Phnom Penh in 3 Days on a Budget (Daily Costs)
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Three days covers the royal core, the memorial day, and the free half of the city
Days 1 and 2 here are the exact plan in the 2-day itinerary : the Royal Palace and National Museum, then Tuol Sleng and Choeung Ek. Day 3 adds Central Market, Wat Ounalom, and the Independence Monument, most of which cost nothing, plus a Night Market evening. Days run $32-81 a person on Days 1-2 and drop to $15-49 on the free-sights Day 3. File the e-Arrival Card (arrival.gov.kh) and an e-visa (evisa.gov.kh, about $36) before you fly, and bring crisp US bills. Only have a weekend? The 2-day itinerary covers just the core.
Day 1: Royal Palace and the riverside core
Start at Wat Phnom ($1), the hilltop temple the city takes its name from, open by 7am before the heat sets in. Walk or tuk-tuk to the Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda ($10 combined), Cambodia’s grandest interior, though it’s an active royal residence so only part of it is open; go in the morning or afternoon session and dress in shoulders-and-knees coverage or you’ll be turned away at the gate. The National Museum of Cambodia is a few minutes’ walk away ($10 adult, $5 youth). Close the day on Sisowath Quay, the riverside promenade at the actual Tonle Sap-Mekong confluence, free to walk, with dinner built around fish amok, the national dish.
| Day 1 cost (USD, per person) | Low | Higher |
|---|---|---|
| Bed (hostel dorm / guesthouse double) | 6 | 25 |
| Breakfast | 2 | 4 |
| Wat Phnom | 1 | 1 |
| Royal Palace + Silver Pagoda | 10 | 10 |
| National Museum (youth / adult) | 5 | 10 |
| Lunch | 2 | 6 |
| Dinner (fish amok) | 4 | 10 |
| Tuk-tuk rides | 2 | 6 |
| Day 1 total | 32 | 72 |
Day 2: Tuol Sleng, Choeung Ek, and the Russian Market
This is a memorial day, not a sightseeing day, budget it as one. Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (S-21), the Khmer Rouge’s former central prison, is $5 (plus $5 for the recommended audio guide), open 8am-5pm; go first, since that’s the order the history happened in. Choeung Ek, about 15km south (30-45 minutes by tuk-tuk), is $6 including its own audio guide, open 7:30am-5:30pm; the memorial stupa holds more than 5,000 skulls. Agree the round-trip tuk-tuk fare before you set off, roughly $10-16. In the afternoon the Russian Market is free to browse (bargain on anything you buy), a deliberate contrast after the morning.
| Day 2 cost (USD, per person) | Low | Higher |
|---|---|---|
| Bed | 6 | 25 |
| Breakfast | 2 | 4 |
| Tuol Sleng (+ audio guide) | 5 | 10 |
| Choeung Ek (incl. audio) | 6 | 6 |
| Tuk-tuk to/from Choeung Ek | 10 | 16 |
| Lunch | 2 | 6 |
| Dinner | 4 | 10 |
| Local tuk-tuk rides | 2 | 4 |
| Day 2 total | 37 | 81 |
Day 3: Central Market, Wat Ounalom, and the Night Market
Start at Central Market (Phsar Thmei), free to browse, the 1937 Art Deco building with its yellow dome is worth seeing on its own. Walk to Wat Ounalom, Cambodia’s Buddhist headquarters and a quieter counterpoint to Wat Phnom, free (donation welcome). The Independence Monument, Vann Molyvann’s 1958 lotus stupa, is a short tuk-tuk ride away and free to photograph. In the evening, if a sunset river cruise is running, ask the price before boarding, it isn’t fixed and depends on the boat. Close at the Night Market (Friday-Sunday, free entry); riverside food stalls make dinner the day’s only real cost.
| Day 3 cost (USD, per person) | Low | Higher |
|---|---|---|
| Bed | 6 | 25 |
| Breakfast | 2 | 4 |
| Central Market browsing | 0 | 0 |
| Wat Ounalom | 0 | 0 |
| Independence Monument | 0 | 0 |
| Lunch | 2 | 6 |
| Night Market dinner | 3 | 8 |
| Tuk-tuk rides | 2 | 6 |
| Day 3 total | 15 | 49 |
Getting around on 3 days
Day 3 is walkable between Central Market, Wat Ounalom, and the riverside, with one tuk-tuk hop out to the Independence Monument. Days 1 and 2 lean more on tuk-tuks, especially the Choeung Ek run; PassApp or Grab locks in the fare before you climb in.
Three days is a comfortable, unrushed version of Phnom Penh’s core. If you’d rather add a day trip out of the city instead of a third day inside it, the 4-day itinerary sends you to Koh Dach, the silk-weaving island.