Cambodia is somewhere you would feel comfortable travelling, this is the short version.
| Question | The short answer |
|---|---|
| Is Cambodia generally safe for tourists? | Yes, on the normal tourist route |
| Is violent crime the main concern? | No, although it does occur |
| Is petty theft a concern? | Yes, particularly phone and bag snatching |
| Can you travel independently? | Yes |
| Is Cambodia safe at night? | Generally, with sensible precautions |
| Are Cambodian roads safe? | Road safety deserves serious attention |
| Are there areas to avoid? | Yes, particularly the current Cambodia–Thailand border region |
| Are landmines a risk? | Yes in some rural and border areas, not in the normal urban tourist experience |
| Did I feel safe travelling Cambodia? | Yes |
| Would safety stop me going back? | No |
The rest of this guide explains the nuance behind those answers.
CURRENT TRAVEL SITUATION - SEPTEMBER 2026
Cambodia's major tourist destinations remain accessible, but the Cambodia–Thailand land border is a genuine exception to the broad “Cambodia is safe” answer.
At the time of writing, the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office advises against all but essential travel within 20 km of the land border with Thailand. Australia takes an even more conservative position and advises travellers not to travel within 50 km of the Cambodia–Thailand border in several affected provinces. Land-border crossings between the two countries remain suspended following fighting in 2025, although the precise security situation can change.
That does not mean Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Kampot and Koh Rong should automatically be treated as conflict zones. It means Cambodia currently has a geographically specific security issue that needs to be taken seriously.
Current UK FCDO Cambodia travel advice
Australian Smartraveller Cambodia adviceBefore travelling, always check the advisory issued by your own government and confirm the situation again if your itinerary takes you near a border area.
So, how dangerous is Cambodia really?
The problem with a lot of travel-safety content is that it takes everything that could possibly go wrong and presents it as though every risk has roughly the same probability and consequence.
You end up reading about pickpockets, landmines, mosquitoes, tuk-tuk scams, road accidents, political demonstrations, dodgy ATMs, food poisoning and tropical diseases in the same breath. By the time you reach the bottom of the page, a perfectly ordinary holiday can sound like an expedition through a war zone.
That isn't a particularly useful way of thinking about risk.
A better approach is to separate the dangers into categories.
Serious risks that are geographically limited
These include the current Thailand border situation, unexploded ordnance and landmines in certain parts of rural Cambodia. They are real risks and should not be dismissed, but they are also not representative of the average afternoon walking through central Phnom Penh or visiting Angkor Wat.
Everyday risks that deserve attention
These are the things I would spend more time thinking about on a normal Cambodia trip: road traffic, riding scooters, phone and bag snatching, choosing transport late at night, excessive drinking, securing valuables and understanding how far you are from decent medical care.
Tourist annoyances
Overcharging, minor scams, confusing currency transactions and negotiating a tuk-tuk fare can be irritating. They are not the same thing as being in physical danger.
Normal travel friction
Heat, mosquitoes, unfamiliar food, occasional communication problems, delayed transport and chaotic streets are part of travelling through Southeast Asia. They require preparation rather than fear.
Once you make those distinctions, Cambodia becomes much easier to understand.
Crime in Cambodia: what tourists should actually worry about
Crime exists in Cambodia and pretending otherwise would make this guide less useful. The United States currently advises travellers to exercise increased caution in Cambodia because of crime and landmines, while official Australian travel guidance specifically identifies street crime, including phone and bag snatching, as a regular problem.
What matters is understanding the form that risk is most likely to take.
Phone and bag snatching
This is one of the few Cambodia-specific habits I would deliberately change.
Motorbike thieves can target pedestrians or people travelling in open tuk-tuks, particularly in urban areas. A phone held casually toward the road while checking Google Maps is an unusually easy target, as is a bag hanging from the traffic-facing shoulder. Official advice specifically recommends keeping belongings away from the road-facing side and being cautious with valuables in open transport.
You do not need to stop using your phone outside.
Just think about where you are standing when you use it.
