Is Cambodia Safe for American Tourists? A 2026 Safety Guide

What the 2026 travel advisory actually says

The single most useful safety reference for any American is the US State Department travel advisory, and for Cambodia it sits at Level 2: "Exercise Increased Caution." It is worth being precise about what that means, because the number scares people who do not know the scale. The system runs from Level 1 (Exercise Normal Precautions) to Level 4 (Do Not Travel). Level 2 is the second-lowest rung — the same tier currently assigned to France, Italy, Germany, the UK, and a long list of ordinary, popular destinations.

In plain terms, Level 2 means "this is a normal place to visit, just pay attention." The advisory flags the practical concerns you would expect — petty crime, the occasional more serious incident, and standard regional cautions — not political instability, war, or a breakdown in basic order. It is not a warning to cancel your trip. Americans visit Level 2 countries by the tens of millions every year and treat the advisory exactly as intended: a checklist of things to keep half an eye on, not a reason to stay home.

It helps to understand why the rating sits where it does and what specifically triggers a Level 2 rather than a Level 1. The advisory pairs naturally with the practical paperwork side, and our guide to Cambodia entry requirements for US citizens lays out exactly what you need to enter cleanly, so the advisory reads as context rather than a red flag.

Crime against tourists: what actually happens

Here is the most important thing to internalize: the crime that affects tourists in Cambodia is overwhelmingly petty and opportunistic, not violent. The headline risk is bag-snatching, and specifically bag-snatching from passing motorbikes. A rider comes up alongside you on a busy street, grabs a phone out of your hand or a bag off your shoulder, and is gone before you have registered it. It is the single most reported crime against visitors, it happens most in Phnom Penh, and it is almost entirely preventable.

The defenses are simple and worth making automatic. Wear a cross-body bag on the side away from the road, not a shoulder bag that lifts off in one motion. Keep your phone in your pocket on the street rather than out in your hand while you walk, and step into a doorway or cafe if you need to check the map. Do not wear obviously expensive jewelry or watches. At night, take a vetted ride-hailing car or a hotel-arranged tuk-tuk rather than wandering unlit streets with valuables on display. None of this is unique to Cambodia — it is the same playbook you would run in Barcelona, Rome, or any busy US downtown.

Violent crime against tourists, by contrast, is genuinely uncommon. Most American visitors spend their entire trip without witnessing anything more alarming than aggressive traffic. The places where caution rises a notch are late-night entertainment districts — the same as anywhere — where drink-spiking and theft from intoxicated travelers are the real concerns, not random assault. Keep an eye on your drink, leave with the people you arrived with, and you have removed most of that risk.

The flip side of low violent crime is that scams are where most travelers actually lose money, and they are very learnable. Our rundown of Cambodia tourist scams to avoid for Americans covers the specific tricks — the tuk-tuk that takes the scenic route, the closed-attraction redirect, the ATM and currency switches — so you can spot them coming rather than learning the hard way.

Road safety: the risk people underestimate

If there is one genuine physical danger in Cambodia that outranks crime, it is the roads. Traffic in Phnom Penh and the larger towns is dense, fast, and follows informal rules that take getting used to. Motorbikes weave in every direction, lane markings are treated as suggestions, and crossing a busy street for the first time can feel like a leap of faith. Road accidents — not crime — are statistically the most likely way a visitor gets hurt, and the State Department flags exactly this.

The two highest-risk choices are renting a motorbike to ride yourself, and riding as a passenger without a helmet. If you are not already an experienced, confident motorbike rider, this is not the place to learn — local traffic patterns, road conditions, and the consequences of a fall in a country where trauma care is limited outside the capital all stack against you. If you do ride, on your own bike or on the back of a moto-taxi, wear a helmet every single time, no exceptions.

Crossing the road is its own small skill. The technique that works is to move at a steady, predictable pace and let the traffic flow around you — drivers expect pedestrians to keep moving and adjust accordingly; sudden stops and sprints are what cause collisions. For getting around, app-based ride-hailing and reputable tuk-tuks are cheap, easy, and far safer than self-driving. For longer hauls between cities, choose well-reviewed bus and transfer operators rather than the cheapest option, especially for overnight routes.

It is also worth knowing one geographic fact that changes overland planning in 2026: all seven Thailand–Cambodia land borders have been closed since June 2025. If your itinerary imagined hopping overland between Thailand and Cambodia, that route is not available right now, and you will need to fly between the two. It is a logistics point rather than a safety one, but it catches out a lot of first-time planners building a Southeast Asia loop.

