Cambodia’s favorite province, boasting the Angkor archaeological complex, is still surprisingly quiet in the immediate post-covid era. The airport is a largely empty space and the most famous gathering ground for tourists, Pub Street, is hardly bustling. Discounts for accommodation are readily available and many of the large hotels on the airport road are still shuttered. But all that is about to change.
China, of course, is the central issue. In 2019, around two and a half million Chinese came to Cambodia on charter flights, about 36 percent of the total. Although flights have already begun from Chinese cities to the capital city Phnom Penh and the distant coastal casino hub Sihanoukville, the schedules don’t start for Siem Reap until March 7. Until then, the tourist market is mainly European.
Wang Wentian, the Chinese ambassador to Cambodia, expects at least one million fellow countrymen in 2023 with the Angkor Wat temple ruins being the star attraction. Downtown, the Cambodian authorities are already implementing pro-Sino policies such as erecting public signs in Mandarin, ensuring accommodation facilities and food are suited to Chinese tastes and encouraging payment in Chinese currency as an alternative to the US dollar. It was recently announced that Mandarin will be taught in all Cambodian schools even though English is the official language of Asean of which Cambodia is a member.
Meanwhile, a brand new mega-airport to service Siem , to be known as Techo International, being built 30 miles away to the south-west and is scheduled to open in late 2023, although contractors say mid 2024 is more likely. The current airport is believed to be too small to deal with the expected tourist boom, whilst the monuments of Angkor are believed to be deteriorating because of the aircraft-related pollution which attacks the medieval inscriptions and edifices. The new airport will be far and away the biggest in Cambodia and will be able to accommodate the largest airplanes from all round the world.
Chhay Sivlin, president of the travel agents’ association, said, “The sky’s the limit as far as international tourism is concerned.” The country is also encouraging expats with several long stay visas on offer to retirees, digital nomads, students and work seekers. Last year, a new 10 year visa was announced with a half-promise of a Cambodian passport down the line. However, each application required US$100,000 investment in specified, future housing developments and little has since been heard of the project.
