CamDmc

17/03/2022

Cambodia Leads the Way to a Full Reopening in Southeast Asia

Cambodia is once again leading the way in the Southeast Asia tourism reopening. As of today, 17 March 2022, Cambodia has removed all COVID-19 testing requirements for travel. This means no more PCR test 72 hours prior to arrival and no more Rapid Antigen test on arrival.

Cambodia has also reinstated the visa-on-arrival, so there is no need to apply for the e-visa online or via a Cambodian Embassy.

This is huge news and should prove a game changer for Cambodia and the rest of the ASEAN region. Open is open and Cambodia remains the most visitor-friendly destination in the region. Well done to the 'small country with a big heart' for leading the way once again.

What are you waiting for? It's time to book your trip to Cambodia.


















https://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/cambodia-scraps-pcr-rapid-tests-fully-vaccinated-passengers

The Ministry of Health on March 17 announced that fully vaccinated inbound passengers will no longer be required to show a PCR test result proving they are negative for the coronavirus 72 hours prior to their arrival in Cambodia.

16/03/2022

Time for Cambodia to End all COVID-19 Testing for Travel

CAMDMC members believe it is time for Cambodia to remove all travel-related testing for visitors to Cambodia.

Cambodia led the way to a full reopening in Southeast Asia with the decision to blow the doors off quarantine on 15 November 2021.

Now we believe it is the right time for Cambodia to take the next step and remove all travel-related testing for visitors to Cambodia. We advocate the ending of the pre-departure PCR test before travel and the removal of the Rapid Antigen test on arrival. This adds too much risk or jeopardy to an expensive long-haul trip and needs to be removed with immediate effect. PCR testing is also very expensive for families with costs adding up to as much as US$1000 for a family of four to travel in and out of Cambodia.

Testing and quarantine served its purpose to keep Cambodia safe in the pandemic phase of COVID-19 before the time of vaccines and Omicron. The endemic nature of Omicron, which has swept through Cambodia in the past month or two, means the testing is really no longer necessary but simply an additional obstacle to the recovery of the travel industry in Cambodia.

We believe it is time for Cambodia to take the lead in Southeast Asia once more, as the country has done several times during the pandemic with the vaccination rollout and the full reopening to tourism.

The UK is scrapping the Passenger Locator Form and any form of testing on arrival this week, including the need to show proof of vaccination. For the sake of hundreds of thousands of jobs in the tourism industry in Cambodia, it is time to take the logical next steps towards endemic living with COVID-19 and remove all travel-related testing.




https://www.bbc.com/news/business-60741158

The transport secretary has confirmed that all remaining travel measures for UK arrivals will be scrapped.

07/11/2021

Cambodia expert and CAMDMC member, Nick Ray gives his feedback on the WTM Conference in London and says what needs to happen now for Cambodia to restart tourism. https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50963137/the-world-travel-market-points-to-a-global-tourism-recovery/

The global travel industry descended on the Excel Centre in London on Monday for the three-day World Travel Market (WTM), the first major international travel trade show to be held ‘live’ since the Covid-19 pandemic began.