Move away from the kerb. Step into a shopfront if you need to work out where you are. Don't leave your phone resting loosely on the seat of an open tuk-tuk. Keep bags between you and the interior of the vehicle rather than hanging toward passing traffic.
These are small behavioural changes. They do not meaningfully restrict the trip.
What about violent crime?
Violent crime does occur in Cambodia, and official travel guidance notes incidents involving firearms, robbery and assaults. But that is different from saying that violent crime against ordinary tourists defines the experience of travelling through the country.
My own approach was similar to how I would behave in any unfamiliar city. I paid attention to where I was, used sensible transport, avoided placing myself in obviously vulnerable situations late at night and did not carry unnecessary valuables around.
Coming from South Africa, the basic idea of situational awareness was hardly foreign to me. What I did not experience was a constant sense that danger was around every corner.
That difference is important.
Hotel and hostel theft
Normal accommodation precautions still apply. Use a proper safe or locker when one is available, don't leave significant amounts of cash lying openly in a room and keep control of passports, bank cards and electronics.
There is no reason to turn your hotel room into Fort Knox. The goal is simply not to make an opportunistic theft unusually easy.
The risk I would take most seriously: Cambodia's roads
If you ask me what deserves more attention than most first-time tourists probably give it, my answer is traffic.
Cambodian roads can feel chaotic. Motorcycles weave between cars, tuk-tuks occupy spaces that don't always look like spaces, pedestrians negotiate traffic differently from what many visitors are used to, and driving standards vary enormously.
Australian travel guidance warns that serious road accidents happen daily in Cambodia and specifically highlights motorcycles, buses and coaches as having high accident rates. It also recommends avoiding road travel at night where possible.
This is the kind of danger that doesn't produce the same dramatic headlines as crime, but is far more relevant to how many tourists actually travel through the country.
Should you rent a scooter in Cambodia?
It depends.
A scooter can completely change the experience of places such as Kampot or Koh Rong. You gain independence, can move beyond the immediate tourist area and get access to places that would otherwise require drivers or tours.
But a cheap rental and an empty stretch of road can create a false sense of security.
If you have never ridden a motorcycle before, Cambodia is probably not where I would choose to discover whether you are naturally talented at it. Road surfaces change, animals appear, other road users behave unpredictably, rain can transform conditions quickly and emergency medical care may be a considerable distance away.
If you do ride:
- use a proper helmet;
- understand what your travel insurance actually covers;
- don't ride after drinking;
- avoid pushing speed simply because a road looks empty;
- be considerably more conservative after dark;
- and don't assume that because locals appear comfortable doing something, you have the same experience they do.
The objective is not to remove every risk from travelling. It is to avoid taking risks that offer very little in return.
Tuk-tuks and ride-hailing apps
For most visitors, tuk-tuks remain one of the easiest ways to move around Cambodian cities. Apps such as Grab and PassApp can remove much of the friction because the destination and price are established digitally rather than negotiated at the side of the road. Australian travel advice also specifically recommends considering ride-hailing apps, particularly when choosing transport at night.
I used tuk-tuks throughout the trip. They became part of Cambodia rather than something I regarded as a safety problem.
You simply apply the same principle as everywhere else: use reputable transport, keep your belongings inside the vehicle and think a little more carefully about how you get home late at night than you do at 2pm.
[INTERNAL LINK: How to Get Around Cambodia - future article]
Scams in Cambodia: How worried should you be?
You will find plenty of articles promising to reveal “the Cambodia scams tourists MUST avoid”.
That headline does a lot of work.
The reality is less exciting. The majority of tourist transactions in Cambodia are ordinary exchanges between someone selling something and someone buying it. Occasionally you will be overcharged. Occasionally someone will push harder for a sale than you would like. Occasionally the foreigner price and the local price will not be remotely related.
Welcome to travel.
That doesn't mean more serious scams don't exist. Official advice warns about ATM and credit-card fraud as well as schemes where apparently friendly strangers invite travellers to private homes or gambling situations.
The most useful defence is rarely paranoia.
It is friction.
Slow the situation down.
Confirm the price.
Don't allow yourself to be hurried into making decisions.
Don't follow a stranger somewhere private because an extraordinary opportunity has suddenly materialised.
