It was a tough journey from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap by bus with bumpy roads, Mosquitos and smokey air with people burning rubbish. So on the way back from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh we decided to fly and opted for a cheap flight with Lanmei Airlines. In todays Lanmei Airlines review I talk about why its worth booking a flight from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh or vice versa.
We paid just £25 each to fly from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh and that was booking just one week in advance. It’s just over double the price of Mekong Express, but saves time which is well worth the extra money in itself.
Lanmei Airlines is a low cost airlines based in Cambodia.
Taking an internal fight out of Siem Reap seemed to avoid any rip off cons at the airport. We heard stories of international tourists being charged an extra ‘tax’ to leave – this didn’t happen to us when flying to Phnom Penh.
We checked in around two hours before the flight and were the first people to do so (our flight was very early and so we arrived at the airport at 6am!). We didn’t need to print out the booking – and were able to check in online beforehand. When checking in bags, showing my mobile booking and the passports was fine. Other people were checking in up to 1 hour before the flight. Boarding was quite fast and we weren’t standing in queues for too long.
We were allowed to check in one bag (up to 25kg) and take one carry on baggage. No one checked the size of our hand luggage at any point, but they were just small daypacks.
In Siem Reap airport, the departures lounge was small and sparsely serviced, but there was a cafe to get food and drinks plus a couple of shops.
Lanmei Airlines staff were very welcoming on the aircraft and spoke English and Khmer (Cambodian). The leg room was quite decent for a budget airline although if you are exceptionally tall you may want to ask for an aisle seat in advance or pay extra for leg room when booking (you can pay more for the front few rows).
Ok, there’s no on board entertainment and nowhere to charge your phone. There wasn’t time for meals and the cost of drinks was not included. Have some spare change (expect to pay double what you would normally pay in Cambodia on these flights) ready for a drink.
The take off and landing with Lanmei Airlines was smooth and our plane ran on time. All in all, the money was worth it for the swift and comfortable journey. Much better than my journey by bus from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap. Despite the lack of entertainment and uncomfortable seats with little legroom, I’d argue that the time saved compared to travelling by bus combined with the horrendous roads and chance of bus breakdowns make it worth travelling on this low budget airline.