Visa Run: Ho Chi Minh City to Phnom Penh Bus Ride

For how much I travel, I still somehow really hate flying. To skirt having to fly in a metal tube, 35,000 feet in the air for a mere 45 minutes, I somehow convinced myself that doing my Vietnam visa run to Phnom Penh, Cambodia via the Moc Bai Border should be done by bus. This wasn’t my best idea. If you’re currently in Vietnam and considering your visa run options, I recommend running a pros and cons comparison when choosing between the bus and flight. 

For those who are looking to visa run within the day, meaning you are just going to the Moc Bai Border and then straight back to Ho Chi Minh, then the bus is probably your best option. I like to make a trip of things, so a short 45 minute flight will be my preferred method next time.

If you’re curious about why I’ll choose to fly the next time I need to visa run from Vietnam, continue on. 

Giant Ibis Ho Chi Minh Bus to Phnom Penh Costs

I’ll admit. For my visa run, I was pretty ill-prepared. I hadn’t really given much thought as to how I was going to visa run until about five days before I had to leave. So, I contacted my trust visa agent, Hidden Gem Travel Agency, and started to get things sorted (for my return trip). I’ll talk more about Vietnam visa services in an upcoming blog post, but in the meantime, know that Nhu from Hidden Gem Travel Agency made my year in Vietnam extremely easy.  

Keep in mind when entering Cambodia via the Moc Bai Border crossing, you will need a Cambodian visa. Tourist visas will run you USD $30 (make sure to bring USD), while business visas will cost you $35. This is all handled by whichever bus agency you opt to ride with. Just make sure to budget for this. And, once again, remember that the United States Dollar is the preferred currency in Cambodia, so don’t forget to exchange your VND for USD. 

Pro Tip: When exchanging money in Ho Chi Minh, I strongly recommend using Hung Long Money Exchange located on 86 Mạc Thị Bưởi in District 1. This is one of the top recommended exchanges where you won’t get scammed, and they don’t take commission on VND to USD exchanges. I think they take commission when converting to VND though, don’t quote me.

In the days prior to my visa run, still extremely unprepared, I met a Polish guy (who ended up becoming a friend) at one of the cafes I work at. He also expressed the need to do visa run as well. I thought, “Hey! New friend, bus ride, it will be great!” So, he booked us two one way tickets on Giant Ibis to Phnom Penh for about USD $16 each, and I showed up at the Giant Ibis ticket office on Pham Ngu Lao Street in District 1 for my 8am departure. 

The Ride: A Sweaty Sweaty Ride Indeed

While the distance from Ho Chi Minh to Phnom Penh is only 260 km (160 miles), it sure felt a lot longer. On the Giant Ibis website, they list the journey as taking 6 hours (+/- 30 minutes), but I imagine that is assuming there is no traffic and a smooth border transition. The air conditioning on my bus was broken, so I was in somewhat of a delirious state when I finally got to Phnom Penh. 

I do have to give credit where credit is due, as after boarding, you are given a water, cold towel, and pastry. Big Body never says no to a free pastry. 

Once on the road, it takes about 2 and a half to 3 hours to get to the Moc Bai Border. At the border, it’s time for your visa to be processed, so the bus agent will collect your passport and USD, and you’ll make your way over to a cafeteria-style restaurant in what feels like an abandoned mall. There, you can grab hit the baño (bathroom), pick up some fried rice or a snack, and load up on drinks. 

I also looked like I had jumped rope in the attic for 12 hours by the time we got there. I do not glisten. I just look like a sweaty whale.

My border wait took about 1 hour, a bit longer than the 30 minutes estimated on the Giant Ibis website. However, this lunch break really wasn’t too bad, as I finally had some coffee in me and was starting to plot my night out on the town with my buddy. 

What makes the bus ride to Phnom Penh not worth it for me is the second half of the trip. By the time you get back on the road, it is roughly 12-12:30PM. This is a bit of a tough time, because if it was just an hour or two earlier, you wouldn’t hit as brutal Phnom Penh traffic on your way in. Having lived in Asia long enough, I know that rush hour can be anywhere from 3PM to 8PM (yeah, it’s a bit crazy). So, once you start getting close, it ends up taking anywhere from an hour to two and a half hours more just to get to the Phnom Penh Giant Ibis bus terminal. 

In total, my trip took about 8 to 8 and a half hours, as I got in right around 5PM. 

Final Thoughts on Moc Bai Border Visa Run 

Overall, taking the Giant Ibis bus from Ho Chi Minh to Phnom Penh was a good experience, and I had a great time chatting with my new buddy most of the trip. But it was still absolutely exhausting. Oh, and I also took the bus back. That’s a story for another time. 

In the interests of time, I think it is worth it to just shell out a couple extra bucks to fly – at the time, flights in November were going for about USD $110. I’m sure you can find even cheaper flights though. As I mentioned above, if you are looking to do your visa run within one day, taking the bus to the Moc Bai Border and then just heading right back into Vietnam might be your best bet. But if you’re looking to make a little vacation of your visa run and don’t want to go through a roughly 8 hour bus ride, then flying is the way.

Curious where I stayed while in Phnom Penh? Check out my article on one of the best boutique business hotels in Phnom Penh and why I will definitely be heading back there in the future!

I’d love to hear about your experiences while visa running in Vietnam (or anywhere!). Let me know in the comments. Also, if you have any questions about visa running from Vietnam to Cambodia, please don’t hesitate to ask!

Best,

-Big Body