Popular tourist destinations like Siem Reap, home of Angkor Wat, and the coastal areas in Preah Sihanouk province could see a fall in the number of tourists during the upcoming Water Festival holidays due to many of them travelling to Phnom Penh to partake in the city festivities, hotel operators said.
Pot Chan Odom, operations manager of Siem Reap’s five-star Angkor Paradise Hotel, said the number of room bookings for the three-day Water Festival was down this year compared with the holidays last year, the Khmer Times reported on Friday.
“This year it’s down for both local and foreign tourists,” Chan Odom told the Khmer Times.
“I guess Siem Reap can only boast of the UN Heritage-listed Angkor Wat. And that is the main attraction and nothing else. For the Water Festival, the fun and festivities are in Phnom Penh with the spectacular boat races,” he said.
The Water Festival, which marks the yearly reversal of flow of the Tonle Sap, is celebrated across the country by boat races. The capital’s festivities, to be held from Sunday to Tuesday, were last held in 2014, with low water levels blamed for last year’s cancellation. Close to 2 million visitors are expected to descend on the capital.
The Water Festival in Phnom Penh will be held under the high chairmanship of King Norodom Sihamoni. A total of 259 boats will race during the festival, including 76 special racing boats, 170 paddle boats, 26 rowing boats and 63 international standard boats.
Like Siem Reap’s five-star Angkor Paradise Hotel, White Sands Palace Hotel in Preah Sihanouk province also confirmed a drop in room bookings, compared to last year’s Water Festival holidays.
“In previous years, we have seen full bookings ahead of the three-day holiday. This year, however, they are down by about 50%,” said Hang Vannaram, front office manager of White Sands Palace Hotel.
“I think that people who used to visit coastal areas have chosen this year to stay in Phnom Penh and enjoy the Water Festival because it has been canceled previously,” Vannaram said.
Since a stampede led to the deaths of some 300 spectators at the event in 2010, the festivities in Phnom Penh have been canceled in four of the past five years, with weather used as the usual excuse.
In 2011 and 2013, flooding caused the boat races to be canceled, while last year the water levels were deemed too low. In 2012, the death of King Norodom Sihanouk saw the races, which take place in front of the Royal Palace, cancelled.
