Cambodia itinerary... Help!

If you want to get into the jungle and treck you will have to make your own way somewhere. I would suggest Chi Phat but you would have to get there from Phnom Phen

http://www.chi-phat.org/Default.htm

Looking at the first tour you will spend 6 days on the road and if you are to see anything in the places you overnight you will have to spend 3 or 4 nights in each. This will not be possible in your timeframe assuming you will be spending a few days first at Siem Reap to explore Angkor Wat

You need to do some detailed homework on the places you stop off at and decide which appeals and what you might want to do over the two or three spare days and those where you might hop on the bus the next morning

I understand your nervousness but if you chose popular guesthouses to stay in then you should not have real problems meeting people and you are very likely to find travel companions for some of the legs of the trip. You will not of course get the side trips en-route but you might get your treck

Thanks for the info, Chi Phat looks amazing! I've been looking at the travel information on the website, am I right in saying it's about a 3 hour bus journey from Sihanoukville?

Yes about that to the turn off for Chi Phat and there are also buses from Phnom Phen that take about 4 hours. The bus drivers are used to tourists going to Chi Phat. There are a number of companies that do the route but you may be best if you are on your own to use Virak Buntham. make sure you book the night before and make sure you check bus departure time and from where it is leaving from

I am a regular visitor to Chi Phat and usually stay for 3 weeks so happy to answer any questions that are not covered by the web

Thank you for the information. I have looked into changing my itinerary around but it just doesn't seem feasible to make a trip to Chi Phat, as amazing as it looks. I'm looking instead at a trip to Koh Rong from Kampot as I really want to have some chill out time on the beach. I can see that there are opportunities for trekking here, and although I'm sure it's not on the same scale as Chi Phat I might have to compromise on that. I guess there's always next time!

If in Kampot take a trip to the top of Bokor mountain, you will get get great views. Just keep going past the dreadful new casino to the old historical french buildings.

Ok, I think I've figured out an itinerary that works for me, what do people think?
Fly into Phnom Penh
Day 1: Bus from Phnom Penh to Koh Tunsay (This includes a trip to the Killing Fields and S21 in the morning.)Over night stay on Koh Tunsay.
Day 2: Koh Tunsay to Kampot
Day 3 Kampot to Sihnoukville (either as a Stray side trip or organised independently.)
Day 3: Sihnoukville to Koh Rong
Day 4: Koh Rong
Day 5: Koh Rong
Day 6 Koh Rong
Day 7: Koh Rong to Sihnoukville and back to Kampot
Day 8:Kampot
Day 9: Kampot to Battambang (including a stop at Udong, Kompong Chhang and homestay in Battambang)
Day 10: Battambang to Siem Reap (including ride on the Bamboo Train)
Day 11: Siem Reap
Day 12: Siem Reap
Day 13: Siem Reap
Day 14: Siem Reap
Day 15: Siem Reap
Day 16: Siem Reap to Kompong Thom (Including trip to Phnom Kulen national park)
Day 17: Kompong Thom to Phnom Penh (including a trip to a silk farm and a spider farm.)
Day 18: Phnom Penh & fly home

The only thing I'm worried about (apart from not being able to fit some proper trekking in) is that I don't have enough time in Phnom Penh. The Killing Fields and S21 trip will be done on a travel day, so I will have half a day on the day I travel from Kompong Thom, and most of the following day If I fly in the evening. Is that enough time, at a push? What do you think about the itinerary, am I planning enough time in places, or too much in others?

Sorry if I'm asking too many questions, I really wish I could've convinced a friend to come with me so we cold have planned together, guess I'm using this as kind of a substitute.

Yes, I would try have at least 2 full days in Phnom Penh that are not travel days. I would also try and have at least one full day in Battambang that is not a travel day. Its a long trip from Kampot to Battambang (9hrs+). I would have thought Phnom Kulen is best done as a day trip from Siem Reap, rather than on the way from Siem Reap to somewhere else.
Koh Tunsay is close to Kep. which is where the ferry leaves from.

I don't fly out until late in the evening so I'll have virtually the whole day, plus the previous afternoon in Phnom Penh. Plus a morning for the Killing Fields and S21. I'm hoping that'll be enough to fit in most of the main sights as I can't really work my schedule any other way. The trip to Phnom Kulen is included in the bus pass, which is why it's being done en route to somewhere else. I'm hoping to spend a bit of time in Kep either when I return from Koh Tunsay or during my stay at Kampot.

Grab a tuk tuk and use him to take you round the sights. I dont know what they charge now but its definitely worth it. You'll always miss things so it pays not to stress over it. We've had many trips to SEA but there are still things I'd like to see but with husband in tow who doesnt, c'ie la vie.

Thanks Westwood. I think I need to remember this is a holiday, not the big trip I did a few years back when I had all the time in the world. It's as much about chilling out with a book and getting a tan as it is exploring a new country, and if I don't get to see everything, it's not the end of the world! I'll definitely take your advice about hiring a driver, seems like the best way to see a lot in a short space of time as they know where they're going.