Use established ATMs in banks, hotels or shopping centres where possible and check the machine before inserting your card.
Most importantly, give yourself permission to walk away.
You don't have to prove that someone is scamming you before deciding that a situation feels unnecessarily complicated.
A quick note on money: US dollars and Cambodian riel
Cambodia's currency is the Cambodian riel, although US dollars have also traditionally circulated extensively in the tourism economy. The practical experience of paying for things can therefore initially feel slightly unusual, particularly if a transaction involves one currency and change in another.
You don't need to master Cambodia's monetary system before boarding the plane. You do need to pay attention to what you are handing over and what you are receiving back.
Use ATMs in sensible locations, carry more than one payment method and avoid walking around with your entire travel budget in cash. If a note is damaged or a transaction feels unclear, deal with it there rather than discovering the problem several days later.
[How Much Does Cambodia Cost? — future article]
Is Phnom Penh safe?
Phnom Penh was the part of my trip where normal big-city awareness mattered most.
That isn't because the Cambodian capital felt uniquely dangerous. It is simply the place where you have more traffic, more people, more nightlife, more street activity and therefore more opportunities for the same kinds of things that happen in large cities around the world.
Phone snatching deserves particular attention here. So does crossing roads.
There are areas where walking is perfectly natural, and there are times when taking a tuk-tuk for what looks like a short distance is simply the easier decision. At night, especially after drinks or when moving somewhere unfamiliar, the threshold for choosing transport over walking should become lower.
What I would not do is arrive in Phnom Penh assuming the city needs to be experienced through the windows of a hotel and private car.
That would be missing the place entirely.
Be aware. Keep your phone out of easy reach of passing traffic. Don't wander around intoxicated with your wallet hanging out of your pocket.
Then go and experience the city.
[INTERNAL LINK: Things to Do in Phnom Penh]
Is Siem Reap safe?
For many people, Siem Reap will be the easiest introduction to Cambodia.
The tourism infrastructure is mature, tuk-tuks and hotels are accustomed to international visitors, English is widely encountered around the visitor economy and much of a typical stay revolves around the temples of Angkor and central Siem Reap.
That doesn't mean you should abandon normal precautions. Pub Street is still nightlife. Crowds still create opportunities for petty theft. Walking around tired at 4am because you are heading to Angkor Wat for sunrise does not magically make you immune to accidents.
But Siem Reap is not somewhere I would hesitate to recommend to a first-time Southeast Asia traveller because of safety concerns.
What about the temples and landmines?
This is where context matters enormously.
Cambodia continues to deal with landmines and unexploded ordnance, particularly in rural areas and parts of the north and northwest. South Africa's Department of International Relations and Cooperation specifically advises South African visitors not to stray from established routes in rural areas, including around temple complexes in the north and northwest.
That does not mean you need to be nervous walking through the established Angkor archaeological circuit.
It means you should not decide that an unmarked path disappearing into the Cambodian countryside looks like an interesting shortcut.
Stay on recognised routes. Respect signs and barriers. Follow local guidance.
It really can be that simple.
Angkor Wat at sunrise. Cambodia's landmine history is real, but it needs geographical context: established tourist routes are very different from wandering off-track in affected rural areas.
[INTERNAL LINK: Angkor Wat Sunrise - Everything I Wish I Knew Before Going]
[INTERNAL LINK: Siem Reap Travel Guide]
Is Kampot safe?
Kampot felt like a completely different Cambodia again.
The pace slows down. The traffic thins. The river becomes part of daily life and the surrounding countryside, salt fields, farms, small roads and pepper plantations, becomes as much of the attraction as the town itself.
For most travellers, safety in Kampot is less about urban crime and more about mobility. If you hire a scooter, ride into the countryside or spend an afternoon far from your accommodation, the questions become practical ones.
Do you know where you are going?
Will you be riding back after dark?
What happens if the weather changes?
Does someone know roughly where you are?
Are you riding within your actual ability?
Those aren't uniquely Cambodian concerns. They are simply the kinds of risks that become more relevant as a trip becomes less urban.