22/10/2021

Cambodia Must Announce an End to all Quarantine from 1 Nov

For 18 months Cambodia has been focused on fighting the COVID-19 pandemic and keeping its citizens safe. Cambodia has managed an exemplary strategy during the pandemic, first keeping the health impact to a minimum during the Zero-Covid strategy of 2020 and then moving to rapidly vaccinate its population in 2021.
Cambodia is now in the Top 10 most vaccinated countries in the world and still rising in The Financial Times Vaccine Tracker chart. Phnom Penh has been widely quoted as the most vaccinated capital city in the world. Children aged 6-17 have mostly already been vaccinated and the 3rd dose booster campaign is already about halfway completed.
However, it is time to change direction and move from keeping tourists out to proactively welcoming them back. Every country in the whole world is shifting gear into marketing and promotion mode for their tourism industry and Cambodia urgently needs to do the same or the Kingdom will be left behind by its larger neighbours in the race to reopen. Countries like Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia have much bigger budgets for tourism promotion than countries like Cambodia and Laos, so Cambodia needs to be creative and nimble in its recovery strategy.
The World Travel Market (WTM) in London kicks off on 1 November and there will be no physical presence for the Cambodian tourism industry and no clear announcement on a full reopening date for tourist arrivals without quarantine. It is time to announce a clear date to coincide with the WTM on 1 November and finally generate some free headlines without even attending the show, as the world’s media and tourism professionals will be focused on the travel industry recovery in London.
It is time for Cambodia to fully remove quarantine, there is no more time for delay
10-Point Checklist to Kickstart the Tourism Industry in Cambodia
1, Announce a clear date for the removal of quarantine restrictions for fully vaccinated visitors
2, Allow visitors from all countries and recognise all vaccines, as Cambodia has pledged to do
3, Remove the requirement for deposits on arrival as visitors carry debit and credit cards
4, End the requirement for compulsory Forte Insurance if visitors are already fully insured
5, Lift the remaining country flight bans and urgently invite airlines to re-establish networks
6, Ensure the online e-visa is simplified to only require proof of vaccination
7, Require proof of only one negative PCR test 72 hours prior to arrival in Cambodia
8, Share the vaccine success story via a Press Release so visitors know Cambodia is safe
9, Allow visa-free access to Cambodia for 2022 to boost the tourism recovery
10, Promote an Angkor pass for life for guests that travel to Cambodia in 2022
There will be huge demand for travel this winter but there is no demand for quarantine. Travellers will choose their winter holidays in countries that they know are currently open without quarantine.

https://www.bangkokpost.com/learning/easy/2202423/thailand-welcomes-visitors-from-46-countries-from-nov-1

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha says Thailand will open the country to visitors from 46 countries, up from the 10 Covid-19 low-risk countries announced earlier, starting from Nov 1.

10/10/2021

Cambodia Voted the Friendliest Country in the World

Rough Guide readers and staff have voted Cambodia the 'friendliest country in the world'.

"Cambodia was by far the top answer in our poll, and a popular choice among staff members and Rough Guides Twitter followers alike."

Thanks to a vaccination rate that is already among the world's Top 20 and rising fast, CAMDMC members are looking forward to welcoming visitors back to Cambodia later this year.

https://www.roughguides.com/gallery/the-friendliest-countries-in-the-world-as-chosen-by-you/

Rough Guides asked its fans to name the world's friendliest countries. See the results gallery here, and find out which is the world's friendliest country.

25/09/2021

Congratulations Nepal for announcing its immediate reopening with simple guidelines. The country is set to welcome back tourists in time for the high season. We truly hope that Cambodia will announce something similar in the next week, with a clear and safe reopening plan that follows on from its hugely successful vaccination programme.

14/09/2021

ហេតុផល ១០ យ៉ាងដែលព្រះរាជាណាចក្រកម្ពុជាត្រូវតែប្រកាសក្នុងពេលនេះជាបន្ទាន់ អំពីការបើកទទួលភ្ញៀវទេសចរអន្តរជាតិ នៅត្រីមាសទី ៤

សូមចែករំលែកព័ត៌មាននេះ ប្រសិនបើអ្នកយកចិត្តទុកដាក់អំពីឧស្សាហកម្មទេសចរណ៍ និង បដិសណ្ឋារកិច្ចនៅកម្ពុជា។

១. ភាពជោគជ័យនៃយុទ្ធនាការចាក់វ៉ាក់សាំងនៅកម្ពុជា គួរតែត្រូវបានផ្សព្វផ្សាយពាសពេញពិភពលោក។
ការចាក់វ៉ាក់សាំងនៅកម្ពុជាគឺជាយុទ្ធនាការដ៏ល្អបំផុតមួយនៅអាស៊ី ហើយភ្នំពេញគឺជារាជធានីដែលបានចាក់វ៉ាក់សាំងឱ្យប្រជាជនរបស់ខ្លួនបានច្រើនជាងគេ នៅអាស៊ាន។ ព្រះរាជាណាចក្រកម្ពុជាកំពុងចាក់វ៉ាក់សាំងដល់ក្មេងអាយុចាប់ពី ១២ ដល់ ១៧ ឆ្នាំ និងកំពុងផ្តល់វ៉ាក់សាំងដូសទី​៣ (ដូសជម្រុញ) ដល់មនុស្សពេញវ័យ ក្នុងខណៈដែលប្រទេសជាច្រើនកំពុងស្ថិតនៅក្នុងដំណាក់កាលចាក់វ៉ាក់ដូសទី​ ១ នៅ ឡើយ។ យើងត្រូវតែផ្សព្វផ្សាយអំពីរឿងរ៉ាវល្អៗនៃ «ប្រទេសតូច បេះដូងធំ»​​ មួយនេះ។

