๐ฐ๐ญ Phnom Penh ยท Getting around
Transport and the shape of the city in Phnom Penh
A compact city with no mass transit, where a tuk-tuk hailed in an app is the default and distances are short.
The thing people get wrongPhnom Penh has no metro and no meaningful public transport, but it is small and flat. The app-hailed tuk-tuk is the real transport system, and it works well enough that most residents never own a vehicle.
Indicative figures
- Tuk-tuk, central journeyUS$1.50 โ US$3Fare shown in-app.
- Techo airport to BKK1~45 โ 75 minAbout 20 km; traffic-dependent.
- Motorbike rentalUS$50 โ US$120/month
Checked . Ranges, not quotes โ your Insider confirms the current numbers in Phnom Penh before you commit to anything.
Tuk-tuks and ride-hailing
PassApp and Grab hail both the modern rickshaw-style tuk-tuks and cars, with the fare shown up front, which removes the negotiation entirely. Journeys across the central districts are a couple of dollars and take minutes. This is the default way almost everyone moves around, residents and visitors alike.
- PassApp and Grab for tuk-tuks and cars, with in-app fares.
- Central journeys cost a couple of dollars.
- Street tuk-tuks still negotiate; the apps are simpler and cheaper.
Motorbikes and driving
Motorbikes are cheap to rent or buy and are how a lot of residents get around, with the obvious safety caveat: road traffic injury is the most significant practical risk to foreign residents here. Helmets are required and worth wearing regardless of enforcement. Cars are affordable but parking in the central districts is tight and the traffic is dense.
- Helmets are legally required and genuinely important.
- An international permit covers a short period; a Cambodian licence is obtainable.
- Traffic is dense and rules are applied loosely โ ride defensively.
Buses and getting out of the city
A city bus network run by the Phnom Penh City Bus Authority is very cheap but little used by foreign residents, with one useful exception: its airport express service to Techo International Airport. For travel beyond the capital, coaches and minibuses serve Siem Reap, Kampot and the provinces, and the Phnom PenhโSihanoukville expressway has cut the run to the coast to around two and a half hours. Domestic flights to Siem Reap take under an hour.
- City buses run but are not the practical option for most daily trips.
- Coaches cover the country cheaply; book through the operators or an aggregator.
- Overland crossings to Thailand were disrupted by the 2025 border conflict; check before planning a trip by road.
The new airport
Techo International Airport, about 20 km south of the city, took over all commercial flights from the old Phnom Penh International Airport in September 2025. The journey to BKK1 is longer than it used to be: allow 45 to 75 minutes by car, more in rain or at peak. The airport express bus runs daily from 5.30am to 11.30pm, and Grab and PassApp cars serve the terminal.
- Book an app car or use the airport express bus rather than a street taxi.
- Leave for an evening flight well before the rush hour starts.
- A rail link to the city has been discussed but is not built.
Walking and the seasons
The central districts are walkable in scale but not always in surface: pavements are often occupied by parked motorbikes and street stalls. The rainy season, roughly May to October, brings heavy afternoon downpours and localised flooding that clears quickly. Heat is constant year-round.
- Distances are short; surfaces are uneven and pavements often blocked.
- Rainy season roughly May to October, with brief heavy downpours.
- Heat and humidity are year-round; plan for air conditioning.