Kampot was one of the places where I felt the value of having some independence. The trick is not to confuse independence with invulnerability.
Our motorbike in the Kampot countryside
[INTERNAL LINK: Kampot Travel Guide]
[INTERNAL LINK: Visiting La Plantation Pepper Farm]
Is Koh Rong safe?
On Koh Rong, the risk profile changes again.
You are no longer primarily thinking about urban crime or busy roads. You're on an island, and remoteness changes what “safe” means.
A small injury that would be straightforward in Phnom Penh becomes more complicated if appropriate medical care requires a boat journey back to the mainland. Weather affects ferries. Roads can be rough. Scooters are tempting. Swimming conditions matter. Alcohol and islands have also produced bad decisions since approximately the invention of islands.
Official guidance specifically warns that Cambodia's coastal islands can have limited or nonexistent access to emergency or medical assistance.
That doesn't make Koh Rong dangerous.
It means your margin for error is different.
If you're going somewhere isolated, understand how you would get help. Check sea conditions before going out on the water. Don't combine a day of heavy drinking with enthusiastic scooter experimentation. Keep valuables secure at the beach.
And then enjoy being on the island.
The objective is never to spend the holiday performing risk assessments. It is to make a handful of good decisions beforehand so that you don't need to.
[INTERNAL LINK: Koh Rong Travel Guide]
What about rural Cambodia?
This is one of the areas where I would resist the temptation to reassure people too aggressively.
Cambodia's landmine problem is real. Decades of conflict left parts of the country contaminated by mines and unexploded ordnance, and the current Thai-border security situation adds another layer of concern in affected areas. British and Australian government advice both specifically identify mines and explosive remnants of war as hazards in the border region.
But this risk needs to be understood properly.
You are not likely to accidentally encounter a mine while wandering between cafes in Kampot or visiting the main Angkor temples. The risk increases when people leave established routes in affected rural regions.
So don't.
If you're trekking, exploring remote temple complexes or heading somewhere substantially outside the normal tourist circuit, use proper local guides and ask questions about the area.
This is an excellent example of the broader principle behind this entire article: Take the serious risks seriously without pretending they exist everywhere.
Is Cambodia safe at night?
Mostly yes, with a qualification that should apply almost everywhere on earth.
Risk changes after dark.
There are fewer people around. Transport becomes more important. Alcohol affects judgement. Certain streets empty out. Phone and bag theft become easier. A situation that would merely be irritating at 3pm can become considerably more difficult at 1am.
That doesn't mean you need to be back in your room by sunset.
I went out in Cambodia.
The practical rule is simply that as the night gets later, my willingness to pay a few more dollars for reliable transport goes up dramatically.
Use a Grab, PassApp or transport arranged by your hotel. Stick with people you trust if you are drinking. Don't leave drinks unattended. If an area feels deserted and you don't know where you are going, there is no prize for proving you can walk it.
Official travel advice likewise recommends extra caution around night-time transport and notes that ride-hailing services can be a safer choice than flagging down transport.
Is Cambodia safe for solo travellers?
Cambodia is very possible to travel alone.
The tourist infrastructure makes it relatively easy to organise accommodation, transport, activities and onward journeys without needing a tour group. Siem Reap in particular is full of independent travellers, and organised activities make it easy to meet people without surrendering control of your entire itinerary.
Solo travel does change your margin for error, though.
When you're travelling with somebody else, there's naturally another person noticing when you've had too much to drink, when you've left a bag behind or when a transport situation doesn't feel right. Alone, you need to perform that role yourself.
The practical safeguards are straightforward:
- let someone know where you're staying;
- keep a backup way of paying;
- don't leave yourself without transport late at night;
- avoid becoming so intoxicated that other people have to make decisions for you;
- and keep important documents backed up somewhere you can access without your phone.
You don't need to broadcast your itinerary to the world. One trusted person knowing roughly where you are is enough.
Is Cambodia safe for solo female travellers?
My own experience cannot answer this question completely.
I travelled Cambodia as a man, and it would be ridiculous to pretend that tells me exactly what moving through the country alone as a woman feels like.
