Do you consider Cambodia more dangerous in general than Thailand?

[yellowboat]

Yes, genocide takes decades to recover from, but from my living in Snooky and Siem Reap for over a year, never had a problem.  The capital is far more aggressive, and you need to be careful with your belongings while there. 

 

Saw western  woman get her bag snatched from thugs on a motor bike, and she was dragged a few feet, but saw the same thing happen in Ratchada in Bangkok. 

 

Over all, I really like the Khmers. 

[phkauf]

I've been to a number of places in Cambodia and never had a problem, but then I lived in NYC for 25 years so I am aware of my surroundings and don't display wealth. The Khmers are great people for the most part.

Aside from what others have mentioned is a warning that you need to also be careful of getting involved with those 'in Power". Many of the elite and their children have bodyguards, carry guns and are not afraid to use them. If you think the Elite in Thailand have immunity from the law, it's nothing compared with Cambodia. I have heard storied that just talking with the wrong girl in a bar could get you into serious trouble (jealous boyfriend). It's very much the wild west at times.

But a great country, nonetheless.

[emptypockets]

On 3/3/2019 at 6:28 PM, BritManToo said:

I've found Thailand/Cambodia/Vietnam/Philippines all the same for safety/security.

Sickening touts at the land borders, elsewhere no problems.

I've wandered around falling down drunk late at night in all these places, nobody has every been anything but polite and helpful.

Another quality tourist. 

[freebyrd]

On 3/3/2019 at 6:17 PM, hello55060 said:

My first day I ever set foot in Cambodia which was 2013 I had my brand new at the time iphone 5 stolen from my hands in Phnom Penh whilst using google maps trying to navigate around, the thieves snatched it from my hands on a motorcycle, they came up the pavement and drove off. £600 odd gone in a blink of an eye. I was a newbie to Asia so wasn't on guard to stuff like this happening

 

My 2nd trip a year or so later I was in a tuk tuk from airport to my hotel and had some thieves try to steal my laptop bag out of the tuk tuk but luckily i was able to kick them away.

 

Seems like it's a very common thing in Phnom Penh and Cambodia in general.

 

Poorer people are more desperate, I've only stayed in Bangkok but everyone has there phones out all the time and no fear of getting stolen. Obviously, there are poor people in Thailland too but in Bangkok they are priced out so it doesn't attract the lower class so much except the bar girls in pattaya and nana/soi cowboy.

 

Obviously, crime exists in Thailand but I've never witnessed or seen any or had bad experience in greater Bangkok when I've been there which is about 1 year in total over the course of many years.

 

I stayed in Cambodia for about 1 week on 2 occasions and had 2 incidents happen.

 

Some may say it's bad luck, but only Cambodian expats will disagree that it's more dangerous than Thailand

Indeed, one man's meat....

 

Someone tried to mug me when I lived in BKK, never happened here in Phnom Penh. Anyone with half a brain should know to be careful wherever you are. I've lived in Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines and Cambodia and this sort of thing happens anywhere, probably in my own country as well. My wife is Khmer asked me why foreigners are so careless standing on corners engrossed in their Smartphones, which are seemingly smarter than they are. Free maps are available everywhere in Phnom Penh, so why not 'go retro' and put your brain to good use?

[madmen]

PP is a lawless society and had had 2 good friends mugged there, one a female. I can walk the back sois of BKK without problems. Try doing that in PP . Best of luck it will be needed in bucket loads

[thecyclist]

Lived in Thailand for over 2 decades, 1and a half years in Vietnam, and a combined total of over a year in both Cambodia and Philippines, cycling all over these countries, and contrary to most posts here, I would say Thailand is the most dangerous for 2 reasons :the absolutely insane way Thais drive (I know it's bad in the rest of Asean too, but Thailand leads by a long shot in road fatalities). Secondly racism and farang baiting is off the charts in Siam:I have been, verbally and physically, attacked so many times for no other reason than being a farang, compared to not once in the other 4 countries. 

[myshem]

On 3/3/2019 at 6:17 PM, hello55060 said:

My first day I ever set foot in Cambodia which was 2013 I had my brand new at the time iphone 5 stolen from my hands in Phnom Penh whilst using google maps trying to navigate around, the thieves snatched it from my hands on a motorcycle, they came up the pavement and drove off. £600 odd gone in a blink of an eye. I was a newbie to Asia so wasn't on guard to stuff like this happening

 

My 2nd trip a year or so later I was in a tuk tuk from airport to my hotel and had some thieves try to steal my laptop bag out of the tuk tuk but luckily i was able to kick them away.

