Phnom Penh

Let me take you to the late afternoon in Phnom Penh. You sit at a riverside café, where the Mekong meets the Tonlé Sap, order a cold beer, about a dollar and a half, and you pay in dollars, and watch the sun drop behind the golden Royal Palace. Beside you, fresh baguettes (a French legacy) and tuk-tuks passing slowly. There’s none of the rush of the big Asian metros here: Phnom Penh is the capital of a country that offers the easiest residence in Asia: and that does everything in dollars, which, if you earn in dollars, is an unsung convenience.

Phnom Penh in 30 seconds

It’s the capital of Cambodia, on the riverbanks, which grew fast: new buildings, cafés, coworkings and restaurants from all over, with a low cost and an easy pace. Prices are in US dollars (the riel serves almost only as change), and the visa is the simplest on the continent. It’s the ideal base for anyone who wants minimum bureaucracy and maximum freedom.

Where to stay, walking you through the neighborhoods

BKK1 (Boeung Keng Kang): the expat and nomad heart. Specialty cafés, coworkings, international restaurants and modern apartments with pools, many serviced. It’s where most foreigners settle, safe, convenient and full of life.

Riverside: the tourist waterfront, with bars, restaurants and the riverside walk. Lively and central, a little noisier.

Tonle Bassac: modern, with the Aeon mall and new buildings, for anyone who wants big-city convenience.

Daun Penh (center): the historic heart, near the Royal Palace and the Central Market, with the colonial architecture and local life pulsing.

The must-dos, what to do

• Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda: the golden riverside complex, the heart of the Cambodian monarchy.
• Riverside walk (Sisowath Quay): the classic dusk stroll, with the meeting of the rivers and local life.
• Central Market and Russian Market: two iconic markets, one yellow art deco, the other a maze of everything.
• Wat Phnom: the hilltop temple that gave the city its name.
• S-21 and the Killing Fields: the dark memory of the Khmer Rouge regime; a hard but important visit to understand the country.
• Mekong sunset by boat: a cheap cruise to see the city from the water.

The food, Khmer with a French touch

Cambodian cuisine is a discovery: the amok (steamed fish curry in coconut milk), the lok lak (sautéed beef with a lime-and-pepper sauce), noodle soups for breakfast. And the French colonial heritage left real bakery baguettes and croissants, plus a good café scene. You eat very well for a few dollars, and Phnom Penh has a surprising international range for its size.

A perfect day in Phnom Penh

Coffee and a baguette at a BKK1 bakery, a morning of work at a coworking with air conditioning. Lok lak with rice for lunch, for three or four dollars. In the afternoon, a tuk-tuk hailed by app takes you to a new café or the Palace. At dusk, the riverside, a cold beer and the sunset over the Mekong. At night, a relaxed dinner with the international crew. Light, cheap, no bureaucracy, with the weekend free for Kampot, Kep or the coast.

What it costs and the practical stuff

You live well on US$ 930 to 1,520 a month: an apartment with a pool in BKK1 costs US$ 350 to 550, eating local costs a few dollars and the tuk-tuk is cheap. The internet is decent in the city. And the dollar economy simplifies everything, no currency risk if you earn in dollars.

Getting around

• Tuk-tuk by app (PassApp / Grab): cheap and practical, covers the whole city.
• Scooter: for anyone who wants autonomy (careful in traffic).
• On foot: the riverside and the center are walkable; the rest, by tuk-tuk.

Is Phnom Penh worth living in?

For anyone who wants the least possible bureaucracy to settle in Asia, a cheap dollar-based base and an easy pace of life, Phnom Penh is unique, no other capital offers residence this easy. In exchange, you give up some of the comfort and infrastructure of its neighbors. For many nomads, that’s exactly the trade that makes sense.

Phnom Penh is the capital of the Cambodia guide, where you’ll find the E visa (renewable forever), the dollar economy and the taxes.