Choam & Chong Sa-ngam Border Crossing

The Chong Sa-ngam-Choam Crossing: A Gateway to a Khmer Rouge Heartland

The border crossing at Chong Sa-ngam in Sisaket Province, Thailand, which connects to the Cambodian post of Choam in Oddar Meanchey Province, is a remote and historically significant gateway. This is not a major tourist route. It is a quiet, mountainous crossing, primarily serving local trade and a small number of adventurous travelers. Its profound significance comes from its location: it is the main entry point to the town of Anlong Veng, the last stronghold of the Khmer Rouge movement. For the traveler, crossing here is a journey into one of the darkest chapters of 20th-century history. The landscape is one of rolling hills and forests, but the atmosphere is heavy with the ghosts of the past. It is a border for the historically-minded traveler, a quiet and somber passage into a region that is still coming to terms with its brutal legacy.

A History of the Last Stronghold

The history of this border is the history of the final years of the Khmer Rouge. After the Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia in 1979 drove the Khmer Rouge from power, its leaders and remaining fighters retreated to the remote and rugged Dangrek Mountains along the Thai border. For nearly two decades, they waged a guerilla war from these jungle sanctuaries. Anlong Veng became their final capital, the place where the movement’s top leaders, including the infamous Pol Pot, lived and eventually died. The Chong Sa-ngam-Choam crossing was a critical lifeline for the Khmer Rouge, a conduit for supplies and trade with elements in Thailand that kept their movement alive. The final collapse of the Khmer Rouge and the surrender of its last remnants in the late 1990s brought peace to the region and led to the formalization of this border crossing. Today, it is a peaceful gateway, but one that leads directly into a landscape filled with the homes, graves, and execution sites of the Khmer Rouge leadership, which are now being developed as historical tourism sites.

Before Crossing

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The Border Crossing Procedure: A Quiet and Simple Affair

This is one of the quietest and least-used international crossings between the two countries. The facilities are modern but small, and the process is generally very quick and hassle-free. The border is open during daylight hours.

Exiting Thailand (Chong Sa-ngam): The Thai immigration and customs post is located in a modern, quiet building on the Thai side of the border. You will present your passport to the immigration officer and receive your exit stamp. The customs check is usually a very brief formality. The officials are professional and the lack of queues makes this a very relaxed process.

The No-Man’s-Land: You will then proceed a short distance through a quiet, forested no-man’s-land to the Cambodian side of the border.

Entering Cambodia (Choam): The Cambodian immigration post is also a modern and surprisingly large facility. Here, you will need to get your Cambodian visa on arrival (available for most nationalities). You will need to fill out an application form, provide a passport-sized photograph, and pay the visa fee in US dollars. Because this crossing sees so few tourists, the officials are generally relaxed and the process is very fast. After getting your visa, an officer will stamp your passport, and you are officially in Cambodia. The entire process on both sides can often be completed in less than 30 minutes.

Route, Onward Travel, and Anlong Veng

On the Thai side, the crossing is in a remote part of Sisaket province. The nearest major town is a few hours’ drive away, so you will need to arrange private transport to get to the border. On the Cambodian side, from the Choam border post, it is about a 20-minute motorbike taxi or taxi ride to the town of Anlong Veng. Anlong Veng is the main reason to use this crossing. The town itself is a dusty, unremarkable place, but the surrounding area is of immense historical interest. You can hire a local guide to visit Pol Pot’s cremation site, the house of his second-in-command, Ta Mok (known as “The Butcher”), and the beautiful but eerie lake that Ta Mok created. From Anlong Veng, it is a 2-3 hour bus or taxi ride on a good paved road to the city of Siem Reap, the gateway to the Angkor temples. This makes the crossing a viable, if unconventional, entry point for a tour of Cambodia.

Final Planning Advice for a Historical Journey

The Chong Sa-ngam-Choam crossing is a fascinating option for the traveler who is interested in the modern history of Cambodia and wants to avoid the crowds of the main Poipet border. The key to using this crossing is planning your transportation, especially on the Thai side, as it is very remote. Be prepared for the Cambodian visa on arrival with a passport photo and clean US dollar bills. The crossing itself is one of the easiest and most pleasant between the two countries. The journey it enables, into the heart of the former Khmer Rouge territory, is a sobering, powerful, and deeply educational experience. It is a route that offers a profound contrast to the ancient glories of Angkor, providing a more complete and complex understanding of Cambodia’s tragic and resilient story.