 

Seems like it's a very common thing in Phnom Penh and Cambodia in general.

 

Poorer people are more desperate, I've only stayed in Bangkok but everyone has there phones out all the time and no fear of getting stolen. Obviously, there are poor people in Thailland too but in Bangkok they are priced out so it doesn't attract the lower class so much except the bar girls in pattaya and nana/soi cowboy.

 

Obviously, crime exists in Thailand but I've never witnessed or seen any or had bad experience in greater Bangkok when I've been there which is about 1 year in total over the course of many years.

 

I stayed in Cambodia for about 1 week on 2 occasions and had 2 incidents happen.

 

Some may say it's bad luck, but only Cambodian expats will disagree that it's more dangerous than Thailand

 

There are 3 stupid reasons to be stolen in Cambodia, and you already faced 2.

Next time get drunk and come back home late at night super drunk, they you will have experienced all.

 

Apart from this, smart people are not stolen anytime in Cambodia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[A1Str8]

No.

[roo860]

Perfect timing.

You've seen the movie.

Sent from my SM-G920F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Sheryl]

32 minutes ago, myshem said:

Apart from this, smart people are not stolen anytime in Cambodia.

 

 

 

Then pretty much every Cambodia must be stupid,. as it is hard to find one who has not been a victim of theft one time or another. Most many times.

 

I don't agree with you.

 

Precautions definitely help but it is not the case that 100% of thefts are due to being "stupid".

[RoadWarrior371]

10 hours ago, madmen said:

PP is a lawless society and had had 2 good friends mugged there, one a female. I can walk the back sois of BKK without problems. Try doing that in PP . Best of luck it will be needed in bucket loads

Sounds like Paradise.  Sign me up.... 

[Captain 776]

But look at the bright side........IMHO based on my 6 visits doing “research”. I find Khmer ladies much more attractive than our other favorite countries..........I am very fortunate, never lost a thing there but like I said earlier, we had a very good driver......body guard

[madmen]

52 minutes ago, myshem said:

 

There are 3 stupid reasons to be stolen in Cambodia, and you already faced 2.

Next time get drunk and come back home late at night super drunk, they you will have experienced all.

 

Apart from this, smart people are not stolen anytime in Cambodia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A victim blaming Cambodian apologist  ????

[ta158]

wow people really think of cambodia as a lawless shith*le, like every crime against tourists/expats in thailand is published on english news, 2-3 weeks ago a american got stabbed to death in udon and of course nothing in english news and before that a thai lady tried to attack a tourist/expat with a knife, he escaped unharmed nothing in english news, ive yet to have heard about tourists getting hit by stray bullets in Phnom penh, or a drunk off duty cop shooting a tourist dead, of course crime occurs in both countries but it is hard to prove which one is more dangerous because crime statistics is not available or not reliable. since 2014  crime in thailand went down hard.

[freebyrd]

14 hours ago, Sheryl said:

 

Then pretty much every Cambodia must be stupid,. as it is hard to find one who has not been a victim of theft one time or another. Most many times.

 

I don't agree with you.

 

Precautions definitely help but it is not the case that 100% of thefts are due to being "stupid".

Here in PP I have 24 staff in my company and my Khmer wife that have never had anything stolen from them. You are over generalising Sheryl.

[phycokiller]

On 3/14/2019 at 11:00 AM, freebyrd said:

Here in PP I have 24 staff in my company and my Khmer wife that have never had anything stolen from them. You are over generalising Sheryl.

I think it depends. I think the middle class are pretty normal and have jobs, the bottom class tend to steal off each other and arent interested in working

[thecyclist]

On 3/13/2019 at 9:13 PM, ta158 said:

wow people really think of cambodia as a lawless shith*le, like every crime against tourists/expats in thailand is published on english news, 2-3 weeks ago a american got stabbed to death in udon and of course nothing in english news and before that a thai lady tried to attack a tourist/expat with a knife, he escaped unharmed nothing in english news, ive yet to have heard about tourists getting hit by stray bullets in Phnom penh, or a drunk off duty cop shooting a tourist dead, of course crime occurs in both countries but it is hard to prove which one is more dangerous because crime statistics is not available or not reliable. since 2014  crime in thailand went down hard.

You are spot on :Cambodia 20 years ago was more dangerous than Thailand, but nowadays I feel safer in Cambodia. 