What I can say is that the same infrastructure that makes Cambodia relatively straightforward for independent travellers, established hotels, ride-hailing apps, organised tours and a well-developed backpacker route, also gives solo women options for controlling how and when they move around.
There are still gender-specific risks. Official travel advice records sexual assaults in Cambodian tourist areas and notes that incidents have occurred where travellers were alone, intoxicated or had drinks spiked.
That deserves to be stated plainly without converting it into an argument that women shouldn't travel Cambodia.
The sensible approach is to choose reputable accommodation, control your transport home, keep an eye on drinks, be more conservative when moving alone late at night and trust discomfort early rather than waiting for a situation to prove itself dangerous.
Government advice for women travelling abroad
Is Cambodia safe for couples?
For couples, Cambodia is a very straightforward destination to travel.
Having two people naturally removes some of the vulnerability of travelling alone, particularly at night or when moving between destinations. The main safety considerations are therefore much the same as they are for other travellers: traffic, scooters, theft, drinking, health and decisions made in more remote areas.
In practical terms, travelling as a couple also makes certain things easier. One person can keep an eye on luggage while the other buys tickets. You have someone to call for help. You notice when the other person is tired, dehydrated or making a poor decision.
That shouldn't make you careless.
But I certainly wouldn't consider being a couple a reason to have additional safety concerns about visiting Cambodia.
Is Cambodia safe for families and older travellers?
For families and older travellers, the definition of safety changes again.
Street crime might be part of the calculation, but heat, dehydration, road transport, accessibility and medical care are likely to matter just as much.
The Angkor temples, for example, can involve long days outside in serious heat. An island transfer may involve ferry conditions and carrying luggage. A road journey that feels like an adventure at 25 may feel completely different if someone in the group has mobility issues or a medical condition.
None of this means Cambodia is unsuitable.
It means itinerary design matters.
Give yourself more time. Build breaks into temple days. Choose transport for comfort rather than always choosing the cheapest option. Know where appropriate medical facilities are before you need them.
A good Cambodia itinerary should fit the traveller rather than requiring the traveller to prove something to the itinerary.
Health and medical safety in Cambodia
Health is one of the areas where preparation before the trip matters more than improvisation during it.
Medical facilities are not consistent across Cambodia. Care in Phnom Penh is very different from what may be available on an island or in a remote rural area, and emergency evacuation can become expensive. Both government travel advice and the CDC recommend considering insurance that covers medical treatment and evacuation.
I would not travel Cambodia without comprehensive travel insurance.
Not because I expect something to happen.
Because the financial consequences of the small number of things that could happen are completely disproportionate to the cost of insuring against them.
Mosquitoes deserve more attention than most dramatic travel fears
Dengue occurs in Cambodia, while malaria risk varies substantially depending on where you travel. The CDC currently describes malaria transmission as primarily concentrated in rural and forested pockets, with negligible or no transmission in Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and the main Angkor Wat temple complex.
Dengue, however, remains a year-round concern, which makes avoiding mosquito bites sensible even on a normal tourist itinerary.
That means insect repellent is not something I would leave at the bottom of the suitcase for the entire trip.
For vaccinations, malaria medication and anything specific to your health, speak to a travel-health professional before leaving rather than relying on a travel blog, including this one, to make medical decisions for you.
CDC Cambodia traveller health page
Heat and dehydration
This sounds almost too obvious to include, which is exactly why people underestimate it.
Cambodia gets hot.
Temple days can involve hours outside. Scooters create airflow that makes you feel cooler than you are. Beer does not count as hydration, however persuasive the circumstances.
Drink water before you feel desperately thirsty. Take breaks. Wear sun protection. Accept that walking through one more temple at 2pm is not always a demonstration of character.
Travel is considerably more enjoyable when you are not trying to defeat the climate.
Can you safely eat street food in Cambodia?
Yes.
The idea that “street food” is inherently dangerous and restaurant food is inherently safe has never made much sense to me. What matters more is how the food is handled.
I look for places with turnover. If locals are constantly eating there, ingredients are moving quickly and food is being cooked in front of you, that often tells you considerably more than the presence of white tablecloths.
That doesn't mean eat absolutely everything without thinking.
