Join the Adventure

OVERVIEW

One of the highlights of the PEPY calendar is the annual December visit to the PEPY Ride School. This tour provides travelers with the opportunity to get involved with work at the school and spend valuable time with the students there. You will also have the opportunity to stay overnight on the school grounds in the small village of Chanleas Dai. Rural Cambodia is beautiful by day, but it is even more striking by night. Staying at the school gives you a real sense of what most of Cambodians experience on a daily basis: pumping and filtering your own water, listening to the scuffles of roosters and pigs outside your door, sleeping under mosquito nets and without fans or air-conditioning, and witnessing an unpolluted view of thousands of stars on a clear night.

During your days at the school, you’ll find that you are as much of a student as the children are as you learn from each other through education and play. You will meet the PEPY Ride School’s incredible English and Computer teachers, meet our Child-to-Child club leaders and participants, and learn about the new One Laptop Per Child program, recently implemented at the school.

The visit to the Angkor Wat temples is an unforgettable experience for both tour participants and a class of PEPY Ride School students who are experiencing their country’s grand heritage site for the very first time. Most of these 4^th graders have never been to Angkor Wat – even though they live less than two hours away and admission is free for Cambodians! You will focus on making this the most powerful and educational experience possible for your new buddies while being blown away by the magnitude and beauty of the temples.

You will have ample time to explore Siem Reap on your own and visit other sights such as the Landmine Museum, more distant temples, nearby floating villages, or local markets, or you can simply relax in the sun. You’ll have the option to visit a children’s hospital to learn about the amazing work they do and donate blood if you are in the spirit of giving. The holidays will be celebrated in true PEPY fashion – with lots of energetic and environmentally friendly fun. Visits to other non-governmental organizations bring an educational aspect to the trip and allow you to learn about the development work being done in Cambodia. All PEPY tours support locally owned restaurants and guest houses as well as groups working with and funding development. Not only will your fundraised money already be put into action by our innovative development partners, but the dollars spent within the tours themselves will also be bringing sustainable support to Cambodia. This translates into delicious dining and comfortable sleeping, and all for a good cause! Khmer food is exotic, full of flavor, and colorful, so you will be in for a culinary treat. Join us on this tour in December and experience Cambodia the PEPY way.

An extension tour is also available for those who want to visit Cambodia’s capital, Phnom Penh.

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Phnom Penh Extension Tour

After experiencing rural Cambodia, joining this extension tour helps you explore Cambodia’s vibrant capital, Phnom Penh. Simply walking around the streets of this energetic city is exciting as you watch the intricate weave of cyclos and motos in traffic, stroll past street vendors, and take in the beauty of the Royal Palace and sunset over the Tonle Sap River.

You will spend time learning about the atrocities of the Khmer Rouge regime while visiting significant historical sites. First we will visit Toul Sleng Genocide Museum also known as S21, located in a quiet Phnom Penh suburb. This group of buildings was once a school but was turned into a prison and torture facility by the Khmer Rouge. Post-Khmer Rouge, this disturbing site has been transformed into a museum to document and enumerate the crimes committed there. Once you have gained an initial understanding of the brutality of the Khmer Rouge regime, you will visit the ‘Killing Fields,’ locally called Cheoung Ek. This is where thousands of Tuol Sleng prisoners were taken to be executed; it is now a memorial site located in a tranquil setting. After this difficult morning, we’ll eat lunch together in Phnom Penh at an NGO that assists marginalized women and victims of domestic violence. Their delicious restaurant also serves as a training facility for women to learn vocational skills, giving their families a means of improving their livelihoods. You will also have the opportunity to learn about the revitalization of traditional Cambodian arts and dance and you will visit many other NGOs to learn more about sustainable development in Cambodia.

There will be plenty of spare time for you to scour the local markets for exotic Cambodian handcrafts or to treat yourself to a traditional Khmer massage. Prepare your taste buds for luxury when PEPY takes you to our favorite restaurant in Phnom Penh, which is run by an NGO that trains former street children. Working in the restaurant gives these youngsters the opportunity to gain first-hand experience of the hospitality business, serving customers, taking orders, cooking, and learning about hygiene in the workplace. Since its opening, the restaurant has succeeded in becoming wholly self-sufficient and all its profits are reinvested into the Training Centre activities.

We recommend this extension trip to everyone. Learning more about the history of Cambodia and seeing the historical sites of Phnom Penh helps put the realities of modern-day Cambodia in context. It also provides a more realistic look at urban Cambodian life in contrast to the posh tourist-fueled grandeur of Siem Reap. This extension tour is both educational and exciting, and we hope you will stay a little longer to join us in Phnom Penh!

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PRICING

· Trip Price: $700 if you make your trip deposit by October 31st, 2008 ($750 thereafter)

· Post Trip Phnom Penh Extension Tour: $275

· Additional Minimum Fundraising/Donation Amount: $500

Inclusions: The trip includes all transportation listed while in Cambodia, all overnight stays, all tour and entrance fees for listed attractions, and most meals. We leave a few meals free as there are many choices in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap and past participants have enjoyed the chance to find their favorite food!

Exclusions: The trip does not include international flights to/from the start and end points. Visas are available upon arrival and cost $20 for most foreign nationals. Also excluded are your departure taxes: $6 domestic, $25 international.

Cancellation Policy: If six people have not signed up for the trip four weeks before the start date, PEPY staff may cancel the tour and any deposits will be refunded in full. If a participant cancels for any reason, their $200 deposit is non-refundable. Refunds will be made for the remainder of the tour fees (excluding deposit and fundraised money) on this schedule:

· Full – more than 3 weeks before trip’s start

· 50% - more than 2 weeks before trip’s start

· 25% - more than 3 days before trip’s start

· 0% - less than 3 days before trip’s start

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ)

Are there any health concerns?

Check with your doctor and the CDC webpage www.cdc.gov/travel, but don’t let them scare you! We can get you in touch with a past participant for a reality check!

What will our accommodations be like?

One rider described the accommodation as “the best each place has to offer.” In smaller towns, that might mean a basic hotel with hot water and a fan, though almost all hotels have A/C options (though PEPY supports the use of fans!). In bigger towns and cities we put our guests up at a mix of the most responsible hotels supporting local development programs and unique guesthouses built with environmental consideration.

Will I need to know the local language?

No. English is widely understood and the PEPY team and our partners will always be available to help you with anything you might need. But it’s a lot of fun to learn some of the language while you are here!

View other Frequently Asked Questions

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REQUEST MORE INFORMATION

To request more information about this tour and to receive updates, please send us your name and email address using the form below.

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APPLY NOW

Click here to download our registration form

*Online form coming soon

Once we receive your registration form, we will contact with instructions on how to send in your deposit. We can not secure you a spot on this tour until we receive your deposit.

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