Mountain Biking Eco-Tourism in Cambodia

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Mountain Biking Eco-Tourism to Save Cambodia's Wildlife

In a remote village nestled in the foothills of Cambodia’s Cardamom Mountains former illegal loggers and endangered wildlife poachers are turning to mountain biking to provide a more sustainable income.

Established with the assistance of Wildlife Alliance (formerly Wild Aid), an NGO working to protect the areas endangered wildlife, and in partnership with Asia Adventures, a Cambodian based adventure tour company, the villagers of Chi Pat have set up a community based ecotourism project featuring Cambodia’s first off-road mountain bike tours into one of the regions most important, and little explored, wilderness areas.

Being based in Chi Pat, accessible by a 2 hour boat ride through mangrove forests, intrepid mountain bikers leave the dusty dirt roads of the village and are soon spinning along old logging routes, a mix of double track and single track undulating trails that the surrounding vegetation is reclaiming, splashing through streams and wading across shallow rivers. The trails pass through a mix of open meadow, bamboo thickets, pristine lowland rainforest, and offer fine views over the surrounding forested hills. Welcoming waterfalls are great resting places where a refreshing dip can be taken. Other sights include the mystical ancient burial jars hidden in cliff side crevices, bat caves, a rich birdlife, and the possibility of glimpsing wildlife such as elephants.

As Mark Ellison, the Managing Director of Asia Adventures explains, “For mountain biking the remote and unexplored Cardamom Mountains are a huge untapped resource, and if people coming here to mountain bike helps protect this beautiful environment by offering poor loggers and poachers alternative employment such as guides, cooks, mechanics etc. that is excellent, a win, win, win for all!”

Asia Adventures Co. Ltd. is a Cambodian registered and licensed tour operator which focuses on adventure tours and has a very strong responsible tourism ethic, using tourism as a tool for poverty alleviation where possible.

For more information on Chi Pat and the mountain bike tours please visit here and here.

Enjoy!

Cambodia's Third PGA Rated Golf Course Opens

Siem Reap, the home of Cambodia’s magnificent Angkor Wat temples, continues its bid to become South East Asia’s newest golf holiday destination, with the opening of its third PGA rated 18 hole golf course. Yesterday Hun Sen, Cambodia’s Prime Minister and avid golfer, took the inaugural tee-off shot and announced the Siem Reap Lake Golf Resort officially open.

Toul Sleng Genocide Museum (S-21) Tour

Toul Sleng Genocide Museum, The former security office 21, in "Democratic Kampuchea" was directed by Pol Pot (Salut Sor), in April 17, 1975. Office 21 was entitled S-21 and designed for detention, interrogation, inhumane torture, and prisoners where killed after they had fulfilled the confession documents.

The Bonn Om Touk Festival

The Bonn Om Touk Festival (spelled differently in various parts of the country) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, is a must for anyone interested in seeing a unique natural phenomenon--a reversing river. Every November, the flow between the Tonle Sap River and the Mekong River reverses direction. Cambodians celebrate this with three days of celebration and boat racing.

A University Degree While Traveling the World

A new breed of student is emerging. Aware that some of the best experiences in life come though living it, and thinking outside the box enough to earn a degree while traveling the world, often at a fraction of the cost. Sound impossible? Many of these new age students are realizing that the normal trend in education just isn't cut out for them, and after getting the facts on how to make other educational options work for them, they set off traveling the world while earning their degree.

Medical Tourism, Hospitals in Bangkok Thailand

With healthcare costs rising, Thailand is evolving into a prime destination for first-class, affordable treatment.

Tourist Visa Information for SE Asia

Before you jump on that plane to Vietnam, make sure you meet their visa requirements!

Hua Hin Jazz Festival

2009 marks the 8th annual Hua Hin Jazz Festival. Every year, jazz enthusiasts travel to the coast of Thailand to Hua Hin to enjoy jazz by the beach.

Tai Chi in Lumpini Park

Limpini Park, in the center of Bangkok Thailand, is the home to many active sports. The park is located a short walk from the Sala Daeng BTS station, and is also very near the Silom subway station. Located at the intersection of Rama IV and Ratchadamri roads, it encompasses an area of 140 acres, and offers visitors a great escape from the city in addition to offering a variety of physical fitness such as: Tai Chi, aerobics, weight lifting, yoga and jogging just to name a few.

The Khmer Music Scene

If you like musical acts such as Dashboard Confessional and the Pussycat Dolls—even any form of bluegrass— you would enjoy the music scene in Cambodia. The music in Cambodia has many similarities to the music scenes of other countries: there are many different styles, music is sold and distributed at live shows, it is used for religious ceremonies, and fans follow popular acts. You can even find videos and tour dates for popular Cambodian music acts such as the alternative rock band Coconut and the pop/hip-hop singer Tata Young from You Tube and their Myspace pages.

A Khmer Wedding

Khmer weddings all have a general list of ceremonies that are performed to join a man and woman into marriage— each one believed to be related to a mythical story. Like American weddings where many decisions are based on social status and financial situation, the length of a Khmer wedding is also dependent on these things. It can last from one morning to three days to an entire week.

Cambodian Travel Tour Groups

Traveling to a foreign country can be stressful, and you can miss a lot if you don’t do a little planning ahead of time. Traveling groups/guides offer services and special booking rates to make sure that you get the most out of every trip and every country.

Heads up! Submit a free inquiry for interesting holiday ideas!

I would like to thank you and your company very much for its excellent organisation of our visit to Siem Reap earlier this month. We greatly enjoyed the visit and found it most interesting. We were well looked after from the moment we arrived to the moment we left. In particular we would like to thank Mr Sophoam, our guide. He was extremely friendly, polite and knowledgeable about his country, its history and the temples we visited. I shall be pleased to recommend your company to others visiting Cambodia and beyond.

Ian Gillis
Cambodia - May 2009

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