Food that should be hot should be hot. Be more cautious with things that have clearly been sitting in the sun for hours. Pay attention to how water and ice are being handled. If something looks questionable, there will be another meal approximately 40 metres away.
The CDC recommends taking precautions with food and drinking water in Cambodia because food- and waterborne illness does occur.
But please don't go all the way to Cambodia and spend three weeks eating only sealed crackers because somebody on Facebook once had a bad prawn.
Cambodian food is part of the reason to travel.
[INTERNAL LINK: What to Eat in Cambodia / Cambodia Food Guide]
Drinking and nightlife safety
Cambodia has bars, clubs, backpacker parties, beach parties and approximately all the normal opportunities humans create to make poor decisions after midnight.
You do not need a separate philosophy for Cambodia.
Keep control of your drink. Be cautious with homemade or unlabelled alcohol. Decide how you're getting home before you reach the stage at which transport logistics become an advanced mathematics problem.
Travel advice currently highlights both drink spiking and methanol poisoning risks and recommends drinking branded, sealed products where possible.
The combination I would avoid completely is alcohol + scooter + unfamiliar road + night.
Those four things do not improve each other's risk profiles.
Keep your money, passport and documents boring
A good travel document system should be boring because nothing ever happens to it.
I would carry the cash and cards I expected to use that day rather than everything I owned. I would keep at least one backup card separate from my main wallet and maintain digital copies of important documents somewhere accessible from another device.
I would also know:
- my travel insurer and policy number;
- where my passport was;
- where my backup money was;
- how to cancel my bank cards;
- and who to contact if I lost my phone.
You hope never to use any of this.
That's the point.
What I actually did to stay safe in Cambodia
I didn't follow an elaborate security protocol while travelling Cambodia. Most of what I did was ordinary judgement.
I used reputable transport, paid attention to my phone and belongings in busy areas, stayed on established routes where unexploded ordnance could potentially be an issue and thought carefully about transport when moving around later at night.
More importantly, I didn't spend the trip assuming every unfamiliar interaction was a threat.
My basic rules were:
- Keep phones and bags away from passing traffic.
- Use Grab, PassApp or trusted transport when it makes sense.
- Don't turn scooters into a bravery competition.
- Keep passports, cards and large amounts of cash secure.
- Stay on established routes in remote areas.
- Know how you're getting home before a late night gets very late.
- Carry proper travel insurance.
- Pay attention to weather and medical access on islands.
- Check official advice before entering border regions.
- Use normal judgement without travelling in a state of paranoia.
Nothing on that list requires you to experience Cambodia from behind glass.
That's the point.
Things I wouldn't worry too much about
There are also things that can occupy far more mental space than they deserve.
“Cambodia is a dangerous country”
That description is too broad to be useful.
Cambodia has risks. So does almost everywhere worth travelling. The real question is whether those risks are manageable on the itinerary you are planning.
For the established Cambodian tourist circuit, I think they are.
“Landmines are everywhere”
They aren't.
Cambodia's unexploded-ordnance problem is serious, but geographically concentrated. Follow established routes and local instructions in affected areas rather than allowing Cambodia's history to create the impression that walking around Siem Reap is inherently dangerous.
“Everyone is trying to scam tourists”
No.
You may be overcharged. Someone may try to sell you something you don't need. A driver may quote a price that bears no resemblance to what you paid yesterday.
That is not the same as a society organised around scamming visitors.
“I shouldn't go out after dark”
You absolutely can.
Just understand that transport becomes more valuable and situational awareness becomes slightly more important.
“Street food is unsafe”
Street food is food.
Judge the preparation, hygiene and turnover rather than the presence or absence of walls.
“I need to be suspicious of everyone”
This would be one of the worst ways to travel Cambodia.
Caution should prevent genuinely bad decisions. It should not prevent conversations, spontaneity or basic human trust.
Things I would take seriously
The opposite list is shorter than you might expect.
Road safety. Especially scooters, provincial roads and night travel.
Phone and bag snatching. Particularly beside traffic and in open vehicles.
The Cambodia–Thailand border situation. This is not the time to improvise a border-region adventure.