២. ឥឡូវនេះ គឺជាឱកាសមួយដ៏ពិសេស ដើម្បីវិវត្តទៅមុខ ខណៈពេលដែល កម្ពុជានៅតែនាំមុខគេក្នុងដំណើរការចាក់វ៉ាក់សាំង
ជាមួយនឹងយុទ្ធនាការចាក់វ៉ាក់សាំងដ៏ល្អប្រសើរនេះ កម្ពុជាមានប្រៀបលើប្រទេសជិតខាង​ ដែលមានការយឺតយ៉ាវក្នុងដំណើរការចាក់វ៉ាក់សាំង។ ឱកាសអំណោយផលមួយនេះ មានរយៈពេលខ្លីតែប៉ុណ្ណោះ គឺជាឱកាសដែលយើងត្រូវចាប់យកឱ្យបាន​ មុនពេលដែលការចាក់វ៉ាក់សាំងក្នុងប្រទេសដទៃទៀត​ តាមទាន់យើង។ ប្រសិនបើកម្ពុជាសម្រេចអនុវត្តសកម្មភាពក្នុងពេលឥឡូវនេះ កម្ពុជាអាចក្លាយជាសមាជិកអាស៊ានដំបូងគេ ដែលប្រកាសបើកប្រទេសឡើងវិញទាំងស្រុង។

៣. កម្ពុជាអាចផ្លាស់ប្តូរខ្លួនទៅជាគោលដៅទេសចរណ៍មួយ ដែលមិនមែនត្រឹមតែជាគោលដៅបន្ទាប់បន្សំ ឬគោលដៅបន្ថែម
វិធីសាស្រ្តដ៏ក្លាហានក្នុងការប្រកាសបើកឡើងវិញនៅពេលនេះ នឹងធ្វើឱ្យប្រទេសកម្ពុជាអាចវិវត្តខ្លួនទៅជា «គោលដៅទេសចរណ៍មួយ» សម្រាប់ដំណើរកម្សាន្តរបស់ទេសចរអន្តរជាតិ និងលែងស្ថិតនៅត្រឹមតែជាគោលដៅបន្ថែមលើគោលដៅទេសចរណ៍នៃប្រទេសថៃ និងវៀតណាមទៀត។

៤. កម្ពុជាមានឱកាសពិសេសមួយ ក្នុងការបង្កើនទំនាក់ទំនងសាធារណៈ (PR) និងទីផ្សារក្នុងពិភពលោក ដោយឥតគិតថ្លៃ
ការប្រកាសពីការបើកប្រទេសទាំងមូលឡើងវិញក្នុងពេលនេះ​ នឹងធ្វើឱ្យប្រព័ន្ធផ្សព្វផ្សាយនានា នៅលើ​ពិភពលោក ចុះផ្សាយចំណងជើងធំៗដែលទាក់ទងនឹងការធ្វើដំណើរ​ ព្រមទាំងធ្វើឱ្យអ្នកដែលមានអាជីពនៅក្នុងវិស័យទេសចរណ៍ផ្លាស់ប្តូរ​ការយល់ឃើញចំពោះកម្ពុជា​ ហើយចាត់ទុកកម្ពុជាជាគោលដៅទេសចរណ៍មួយ។​ ព្រឹត្តិការណ៍នេះនឹងបានជាប្រយោជន៍ដ៏ធំក្នុងកិច្ចការទំនាក់ទំនងសាធារណៈ និងការស្វែងរកទីផ្សារលើឆាកអន្តរជាតិដោយឥតគិតថ្លៃ សម្រាប់ប្រទេសមួយ ដែលមានកញ្ចប់ថវិកាមានកំណត់​សម្រាប់ទ្រទ្រង់ការស្វែងរកទីផ្សារទេសចរណ៍។

