Editor’s Note: Travel with BookMeBus can surely be an adventure. Check out Nhoung Raya‘s experience while traveling with BookMeBus. Thank you for your honest review and experience.

If you would like to share your story with us, you get a chance to earn a free ticket in return.

All content and image are from the contributor.

Coach (or distant bus) is perhaps the most popular ways to reach a long distant or provinces in Cambodia. It is safer than the small private-owned taxi or van and less costly than the personal family cars.

However, to book and buy a bus ticket was not easy before Bookmebus arrived. First, most of bus stations are situated in the urban and crowded capital city, which is so far from the passengers who prefer bus.

Second, the 2nd traditional method to book a ticket is made by phone call. But it is still difficult because you still need to go to pick up the ticket at the spot and pay the cash there on the day you made the call to them or the next day you do. Further, you can’t book or buy a ticket a week prior the day you depart for most bus companies because they have no system.

When I first heard about bookmebus.com, I am so excited and willing to try to start booking the ticket on this site. I was not afraid of being cheated by the site because there are a lot of news broadcasting about this site and the most important thing is that I want to try new. In my personal experience with bookmebus, I feel that this site is very easy to use and importantly, it has many ways of payments: Visa, Master Card, Acleda, Pay&go, Wing and more. The site has good enough information for us to make decision. You know what? In many bus companies’ websites, they don’t even have complete/enough information for us to know. Sometimes, we know only where to depart, but we don’t know where it drops off. But bookmebus.com has this kind of information.

When I got ticket email from bookmebus.com, I feel a bit unreliable because it was my first bus e-tick. And I chatted to bookmebus.com to reconfirm if this e-ticket can let me in the bus. They guaranteed and give me the phone number for their support in case there is any error.

On the day I took the bus, I printed the e-ticket because I wanted to prevent any error if the inspector didn’t accept the e-ticket in my phone. Arriving the counter of Virakbuntham bus station, I asked the receptionist there “the bus from Phnom Penh to Siem Riep arrived yet?” “Yes” she replied and showed the bus over there. Continued “ I booked the ticked via bookmebus”. She nodded and just took a small piece of blank paper and signed and wrote bookmebus. She said “let show this paper to the bus driver and he would let you in”. I whispered “Only a piece of paper!” (but I think this seem very informal and unorganized)

And that’s it. Everything was alright. Everything was so much easy.

Anyway, I still have some suggestions if you would like to get from me, one of your customer: First, provide your customers the mobile numbers or especially the toll free number because most of the people in Cambodia now prefer to use mobile number and exchange their phone money, so they don’t have money to make call to the external line like 023.

Second, please don’t try to work with many quantities of bus operators, but work with better bus operators. Some VIP buses drive too fast without respecting the passengers’ life. And some buses cancelled the transportation when they don’t have enough or few passengers (you see the comment of a customer on the bookmebus app?) Don’t work with those bad operators.

Third, I don’t know if you are considering or it is already in our next step. Please think about the people who don’t have know about computer or internet. They now need to go the station to buy. Hope it will be your next market soon. I love and waiting to see your creativities.

Anyway, you did a great job! I will try to make more constructive comments when I use the app more. Thank you.