When our group arrived to Siem Reap, Cambodia, we were greeted with one of the most beautiful airports I had ever seen — it looked like it had been recently built, with shiny spotless floors, lots of glass, and uniquely Cambodian touches inside. Staff from the hostel we had booked were waiting outside the airport for us with tuk-tuks; we tossed our packs into any space we could fit them and enjoyed the breeze as the drivers buzzed us through the rural outskirts of Siem Reap and into town.
Our hostel provided clean and comfortable air-conditioned rooms, a pool with a swim-up bar, and plenty of space to relax with a snack. First things first: we found a great café around the corner run by a woman and her mother. The man seating customers, an enthusiastic older gentleman with a thick British accent, explained that the ladies running the place had lost many important members of their family to the Khmer Rouge regime. He kept reminding us that the food was simple, nothing fancy — but despite his modesty we were far from disappointed. I enjoyed a hot bowl of delicious curry and watched the line of hungry customers continue to grow outside the tiny restaurant.
The next full day in Siem Reap was spent exploring the temples inside Angkor Archaeological Park. We chose to rent mountain bikes from our hostel and head out late in the morning toward the entrance of the park. It certainly turned out to be an adventure — about a mile from our hostel, we ran into heavy traffic through the very center of town, nervously making our way into any space we could find in the insane convergence of motorbikes, tuk-tuks, and vehicles of all sizes. Although partly cloudy, the day was hot and unbearably humid, and I hung on to my bicycle for dear life with sweaty palms, drops of perspiration occasionally dripping into my eyes beneath my sunglasses. Miraculously, we made it out of Siem Reap all in one piece, despite one incident where I hit the front brakes on my bike too hard to avoid running into a vehicle in front of me and fell facedown onto a busy street. I was pretty shaken and breathless by the time we made it to the park's gate to purchase tickets, but we continued on another few miles to the main temple complex, where my breath was taken away again by the sheer size of Angkor Wat. Steady streams of tourists moved through its maze, snapping postcard-quality photos at every turn.
We continued our ride down paved and dirt roads through the park, visiting ruins of temples even older than the iconic Angkor Wat. I could feel myself getting more and more drained, even though all of us were sipping large amounts of water throughout the day; by the fourth or fifth temple and close to 13 miles in, I started to feel ill and reluctantly decided to call it a day. I was sweating from every pore, clothes soaked through, and utterly exhausted. Luckily, we had ended up at an air-conditioned building to stop for lunch by the time I started to feel really poorly, with a strange sort of chilly feeling accompanied by nausea. I had heard about heat exhaustion before, and I wasn't going to risk feeling worse. I asked the wait staff if anyone could call a tuk-tuk to return to town, as it seemed like a main stop inside the park and lots of cars were coming and going. Soon, a friendly tuk-tuk driver appeared and cleverly balanced my bike near my seat before buzzing back to town and our hostel. After returning to the air-conditioned room, drinking lots of water, and a lengthy nap, I felt much better. The rest of my travel companions returned just as exhausted, sweaty, and ready for cold showers, after riding over twenty miles in the unrelenting heat. Nothing some rest and a cold drink couldn't fix!
We left Siem Reap the next day, full of our adventure, feeling we had really experienced a slice of Cambodia and true Southeast Asia.
Kelly and Rhenee were excellent to work with on planning our trip. The logistics all worked smoothly and everyone was friendly and on time. Our accommodations were very good, particularly the incredible Patagonia Camp in Torres del Paine! Our guides on every excursion were outstanding and made the hikes memorable! Overall we had a wonderful trip with incredible memories!
Scott Gibson
1 day ago
Adventure Life is definitely a first-class safari tour company, and our representative was Franny Friesz. First of all, she responded immediately after we contacted Adventure Life. We told Franny that we had never been on a safari, and she was more than eager to offer a mountain of information about the trip. She informed us fully about all the ups, downs, and all arounds! She even prepared a number of packages for us to review -- even after we made changes to the areas we wanted to explore. Friendly, helpful, professional, and extremely knowledgeable -- these words describe Franny, and what a wonderful trip she prepared! We couldn't have asked for better service than Franny of Adventure Life. We HIGHLY recommend her and her outstanding company! Bon Voyage!
Prima Burke
2 days ago
The staff at Adventure Life made planning my family's trip to the Galapagos Islands as easy as possible. They listened to what we were hoping to experience and made thoughtful suggestions about how to accomplish our vacation goals while meeting the needs of travelers ages 17-76! They patiently answered questions and follow up questions in the months leading up to the trip. They helped us trouble shoot and customize the trip in every way possible. The logistics involved in traveling from Boston to the Galapagos are innumerable. The Adventure Life staff helped us arrange every detail and the team they assembled in the Galapagos was tremendous. I have never done a trip this big before and after working with Adventure Life this time--would not hesitate one second in working with them again.
Jennifer Howard Schroeder
3 days ago
Kevin got right on our request and had us booked within the week