៥. ហានិភ័យទាប តែផ្តល់ប្រយោជន៍ធំសម្រាប់ប្រទេសកម្ពុជា
យោងតាមលទ្ធផលនៃ «ប្រអប់ខ្សាច់ភូកេត»​ យើងមិនរំពឹងថា នឹងមានទេសចរចូលមកច្រើន ក្នុងដំណាក់កាលដំបូងនៃការបើកដំណើរការឡើងវិញនេះទេ គឺនឹងមានចំនួនតិចតែប៉ុណ្ណោះ ហើយទេសចរដែល​ចូលមកបាន ទាល់តែពួកគេបានចាក់វ៉ាក់សាំងពេញលេញរួច ហើយពួកគេត្រូវធ្វើតេស្តមុនពេលចេញដំណើរពីប្រទេសរបស់ខ្លួន និងពេលមកដល់ភ្លាម។ ​ដំណើរកម្សាន្តរបស់ពួកគេ នឹងត្រូវស្ថិតនៅក្រោមការគ្រប់គ្រងរបស់ភ្នាក់ងារទេសចរណ៍ ឬប្រតិបត្តិករទេសចរណ៍ដែលមានការទទួលស្គាល់។​

៦. ឧស្សាហកម្មទេសចរណ៍ត្រូវការភាពច្បាស់លាស់ ដើម្បីរៀបចំផែនការផ្សព្វផ្សាយការបើកដំណើរការឡើងវិញនៃព្រះរាជាណាចក្រកម្ពុជា
ក្រុមហ៊ុនអាកាសចរណ៍ត្រូវការបង្កើតបណ្តាញឡើងវិញ ប្រតិបត្តិករទេសចរណ៍មានបំណងផ្សព្វផ្សាយគោលដៅទេសចរណ៍នានា ហើយអ្នកទេសចរនឹងកក់យកដំណើរកម្សាន្តទៅតែប្រទេសណា ដែលពួកគេដឹងថា បើកដោយគ្មានតម្រូវឱ្យធ្វើចត្តាឡីស័ក។ ប្រតិបត្តិករទេសចរណ៍ក្នុងស្រុកត្រូវជ្រើសរើសបុគ្គលិកឡើងវិញ ហើយសណ្ឋាគារដែលបិទជាបណ្តោះអាសន្នត្រូវការជួសជុល និងជ្រើសរើសបុគ្គលិកឡើងវិញ។

៧. រដូវរងាជិតមកដល់ហើយ យើងត្រូវប្រញាប់ដាក់ប្រទេសកម្ពុជាជាជម្រើសគោលដៅទេសចរណ៍មួយនៅអាស៊ី ដែលស្ថិតនៅឆ្ងាយពីកន្លែងរស់នៅរបស់ទេសចរទាំងនោះ។
ការបើកដំណើរការឡើងវិញបានលឿន នឹងជួយឱ្យកម្ពុជាមានទីតាំងមួយនៅលើផែនទីទេសចរណ៍ ​សម្រាប់ទីផ្សារអ៊ឺរ៉ុប និងអាមេរិច នារដូវរងានេះ ព្រោះពួកគេនឹងមានជម្រើសតិចតួចបំផុតនៅ​អាស៊ីអាគ្នេយ៍។ បណ្តាកោះទាំងឡាយនៃប្រទេសថៃ ជាកន្លែងដ៏ស្រស់ស្អាតប្រចាំនៅតំបន់អាស៊ីអាគ្នេយ៍ ប៉ុន្តែកម្ពុជា ដែលជាព្រះរាជាណាចក្រអច្ឆរិយៈ​ គឺជាគោលដៅទេសចរណ៍មួយ ដែលផ្តល់នូវអ្វីៗ​ដែលល្អបំផុតរបស់អាស៊ី។

៨. ជាគោលដៅទេសចរណ៍មួយ​ (ដែលមិនមែនត្រឹមជាគោលដៅបន្ថែមរបស់ប្រទេសដទៃ) មានន័យថា ការស្នាក់នៅយូរជាងមុន ការចំណាយរបស់អ្នកទេសចរច្រើនជាងមុន ហើយបន្ថែមចំណូលពន្ធសម្រាប់រាជរដ្ឋា ភិបាលកម្ពុជា
ប្រសិនបើប្រទេសកម្ពុជាដាក់ខ្លួន​ឯងជាគោលដៅទេសចរណ៍មួយ (ដែលមិនមែនត្រឹមជាគោលដៅបន្ថែមរបស់ប្រទេសដទៃ) រយៈពេលស្នាក់នៅជាមធ្យមរបស់ទេសចរនឹងយូរជាងមុន ការចំណាយរបស់ទេសចរនឹងច្រើនជាងមុន ហើយចំណូលពន្ធក៏កើនឡើងដែរ។ នេះជាយុទ្ធសាស្ត្រឈ្នះ ឈ្នះសម្រាប់កម្ពុជា។

