Giant Ibis night bus at a glance…
- Price: $15
- Schedule: 11 p.m. and 11:30 p.m.
- Time: 6 to 7 hours
- Buy tickets online
Over the years, I’ve taken more Giant Ibis night bus journeys than I care to admit. When I first moved to Cambodia, I vowed I would never take a night bus in Cambodia. Since then, I’ve made an exception for Giant Ibis because of their safety record and precautions. I’m now a regular on the Giant Ibis night bus from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh. In this post, I’ll share some details about the company and the trip from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap (and vice-versa).
The Giant Ibis night bus looks great in the morning, too.
Night buses in Cambodia are notoriously unsafe. Giant Ibis, on the other hand, makes safety a priority. Their buses go slowly, with a maximum speed of 60km (37 miles) per hour. They enforce this by transmitting the speed via GPS to the Giant Ibis office so that management knows if a driver breaks the rules and go faster. Going slowly is not only safer, but allows for a better night’s sleep, because even at at these speeds the bus usually arrives in six or seven hours. Another safety precaution Giant Ibis takes is to always have two drivers on each bus, and they switch half-way through the journey. If one driver feels fatigued he can switch out and take a nap.
In addition to offering a safe ride, each seat is equipped with a power socket that accept standard American, Euro, and UK plugs, and most of them usually work. The bus has WiFi (password: giantibis) that is provided by 3G. This means the connection works as long as there’s 3G coverage, which is for true for about 60% of the journey. Be aware that they do turn out the lights soon after the journey begins, so if you do want to read you will need to bring your own lighting.
The buses are air-conditioned and have a toilet on board. Overly cautious types such as myself bring a sweater for the former and tissues for the latter. Passengers are all given a bottle of water, and each bed comes with a pillow and blanket. When you board the bus you’ll be given a bag to keep your shoes in, so as not to get the beds dirty.
The 11 p.m. Giant Ibis night bus has lie-flat beds.
There are two Giant Ibis night buses going each way between between Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, with slightly different seat configurations. The 11 p.m. Giant Ibis night buses have 32 beds, with 15 on the bottom bunk and 17 on the top. The beds do not fully lie flat, but offer a 45 degree angle that’s pretty decent, and some taller people seem to find the angled seat more comfortable than the lie-flat ones. Seat 6-F is right next to the toilet, and as such, is probably the least optimal seat on the bus. Each bed has a cubby at the bottom to keep your shoes (and feet) in.
The 11 p.m. Giant Ibis night bus seating chart.
The 11:30 p.m. bus has 30 lie-flat seats, with 14 on the bottom and 16 on the top. The only downside of this is because there are two fewer seats, there isn’t always a bed for the driver who may end up sleeping next to you in the aisle. On these buses, there are eight single beds and 11 seats of double beds.
The seating plan for the 11:30 p.m. Giant Ibis night bus.
The buses do not have two levels, rather, the seats are designed like bunk beds with one on the top and one on the bottom. All of the Giant Ibis night buses are arranged with one row of two beds next to each other, and a row of single bunks with an aisle in the middle. If you are traveling alone, try to get one of the single beds. I have traveled alone on the Giant Ibis night bus many times and have never felt unsafe as a solo woman, but again, be sure to get a solo bed (if you buy a ticket online, you can make an advance seat reservation).
Off to dreamland on the Giant Ibis night bus beds. This is the interior of the 11 p.m. bus.
The night bus buses are not new, but they are fully refurbished. As on all buses, the toilets are not the nicest in the world (if you are a larger person you’ll have a hard time squeezing in) but at least these ones are usually clean. The road between Phnom Penh and Siem Reap is still bumpy — although better than a year ago — and if you aren’t a sound sleeper, it can be a challenge to get a good night’s sleep. Luckily, that challenge is usually alleviated for me by bringing an eye mask, ear plugs, and a sleeping pill.
I travel between Phnom Penh and Siem Reap regularly, and the trip can be excruciatingly long. Because I save so much time by sleeping through the journey, I’ve become a regular on the Giant Ibis night bus. Despite being pretty highly strung about road safety in Cambodia, overall, I think the Giant Ibis night bus is a safe way to get across the country (here are the other options for this route).
In Phnom Penh, the buses boards on time at the Giant Ibis office on Street 106 across from Phnom Penh’s night market. For the daily night bus to Siem Reap they do not offer hotel pick up, but the office is centrally located and walking distance from the riverside. Once you arrive in Siem Reap the bus drops off at the more centrally located Giant Ibis ticket office near Old Market (rather than the Giant Ibis bus station).
In Siem Reap, the night bus leaves from the Giant Ibis ticket office near the Old Market. If you’re arriving in Phnom Penh, the bus drops off at the Giant Ibis office on Street 106 in Phnom Penh. You can find maps for both stations at the end of this post.
Giant Ibis night bus schedule:
Phnom Penh – Siem Reap: 11 p.m., 11:30 p.m.
Siem Reap – Phnom Penh: 11 p.m., 11:30 p.m.
Tickets on the Giant Ibis Phnom Penh to Siem Reap route cost $15, and prices are the same for locals and foreigners. You can buy tickets online and choose your seats in advance.