[Tomtomtom69]

On 3/13/2019 at 4:14 PM, thecyclist said:

Lived in Thailand for over 2 decades, 1and a half years in Vietnam, and a combined total of over a year in both Cambodia and Philippines, cycling all over these countries, and contrary to most posts here, I would say Thailand is the most dangerous for 2 reasons :the absolutely insane way Thais drive (I know it's bad in the rest of Asean too, but Thailand leads by a long shot in road fatalities). Secondly racism and farang baiting is off the charts in Siam:I have been, verbally and physically, attacked so many times for no other reason than being a farang, compared to not once in the other 4 countries. 

I don't know about that. I've always been treated very well in Thailand. However, Sihanoukville is apparently fast becoming a no-go zone for "barang" meaning that many Chinese owned businesses don't welcome westerners. I have never heard of such a thing happening in Thailand.

[phuketrichard]

Quote

....I have never heard of such a thing happening in Thailand.

LOL
Pat Pong soi  3

if ur not Japanese you wont get in the doors  ????

Other than that Thailand welcomes all

[Tomtomtom69]

3 hours ago, phuketrichard said:

LOL
Pat Pong soi  3

if ur not Japanese you wont get in the doors  ????

Other than that Thailand welcomes all

Come to think of it, I've heard that too, but that's a very small number of places. Japanese influence in Asia is declining (due to Japan as a society and economy slowly dying), while Chinese influence is massively increasing. If it's true that ALL the Cambodian casinos in Sihanoukville are off-limits to non-Chinese, this means that the whole city has basically become a no go zone unless you're Chinese. The two or three small bars at Patpong 3 you describe are a blip on the radar. I basically forgot they even existed.

[Tomtomtom69]

On 3/17/2019 at 4:31 PM, thecyclist said:

You are spot on :Cambodia 20 years ago was more dangerous than Thailand, but nowadays I feel safer in Cambodia. 

Go to Sihanoukville and try to enter any Chinese owned business there (especially casinos). First expect stares, then maybe laughter then if you don't get out ASAP you'll quickly change your mind about your safety there as security guards chase you away.

 

Thailand is way safer than Cambodia in every respect. While I like Cambodia overall (except what has become of SHV) the whole country is basically one big wild west sort of place. If you mind your own business you should be OK most of the time, but petty crime and even looking at an elite in a PP nightclub the wrong way are all likely to get you into trouble far quicker than anything you'll encounter in Thailand. Even at the borders, the Cambodian police are uncouth, rude and extremely corrupt. If you try to (politely) bargain the price of the inflated visa cost down, they become aggressive and throw your passport back at you.

[thecyclist]

1 hour ago, Tomtomtom69 said:

Go to Sihanoukville and try to enter any Chinese owned business there (especially casinos). First expect stares, then maybe laughter then if you don't get out ASAP you'll quickly change your mind about your safety there as security guards chase you away.

 

Thailand is way safer than Cambodia in every respect. While I like Cambodia overall (except what has become of SHV) the whole country is basically one big wild west sort of place. If you mind your own business you should be OK most of the time, but petty crime and even looking at an elite in a PP nightclub the wrong way are all likely to get you into trouble far quicker than anything you'll encounter in Thailand. Even at the borders, the Cambodian police are uncouth, rude and extremely corrupt. If you try to (politely) bargain the price of the inflated visa cost down, they become aggressive and throw your passport back at you.

Don't go to Sihanoukville anymore, have never been to elite clubs. And you're absolutely right about the rudeness of land border immigration officers :a repulsive bunch, especially at Hat Lek,where I have never crossed without getting a visa beforehand. But at other crossings you don't bargain, you just give them 30$, if they demand 35$, show them your accumulated old visas and say this one 30$,and this one 30.....And if this doesn't work, and I had to make use of this method twive, get out your smartphone, and start recording the transaction :they're scared as hell of this. After issuing the visa, the old sob IO at the Pailin border does slam your passport on the counter and looks daggers at you.

Looking at big wigs, or their lovely offsprings, the wrong way does not only get you beaten, it can get you killed in Thailand :if you have been in Thailand long enough, you might remember the case of Chalerm Yubamrung 's adorable offsprings beating people up for looking their way in several Thonglor nightclubs, and eventually when this was getting old (and remained unpunished), shooting an uncover police officer to death. 