៩. ឧស្សាហកម្មទេសចរណ៍កម្ពុជាបានរងការប៉ះពាល់អស់រយៈពេល ១៨ ខែហើយ
វិស័យទេសចរណ៍តំណាងឱ្យ ២០% ឬច្រើនជាងនេះនៃផលិតផលក្នុងស្រុកសរុប ហើយខេត្តសៀមរាបកំពុងស្ថិតនៅក្នុងស្ថានភាពដ៏អាក្រក់នាពេលបច្ចុប្បន្ននេះ ដោយសណ្ឋាគារ និងអាជីវកម្មជាច្រើន ត្រូវបង្ខំចិត្តបិទទ្វារ ហើយមនុស្សរាប់ពាន់នាក់បាត់បង់ការងារ។​ ហេតុការណ៍នេះ គ្មាននិរន្តរភាពសម្រាប់ កម្ពុជាទេ។

១០. មានប្រទេសជាង ៦០ នៅលើពិភពលោក ដែលបានបើកទទួលអ្នកចាក់វ៉ាក់សាំងពេញលេញរួច
ប្រទេសជាង ៦០ បានបើកទទួលអ្នកចាក់វ៉ាក់សាំងពេញលេញ ដោយមិនតម្រូវឱ្យធ្វើចត្តាឡីស័ក
ក្នុងនោះរួមមាន កូឡុំប៊ី កូស្តារីកា ក្រូអាស៊ី អេក្វាឌ័រ អេហ្ស៊ីប ក្រិក អ៊ីស្លង់ អ៊ីស្រាអែល កេនយ៉ា ម៉ិកស៊ិក អាហ្វ្រិកខាងត្បូង អេស្ប៉ាញ ទួរគី និងអារ៉ាប់រួម។ ម៉ាល់ឌីវត្រូវបានគេព្យាករណ៍ថា នឹងទទួលភ្ញៀវចំនួន ១,៥ លាននាក់ នៅឆ្នាំ ២០២១នេះ ។

14/09/2021

10 Reasons Cambodia Needs to Announce a Q4 Reopening Now

SHARE if you care about the tourism and hospitality industry in Cambodia.

1, The Cambodia Vaccination success story needs to be shared with the world
The vaccination rollout in Cambodia is one of the best in Asia and Phnom Penh is the most vaccinated capital city in ASEAN. Cambodia is vaccinating 12-17 yr olds and giving 3rd doses when many countries are on the 1st dose. We must share the story of a “small country with a big heart”.

2, There is a unique opportunity to move NOW while Cambodia remains ahead in the vaccine rollout
The impressive vaccine rollout means Cambodia has a big advantage over slow-to-vaccinate neighbours. This window of opportunity is only open for a short time before other countries start to catch up. If Cambodia acts now it can be the first ASEAN member to announce a full reopening.

3, Cambodia can reinvent itself as a standalone destination, not an extension or add-on
A bold approach to reopening means Cambodia can reinvent itself as a standalone destination, a single country holiday choice, no longer an add-on or extension to Thailand and Vietnam.

4, Cambodia has a unique opportunity to generate free PR and Marketing worldwide
The announcement of a full reopening will generate travel headlines around the world and change the perception of Cambodia as a destination among tourism professionals. It will be a huge dividend of free PR and marketing for a country with a limited tourism marketing budget.

5, A limited risk with a huge reward for Cambodia
Looking at the result of the Phuket Sandbox, we do not anticipate a large influx of travellers in the first phase of reopening, but small numbers of fully vaccinated travellers, tested pre-departure and upon-arrival, and their itineraries under the management of a reputable DMC or Tour Operator.

6, The Travel Industry needs clarity to plan the promotion of the reopening of Cambodia
Airlines need to re-establish networks, tour operators want to promote destinations and tourists will only book countries they know to be open without quarantine. Local tour operators need to rehire staff and temporarily closed hotels need to renovate and re-employ staff.

