One of the poorest tourist destinations on Earth | Lake Dongrisa

Following the concept of budget travel, my friend and I, who dislike group tours, chose to travel independently to Tonle Sap Lake in Siem Reap, Cambodia. After completing the trip, I would like to share some tips and experiences. ⬇️Transportation: 🚘Departure: Took a TukTuk on Grab from a hotel in Siem Reap city, almost instantly accepted, 💰15800 Riel (US$3.86) 🏁Destination location: Chong Khneas ferry 🚘Return trip: According to our tuk-tuk driver, it's impossible to get a car near the lake. She can wait here for us to finish our visit and take us back for 💰8 USD, which can be negotiated down to 💰7 USD (we agreed immediately, so there should still be room for negotiation)... ❗️Hidden fees: 1️⃣The boat will first stop near the water forest, and ask if you want to take a small boat to the forest to watch the sunset (there seems to be props like flower wreaths on the boat), and the price is 💰20 per person... It's just outrageous 2️⃣After we refused the canoe, they took us to see 🐊crocodiles. After taking photos of us on the high platform of the boat for 5 minutes, the guide took us to see another small boat with a nicer color and talked about something (maybe about donating the money to some organization). They asked for 💰20 per person, but I didn't ask where we were going... Anyway, I refused a bit unhappily, and then the guide took us back to their own boat and continued to sail towards the sunset. 3️⃣️Tip: 😓My friend gave 2000 rupees (0.5 USD) to the guide and boatman on the boat, but they disdainfully counted it and told my boyfriend it was too little hhhhh (if you think it's too little, give it back to me 😅). Maybe because there were only two of us on the boat, they could receive more tips if there were more people... 🛖Lake attractions: water houses, crocodile breeding, sunset ⏰Our playtime is from 16:30-18:30 (sunset time: 18:00). To be honest, it feels like sitting on a boat 40 minutes or 1 hour before sunset on the same day is enough without extra expenses. I have to say, the sunset 🌅 here is really amazing!! You can see the whole sun being gradually submerged! 🚢Charter boat: 💰28 USD/boat [limited to 1-5 people], didn't notice if there are bigger ones...so it's better to come in a group of 4-5 people. ⚠️Safety: Overall it's fine, we didn't encounter any begging children, and there were quite a few tourist groups coming and going during sunset. None of us wore life jackets on the boat, um...everyone can make their own judgment on this.