Landmine warnings in remote areas. Stay on established paths.
Medical access. Particularly on islands and in remote parts of the country.
Mosquito-borne disease. Use proper prevention.
Alcohol and transport. Especially motorbikes.
Travel insurance. Including medical evacuation and the activities you actually plan to do.
If you manage those things well, you have dealt with much of the risk that is realistically within your control.
Cambodia safety checklist before you go
You do not need a tactical backpack full of survival equipment.
You need a small amount of preparation.
Before leaving home
- Check your government's latest Cambodia travel advisory.
- Buy comprehensive travel insurance.
- Check that your insurance covers scooters or other activities you intend to do.
- Speak to a travel-health professional about vaccinations and malaria risk for your itinerary.
- Make digital copies of your passport and insurance documents.
- Take more than one method of payment.
- Save your bank's card-cancellation details.
- Download your preferred ride-hailing and mapping apps.
- Tell someone roughly where you will be travelling.
While travelling
- Keep phones away from the roadside when using them.
- Keep bags on the non-traffic side of your body or vehicle.
- Use reliable transport, particularly at night.
- Wear a helmet if you ride a scooter.
- Avoid unnecessary night driving.
- Don't wander off marked routes in mine-affected regions.
- Pay attention to weather before island transfers.
- Use mosquito repellent.
- Stay hydrated.
- Keep control of your drinks.
- Check current advice before approaching the Thai border.
[OPTIONAL CONTENT UPGRADE: Downloadable “Cambodia Before You Go” checklist — could become a lightweight email capture asset later.]
A note for South African travellers
For South Africans specifically, DIRCO advises maintaining a high level of personal security in Cambodia and warns travellers not to stray from main routes in rural areas, particularly around certain temple complexes in the north and northwest. The South African Embassy in Bangkok is accredited to Cambodia because South Africa does not currently maintain a resident embassy there.
South Africans can apply for a Cambodian tourist e-visa through Cambodia's official e-visa system. Cambodia's official site currently lists the Tourist Visa T at US$30, with a single entry and a one-month permitted stay. Travellers are also required to submit the Cambodia e-Arrival form before arrival.
Because immigration rules can change, I would verify this again shortly before travelling rather than treating a blog article as an immigration document.
Cambodia's official e-Visa website
Official Cambodia e-Arrival website
Would I go back to Cambodia?
Without hesitation.
I would not go back because Cambodia is completely risk-free. It isn't.
I would go back because the risks I encountered and researched are understandable, geographically specific where necessary and manageable through ordinary decisions. I never felt that enjoying Cambodia required me to ignore common sense, nor did common sense require me to experience the country defensively.
That is probably the most useful answer I can give to the question “Is Cambodia safe for tourists?”
For most people travelling Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Kampot, the islands and other established destinations, yes, Cambodia is generally safe to visit. Pay attention to traffic. Protect easy-to-grab valuables. Take the current Thai-border situation seriously. Respect landmine warnings in affected rural areas. Get good travel insurance. Think harder about what happens if something goes wrong when you are somewhere remote.
Then go and travel.
Because Cambodia deserves respect, but it does not deserve to be reduced to fear.
Keep planning your Cambodia trip
If Cambodia is starting to look less intimidating and considerably more interesting, the next step is working out how to put the trip together.
[INTERNAL LINK CARD: The Perfect Cambodia Itinerary]
How I would combine Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Koh Rong and Kampot.
[INTERNAL LINK CARD: Phnom Penh Travel Guide]
What to see, where to stay, how long you need and how to get around.
[INTERNAL LINK CARD: Siem Reap & Angkor Wat Guide]
Everything you need to know before visiting Cambodia's most famous temples.
[INTERNAL LINK CARD: Koh Rong Travel Guide]
Beaches, ferries, getting around and what I would do differently.
[INTERNAL LINK CARD: Kampot Travel Guide]
Pepper farms, salt fields, scooters and one of Cambodia's easiest places to slow down.
[INTERNAL LINK CARD: How Much Does Cambodia Cost?]
A realistic breakdown of accommodation, food, transport and activities.
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