7, Winter is coming, position Cambodia as the long-haul Asian destination of choice
An early reopening will put Cambodia on the tourist map for the long-haul European and American markets this winter, as they will have very few choices in Southeast Asia. The Thai islands versus the Kingdom of Wonder, Cambodia, which offers the best of Asia in one bite-sized destination.

8, A single destination means longer stays, higher tourism spend and more tax revenue for RGC
If Cambodia positions itself as a standalone, single destination, average length of stay will increase, typical visitor spend will rise and tax revenues increase, a win-win for the kingdom.

9, The Cambodian Tourism Industry has been suffering for 18 Months
The tourism sector represents 20% or more of GDP and Siem Reap is in a dire situation now, with shuttered hotels, closed businesses and thousands out of work. This is unsustainable for Cambodia.

10, There are more than 60 countries in the world already open to fully vaccinated visitors
More than 60 countries are already open to fully vaccinated visitors without quarantine, including Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Ecuador, Egypt, Greece, Iceland, Israel, Kenya, Mexico, South Africa, Spain, Turkey and UAE. The Maldives is projected to welcome 1.5 million visitors in 2021.

16/07/2021

CAMDMC is working together with the Cambodia Tourism Federation (CTF) to push for the country to be seen as a single destination for travellers, and also to see the country reopened in a safe way as soon as possible https://www.ttgasia.com/2021/07/15/catalysing-cambodias-new-tourism-future/

The pandemic has brought Cambodia's tourism players together and highlighted the value of a single voice via the Cambodia Tourism Federation (CTF), allowing them to work better with the authorities towards travel and tourism recovery as well future developments, reveals Luu Meng, CTF president, mast...

24/06/2021

Do you know the success story of Cambodia’s vaccination programme?
Quick data
• Cambodia is the 11th most vaccinated non-European large country globally
• Phnom Penh is now more vaccinated than most large cities will ever be
• 95% of Phnom Penh’s adults have had one dose and around 90% have had two!
• Over 100k doses have been given over each of the last two days

Read more in this excellent article from Cambodia News English with data analysis from David Benaim/Xlconsulting

It’s time for Cambodia to work towards a reopening date and get its economy back on track. The government has done an excellent job in getting people vaccinated. Now let's move forward and reopen tourism with a clear date and safe plan in place for visitors and locals alike.

https://cne.wtf/2021/06/24/analysis-cambodias-vaccination-drive

Phnom Penh is now more vaccinated than most large cities will ever be. Quick facts Around 95% of Phnom Penh’s

01/06/2021

A great new promotional video has just been released: TASTE CAMBODIA

Are you hungry yet?

https://fb.watch/5RBuzafZAR/

25/05/2021

A positive development. We are looking forward to receiving more details of the Ministry of Tourism plan to reopen Cambodia to vaccinated foreign tourists from October 2021 onwards. Will there be a safe list of countries who can enter? Pre-testing required? Hopefully we will find out very soon. https://bit.ly/3yDH6oj

Cambodia Preparing to Welcome back Foreign Tourists in Q4

04/05/2021

Cambodia Second in ASEAN for COVID-19 Vaccination Rates

Cambodia is doing an impressive job on vaccine rollout when compared with some of its bigger and more developed neighbours.

Cambodia has vaccinated 12.4% of the population. The report on Covid-19 vaccinations in ASEAN member countries lists the following vaccination rates:

Singapore 37.5%
Cambodia 12.4%
Indonesia: 6.9%
Malaysia:4.0%
Laos: 2.5%
Myanmar: 1.9%
Thailand: 1.7%
Philippines: 1.6%
Brunei: 0.5%
Vietnam: 0.3%

This will help Cambodia with its plans to restart tourism for vaccinated visitors in Q4 2021.

https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50846882/cambodia-ranks-second-in-asean-as-the-country-that-vaccinated-more-people-against-covid-19/

Cambodia is ranked second in the ASEAN region as the country that vaccinated people against Covid-19 quickly with an index of 12.40 percent, while Singapore ranked first with an index of 37.48 percent.

31/01/2021

Open letter of Mr. William Heinecke, Chairman of the Minor Internation PLC (Anantara, Avani) to the Prime Minister of Thailand in regards to a COVID-19 vaccination drive to save the tourism industry.