[brokenbone]

not an outright attempt to snatch,

but a waitress took my $50 bill and then came back

and informed me i had only given $5.

my 'friends' assured me it wasnt them so it had to be me,

and since i had already paid for a room there

i figured it would just cost me more if i refused

[roo860]

You'd paid for her 'snatch?'

not an outright attempt to snatch,
but a waitress took my $50 bill and then came back
and informed me i had only given $5.
my 'friends' assured me it wasnt them so it had to be me,
and since i had already paid for a room there
i figured it would just cost me more if i refused

Sent from my SM-G920F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[brokenbone]

1 minute ago, roo860 said:

You'd paid for her 'snatch?'

 

Sent from my SM-G920F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app
 

 

i didnt insist i already paid 50 cause i had already booked a room at the very same hotel,

strongly expecting a break-in with key

 

[phycokiller]

I find the cambodians more relaxed and easy going then the thias in general. some like scamming, usually its just a matter of having the right change on you to avoid that. Ive seen very little violence. Thailand I found that some were almost looking for offence

Edited March 31, 2019 by phycokiller

[Tomtomtom69]

12 minutes ago, phycokiller said:

I find the cambodians more relaxed and easy going then the thias in general. some like scamming, usually its just a matter of having the right change on you to avoid that. Ive seen very little violence. Thailand I found that some were almost looking for offence 

In Sihanoukville you now have to contend with possible violence from resident Chinese (or possibly Chinese tourists also) rather than locals. I read about a Brit who was severely beaten by Chinese construction workers there because he sported a pro-Taiwan tattoo and Chinese often get into fights with local Cambodians.

[Tomtomtom69]

On 3/29/2019 at 2:44 PM, thecyclist said:

Don't go to Sihanoukville anymore, have never been to elite clubs. And you're absolutely right about the rudeness of land border immigration officers :a repulsive bunch, especially at Hat Lek,where I have never crossed without getting a visa beforehand. But at other crossings you don't bargain, you just give them 30$, if they demand 35$, show them your accumulated old visas and say this one 30$,and this one 30.....And if this doesn't work, and I had to make use of this method twive, get out your smartphone, and start recording the transaction :they're scared as hell of this. After issuing the visa, the old sob IO at the Pailin border does slam your passport on the counter and looks daggers at you.

Looking at big wigs, or their lovely offsprings, the wrong way does not only get you beaten, it can get you killed in Thailand :if you have been in Thailand long enough, you might remember the case of Chalerm Yubamrung 's adorable offsprings beating people up for looking their way in several Thonglor nightclubs, and eventually when this was getting old (and remained unpunished), shooting an uncover police officer to death.  

Yes, it could, but I have heard more such stories happening in Cambodia than in Thailand.

I've been to plenty of Thonglor and RCA nightclubs (some years ago; nowadays I have a family to take care of so nightclubs aren't my thing anymore) and never ever had any issues. On the other hand, I've tried the same in Phnom Penh and was a little wary, but didn't have any problems either (then again, I've been to nightclubs in PP just a small handful of times, so can't really compare).

[Patriot1066]

On 3/6/2019 at 3:43 PM, phuketrichard said:

100% Less save and driving is 100% more dangerous

 

I want build a house on our land in Kep without windows as our house in Phuket is.

My Khmer gf say NO, its not safe in Cambodia an you need bars on the windows and doors

????

Sounds like London regular car jacking, robbery, knife crime, bug drug issues. Weak government though soft on crime nice to the ‘New Europeans’ committing much of the crime.

 

Give me Thailand Laos Cambodia Burma any day as at least it is legal to defend yourself unlike back home

[Captain 776]

On 3/29/2019 at 2:44 PM, thecyclist said:

Don't go to Sihanoukville anymore, have never been to elite clubs. And you're absolutely right about the rudeness of land border immigration officers :a repulsive bunch, especially at Hat Lek,where I have never crossed without getting a visa beforehand. But at other crossings you don't bargain, you just give them 30$, if they demand 35$, show them your accumulated old visas and say this one 30$,and this one 30.....And if this doesn't work, and I had to make use of this method twive, get out your smartphone, and start recording the transaction :they're scared as hell of this. After issuing the visa, the old sob IO at the Pailin border does slam your passport on the counter and looks daggers at you.

Looking at big wigs, or their lovely offsprings, the wrong way does not only get you beaten, it can get you killed in Thailand :if you have been in Thailand long enough, you might remember the case of Chalerm Yubamrung 's adorable offsprings beating people up for looking their way in several Thonglor nightclubs, and eventually when this was getting old (and remained unpunished), shooting an uncover police officer to death. 

One time entering Cambodia I gave him 1000 BHAT, HE handed me back my passport and gave me the......you all done look.......I asked about change......he smiled and ......you want change or u want Visa