Oudong Old Capital City & floating village cycle tour

I joined because I wanted to travel not only on the street but also to experience Cambodia more. Originally, it was a tour operated by two people, but if I contacted them in advance, they were able to carry out it alone. It is not a tour for everyone, as it runs nearly 40km (the last light climb) in scorching heat above 35°C, but I think it is a tour that is enjoyable for those who usually ride sports bikes such as on roads. This time, a young man named Setz guided us. It was a fulfilling tour where we got lotus fruit from an uncle who was working on a farm along the way, drank raw sugarcane juice and got to know the local people. You will be sweating, so please bring a T-shirt and towel to change into. I drank four 500ml bottles of water, all sweaty. It was a tour that made me happy with the hospitality of the staff. It's better to be able to communicate easily in English. He explains a lot.

I totally cocked up the booking of this tour, but Thong from Vana contacted me at my Hotel and sorted everything out with good English nothing was to much trouble. Piseth met me on time at the hotel with the bikes loaded on the tuk tuk and we set off, Piseth was cheerful and very informative about all things Cambodian, we stopped on the edge of the city to mount our Cannondale bikes, I'm an experienced cyclist so knew how to set my bike up but Piseth went though a full safety check on a back road before we set off. We toured along the side of the river through many small villages on dirt tracks and saw paddy and Lotus flower fields, we kept a steady pace and stopped regularly for water and photos and to speak about local culture, Thong was never far away in the support car if required. The ride which was around 25 miles finished at Oudong mountain which is where the pass kings have been buried, when we arrived Thong was waiting for us with fresh fruit and cold drinks, we then walked up the mountain to visit the Pagoda and Stupa's including the new one to the latest King, while walking up Piseth told me to keep my water bottle up my shirt as the monkeys would take it, I wasn't sure if this was a joke until we saw a monkey take a plastic bag full of food straight out of someone hand! When we got back we had an enjoyable lunch and a nap in a hammock. We then had the option to drive back to Phnom Penh or ride, although it was very I hot i really wanted to get as much riding in as possible so opted for the ride with Piseth, this time it was manly road but with plenty to see. We stopped on the edge of the city and loaded the bikes up for the drive back to the hotel, in total I clocked up around 43 miles. I'm really glad I did this tour because I learnt so much from the guys at Vana, a local company run by local guys! I would definitely use there services again.

Had a full day bike tour around the countryside. It's above our expectation. Mr Thong and Mr Iem are indeed wonderful guides. Sure to look for them if we're back to Phnom Penh for more adventures.

We had an amazing day with Vana Adventure Travels on this trip. Throng was really excellent from beginning to end with great communication beforehand and simply amazing knowledge of the area, the history of Cambodia, and anything else we were curious about. As a family of two teachers with two teenage children we were challenged in a great way both physically and intellectually. he also customized this trip for us so we could learn more about

We had a great day out cycling to Oudong Mountain along the river. Our guides were lovely and very knowledgeable. The local villagers were extremely friendly as we cycled through. Would definitely recommend!