22/01/2021

How Cambodia has managed to achieve zero recorded COVID-19 deaths by SBS News.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/dateline/how-cambodia-has-managed-to-achieve-zero-recorded-covid-19-deaths

Australia's multicultural and multilingual broadcaster. Includes news, sport, entertainment, documentary, film, food, radio and television schedule with program information

17/12/2020

NewsASSOCIATIONSWorldEUROPE Reopening travel cannot wait for vaccines By TTR WEEKLY - December 17, 2020 Share on Facebook Tweet on Twitter LONDON, 17 December 2020: The world cannot wait for the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines according to the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and major internation...

04/12/2020

Five major tourism organisations have published an open letter, urging the governments to use the ICAO Risk Assessment and Testing Framework to help with the restart of tourism in the Asia-Pacific region with quarantine less travel.
Full text here: https://lnkd.in/ebASqPc

As the collective voice representing the tourism, airline, airport and the travel retail sectors in the Asia-Pacific region, we respectfully call upon your Ministry/Authority to fully implement the guidance and recommendations contained in ICAO’s Testing and Cross-border Risk Management Measures M...

30/11/2020

Cher, the Four Paws expert team and Kaavan the elephant arrived today in Siem Reap for the final leg of Kaavan's journey into a better life. He will be a resident in the forests of Oddar Meanchey about 100km north of Siem Reap. - https://www.facebook.com/CambodiaWS/

20/11/2020

CamDmc attending a CTF (Cambodia Tourism Federation) meeting at Malis Phnom Penh yesterday. At this time it is important for all key bodies to work together and help restore tourism to Cambodia.

15/11/2020

Restart Tourism now

Determination and cooperation are the only way forward.

UNWTO has guided the tourism sector since the beginning of the Covid-19 crisis and we will keep calling on the global tourism community to mitigate the economic and social cost of the pandemic with safety and responsibility for millions across the world.

A reliable partner for stronger recovery, we must now.

The Tbilisi Declaration:https://webunwto.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/2020-09/Tbilisi-Declaration-WEB.pdf

13/10/2020

CAMDMC and other key players in the tourism sector have been working on a draft tourism reopening plan to submit to Ministry of Economics & Finance and the Royal Government of Cambodia.

27/09/2020

25/09/2020

This is indeed the only way to go and should be implemented immediately

NewsAIRLINESWorldEUROPE Test travellers before they fly By TTR WEEKLY - September 25, 2020 Share on Facebook Tweet on Twitter GENEVA, 25 September 2020: Covid-19 testing for all passengers before departure should be introduced as an alternative to quarantine according to the International Air Transp...

23/09/2020

One has to applaud Nepal for being the first country within the greater Asia region to reopen for international tourists without quarantine obligations.

https://www.ttgasia.com/2020/09/22/nepal-set-to-welcome-foreign-tourists-from-october/

The Nepalese government will reopen the country's borders to international tourists from October 17, 2020, following an almost eight-month-long shutdown.

19/09/2020

10/09/2020

Friends' FUTURES Factory Reopens in Phnom Penh

The FUTURES Factory space in the heart of Phnom Penh has reopened for business.

The impact of the current Covid-19 pandemic upon global travel and tourism badly affected some of Friends International’s renowned social impact training businesses, such as Friends the Restaurant and Romdeng in Phnom Penh, which still remain closed at the current time.

However, Friends-International have reopened restaurants at the FUTURES Factory location this week, on Street 13 near the National Museum, serving delicious food from their BBQ alongside the legendary noodle soups at Let's Eat.

Java Creative Cafe has also reopened in the FUTURES Factory main building serving their famous coffees, teas, cocktails and wines, and will be adding a food menu in October.

On the creative arts front, Creative Generation, the Cambodian youth arts initiative sponsored by Java, are active again with a brand new exhibition just opened highlighting the arts community response to the pandemic - .

The Beauty Corner (vocational training business) is there to pamper you during your visit, and you can still shop at Friends 'N' Stuff or at the market stalls where you will find exciting upcoming young Cambodian designers, artisans and ‘pop up’ shops appearing alongside old favourites.

07/09/2020

CAMDMC members met with H.E. Sok Sangvar, Deputy Director General of the Apsara Authority to discuss the Roadmap to reopening Cambodia to tourists. Thanks to Cambodia Tourism Federation (CTF) and Mr Luu Meng for hosting and joining the meeting.