Solo travelers, families, women, and older visitors

Cambodia has a strong reputation as a friendly, easygoing destination across every kind of traveler, and that reputation is earned. Locals are, on the whole, warm and genuinely helpful to visitors, the backpacker and tourism infrastructure is well developed in the main hubs, and the day-to-day experience for most Americans is one of being welcomed rather than hassled. The exceptions are the practical risks already covered, not a hostile atmosphere.

Solo travelers — including solo women — generally report feeling comfortable, with the same caveats that apply almost anywhere: dress with a little cultural awareness, especially at temples and in rural areas; be more cautious after dark and around late-night venues; and keep someone informed of your rough plans. Phnom Penh and Siem Reap have busy, social traveler scenes that make it easy to meet people, and the well-trodden tourist routes are reassuringly straightforward to navigate alone.

Families with children do well in Cambodia, which is a famously child-friendly culture; the main adjustments are heat, hydration, food and water hygiene, and the same road-safety vigilance, sharpened a notch with kids in tow. Older travelers manage comfortably too, with the usual advice to take the heat seriously, build rest into temple-heavy days, and carry any medications with you. Across all of these groups, decent travel insurance that covers medical care and evacuation is the one piece of preparation worth not skipping.

If you are heading out on your own, it is worth reading guidance written specifically for that situation rather than generic safety advice. Our guide to Cambodia solo travel for first-time US citizens goes deeper on accommodation choices, getting around alone, meeting other travelers, and the small habits that make a solo trip feel relaxed rather than guarded.

Sensible prep before you go

Most of staying safe in Cambodia is just good preparation, and almost none of it is country-specific. Buy travel insurance that explicitly covers medical treatment and emergency evacuation — serious trauma care is concentrated in Phnom Penh and Bangkok, so an evacuation clause matters. Enroll in the State Department's STEP program so the US Embassy can reach you in an emergency. Keep digital and printed copies of your passport, eVisa, and insurance separate from the originals. Carry a little cash in small denominations and rely on bank-attached ATMs over street machines.

A few health basics round it out. Drink bottled or filtered water rather than tap, be a little selective about street food until your stomach adjusts, use mosquito repellent for dengue and, in some rural areas, malaria, and check current CDC travel health recommendations for any vaccines worth having before you fly. The US Embassy in Phnom Penh is the right contact point if anything genuinely goes wrong — a lost passport, a hospital stay, or a legal problem — and knowing it is there is reassuring even though most visitors never need it.

The visa and entry side is entirely separate from safety, and it is refreshingly simple. A Tourist eVisa is $80 USD all-in, approved in 3 business days, valid for 3 months from issue, and gives a 30-day single-entry stay. A Business eVisa is $90 USD on the same timeline. One change worth flagging: the tourist auto-extension ended in November 2025, so the 30-day stay is now a firm ceiling — plan your dates inside it. You will fly into KTI (Techo International), the new Phnom Penh airport that replaced the old one in September 2025.

If this is your first trip, a little orientation goes a long way toward feeling confident rather than wary. Our roundup of things to know before visiting Cambodia for first-timers covers money, etiquette, tipping, dress, connectivity, and the cultural basics that make the whole trip smoother from the moment you land.

The bottom line for American travelers

Put it all together and the picture is clear. Cambodia is a safe place for American tourists, with the same kind of common-sense caveats you would apply to any busy international destination. The serious-sounding fears — violence, instability, danger around every corner — do not match the reality on the ground. The real risks are mundane and manageable: keep your bag close and your phone away on the street, respect the traffic, agree fares before you get in, watch your drink at night, and carry good insurance. Do those things and you have addressed the genuine 95% of it.

Treat the State Department Level 2 advisory as what it is — a routine, second-lowest rating shared with half of Western Europe — and let it inform your habits rather than your decision to go. Millions of visitors have a warm, easy, memorable trip every year, and there is no reason an American traveler with normal street smarts should not be one of them. The friendliness you will encounter is the part the safety statistics never quite capture.

Once your dates are set, the visa is the simple part: a Tourist eVisa at $80 USD or a Business eVisa at $90 USD, approved in 3 business days, delivered as a printable PDF by email, with free resubmission if Immigration flags a correction and US-timezone support if you get stuck. When you are ready, apply for your Cambodia eVisa, then set a reminder for the e-Arrival Card in the week before you fly.