Hi Lina
Thank you for the very comprehensive blog. Me and my gal friend are travelling to PP this coming weekend, we wanted to do the night bus on Saturday night to SR. Is the road really that bad that it is not safe anymore to take the night bus? Or we should take the morning flight on Sunday to SR? We are most concern about the safety. Thank you.
The road is still in the same state as it was previously. It can be bumpy, but it’s not unsafe as the Giant Ibis drivers go very slowly. The bus is cheaper, but the flight will be more comfortable.
May seam like silly questions, but once arriving to Siem Reap (which would be about 6 am), if you do not have a booked hotel, what sort of options do you have?
Are there any tuk tuks available at this time? any other busses to take you into the center? how about places for breakfast?
I hope you are able to answer some of these questions.
Thanks!
(P.s. also do you know any thing you can do in the city to kill time before a midday flight?) Thank you!
Yes, there will be tuk tuks available and some restaurants will be open. The Khmer restaurants on Sivatha open very early and I’ve gone there after arriving on Giant Ibis, and a surprising number of restaurants and shops open at 7:30. If you have a midday flight, you won’t actually have a huge amount of time in the city. You could check out the museum, they open at 8:30 a.m.
Hi Lina, thank you for very helpful thread. My husband and I are going to Siem Reap in April. We have intend to take a night bus from Phnom Penh as well. I heard about the Hotel bus which is quite comfortable for sleeping. Have you tried this kind of bus? Compared to Gian Ibis, which one should we choose?
There’s no company called hotel bus, it’s just a general term. As far as I know, you’re probably talking about the Virak Buntham night bus. Google the company name and you’ll see how many accidents they are in. They just had a night bus crash a week or two ago. So I wouldn’t recommend it.
May I ask if it is better to choose top bunk or bottom bunk?
Thanks Lina for posting your review of Giant Ibis. I read the reviews by the other passengers. Some good, some bad. Anyway, is it better to get the TOP BUNK or BOTTOM BUNK? In your page, you have a drawing of these seats but no actual picture. So, are there 2 levels inside the bus? Pls. advise.
There’s no real difference, but the top bunks are usually a bit cooler and the lower bunks are a bit warmer.
thank you for clarifying. are they on two different levels… top bunk is on top of the bottom bunk?
Yes, there is a top level and a bottom level, fashioned like bunk beds.
Hi Lina, it’s very nice posting and so helpful!! Thank u so much. Would u mind to answer some of my questions?
1. I’ll be in SR in May 2015, is it high season or low season?
2. Can I book the ticket on the spot?especially when it’s high season?
Thank u so much :)
Low season. I’d book a day in advance if possible.
Hi!
How is the safety on the night bus? Are there any seat belts in the beds?
KR, Jocke
There are seatbelts on the 11 p.m. bus and not on the 10:30 p.m. bus.
Very disgusting!!!! I regret I didn’t take hotel bus which is 10-11 usd instead of taking this fucking giant ibis who stops 2 hours in the way so the driver can sleep! I can’t imagine that!!! Plus the smell of the toilet ! My gosh! very miserable! !!!
If you’d taken the hotel bus, I suspect you’d have even more to complain about, Alexa.
Just have a question to ask cos I am the type who gets up at night to go to the toilet. Does the night bus still stop for toilet breaks like the day bus?
The night bus has a toilet on board.
I arrived this morning on the giant ibis night bus from siem reap to Phnom Penh and everything about the service was far below expectation. False advertisement, and not worth the price compared to other bus/minibus services. Perhaps day bus is a better deal/service than night bus. Firstly they dont have hotel pickup for nightbus which we werent told until after we paid for our tickets.The seats were actually bunk beds which was great for sleeping, but since the bus was full my boyfriend and i took two single beds on the bottom row which is floor level and the extra bus crew slept in the narrow hallway snoring and elbowing my boyfriend all night. I even took a picture of the bus guy with his arm fully draping into my boyfriends bunk. No Working WiFi or electrical plugs which seemed an ongoing problem because crew was unsurprised and dismissive of this. No snacks or coffee as advertised, no stops where passengers were allowed off the bus- which meant I had to climb over the two crew members sleeping in the hallway to get to the bathroom at the back of the bus which smelled horrible, was covered in piss and had no toilet paper. Also the aircon was freezing cold and two seperate times other passengers climbed over the crew sleeping in the isle to ask the driver to turn down the aircon. When we arrived to Phnom Penh before sunrise at 5:30am, the lights were turned on and passengers told to get off in a disorienting abruptness while a horde of tuk tuk drivers helped to unload luggage into a pile. The baggage claim tickets were of no use as no one was checking where bags went. To avoid the complete cluster we excavated our bags from the pile ourselves and quickly walked away, followed by a trail of persistent tuk tuk drivers. Once at a safe distance we found a place to sit and collect our wits while we looked at a map. I am a rugged budget backpacker and have ridden multi day 3rd class trains void of comfort or luxury, but the price paid usually fits expectation. After paying for a supposedly superior service through Giant Ibis, i was completely disappointed (as were many others on the bus as well) surprised by how commonly referenced this company is for travel in Cambodia.
Wow! I am totally taken back with your experience 29. Was going to take the night bus but seriously?
Hope you complained to the company …