26/08/2020

Roadmap to relaunch tourism in Cambodia

08/07/2020

During the last weeks the members of CAMDMC have met several times to discuss the effects of Covid-19 and to find solutions how to overcome this crisis together. The most important thing for all of us was and is the health of our guests in Cambodia. We have therefore worked out common Covid-19 safety guidelines so that we as DMCs can ensure safe travel as much as possible. Happy travels!

03/07/2020

Did you ever wonder who is part of the great work at CAMDMC?

16/06/2020

It's a Holiday in Cambodia: Cremation Services US$1500

So what exactly happened to 'small country, big heart' in Cambodia?

From being an open country during the height of the pandemic in China, Cambodia has now gone to being almost a closed country during the time many countries around the world are looking at a way to reopen to visitors, including Greece, Spain, Egypt and Sri Lanka.

Asking visitors to pay a US$3000 deposit to enter the country and run the risk of a 14-day mandatory quarantine is not that different from saying "Cambodia is closed for business". Not only will it impact on the future recovery of the all-important tourism sector, but it will impact on business travellers and investors who need to make short trips to the Kingdom.

Imagine for a moment the pre-Coronavirus world and that you were told you would need to obtain a visa before arrival, a medical certificate, US$50,000 health insurance, pay a US$3000 deposit on arrival and potentially be mandatorily quarantined in a government-affiliated hotel or hospital. Would you book a trip?

I understand the concerns about a second wave, but in reality Cambodia never experienced a first wave or if it did, then it did not hit hard and lead to a loss of life. 126 cases to date, 3 active and 0 deaths. Those are pretty impressive statistics, even if there may have been more active cases that were undetected.

Senior medical professionals at Pasteur Institute have confirmed there was no spike in seasonal death rate in the past few months and no Covid-19 detected in autopsies done on patients who died of pneumonia in this period.

If you have to have medical insurance for US$50,000, then why do you need to pay a deposit of US$3000? Insurance is bought to cover such medical emergencies.

If you are a family of four wanting to visit Cambodia, you will need to deposit US$12,000, probably considerably more than the cost of your holiday.

If you are a backpacker or independent traveller thinking about Southeast Asia for a summer escape without the tourists, will you include Cambodia in your plans? Backpackers stay longer and spend widely in the community, but they will be going somewhere else for their adventures.

The communication and messaging in all of this is nothing short of a disaster for Cambodian tourism, hospitality, business and investment, just at a time when other countries are seeking a way out of the lockdowns, shutdowns and travel bans. It would make sense in a country that has experienced thousands of deaths and is not reliant on tourism for around 20% of its economy. But for Cambodia? It is like economic hara-kiri.

So this needs to be urgently repealed or rethought, as it is the wrong message to be sending to the potential visitors and investors at this difficult time. Insurance is sensible, testing on arrival is great and quarantine in the event of a positive test also makes sense. However, enforcing a US$3000 deposit despite insurance and insisting the entire planeload of arriving passengers is quarantined if one passenger tests positive is not.

What about some more creative ideas? How about self-quarantine at different budget levels, including backpacker hostels, guesthouses, boutique hotels and luxury resorts? There are a lot of empty hotels in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap right now.

If it is all about the health, how about 2-week wellness and meditation retreats in temples or monasteries? Detox, destress and unwind before your adventure in Cambodia, I'm sure everyone needs a bit of that after the trauma of Covid-19.

Negatives can be turned into positives with the right communication and messaging. This should be planned in partnership with the business community and tourism and hospitality industry with glossy presentation and clear deadlines for review and lifting.

This blunt PDF attached may be transparent in its intent, but it sends completely the wrong message to potential visitors and business travellers. Many tourism professionals would advocate moving in the other direction and waiving tourist visa charges until October 2020 or even the end of the year.

What is the one thing most foreigners are drawn to on the list?

Cremation services are US$1500!

Who is planning a holiday in Cambodia that includes dying during your stay? That is hardly an encouraging message from a 'small country, big heart'.

These new restrictions need to be revised or lifted as soon as possible to avoid making this a bigger crisis than it already is for the hundreds of thousands of people employed in the tourism and hospitality sector.