Ratanakiri Province Place guide

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Phnom Penh

Ratanakiri Province

Adrenaline Rush in Ratanakiri Province

About

Ratanakiri is in the northeast, and is a province in Cambodia. It's steadily gaining recognition as a diverse region that contains excellent natural beauty that in turn provides a home for a variety of people, such as the Jarai, Tompuon, Brau, Kavet  and Kreung, all having their own languages and customs. If you're excited about life and love activities that get your blood pumping, Trip Guru suggests a trip to the Ratanakiri Province.

In this place, adrenaline activities are aplenty. You can opt to take a dip in beautifully clear volcanic lakes, particularly the Yeak Laom Volcano Lake. Meanwhile, you can opt to meditate while showering underneath a waterfall, or if you fancy a hike, there's the large Virachey National Park, ready for you. There are also various things to check out, such as rubber plantations and visiting a cashew-nut farm, as well as enjoy a cup of coffee to perk oneself up before tackling a myriad of activities for the entire day.

Ratanakiri means "hill of precious stones," and as such gem mining is considered big business here. There is an abundance of high-quality zircon mine that is taken in several areas in the entire province, and other shining, semiprecious stones.  You can watch the locals mining gems--since the locals often go 10 or 15 meters deep into the ground just looking for sparkling bits of gold or jewels, and can be impressive to watch. And if you have extra time, you can opt to go and visit some yellow-cheeked gibbons, which is an endangered species of ape.

For all the adventures that you can get into while on Ratanakiri, getting to Ratanakiri is a journey in itself--you can begin by taking a bus from Phnom Penh to Banlung, Ratanakiri's main town, though the trip is a little faster if you are able to rent a cab. Otherwise, the entire journey is 10 to 12 hours by bus. It's recommended that you make the trip as early as possible, to allow time to enjoy most if not all of the activities that Ratanakiri has to offer.

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