In Siem Reap Jump in the Lavender Jeep

My name is Sreyneang Ley. I am Cambodian and one of the cofounders and lead drivers of Lavender Jeep Siem Reap.
It is nice to meet you!

I guess I have an interesting story. I am originally from the countryside about one hour from Siem Reap. My family are farmers so we have a simple life. I studied in the countryside and was lucky because I learned English at an NGO school. I moved to Siem Reap, where I worked as a dancer and then at the market. It was a difficult life as my salary was only $100 USD per month. Fortunately, I came into touch with Lavender Jeep Siem Reap. Together we launched the company. I have been a tour guide here since 2017.

What is Lavender Jeep Siem Reap?

Great question! Lavender Jeep is women-led adventure tour company providing tours of Siem Reap, Cambodia (home to Angkor Wat temple) in Lavender (of course!) 1975 A2 Military Jeep. Our company is unique in that it is the only tour in the area structured as a cooperative. Our drivers are shareholders in the company, earning a base salary and 30% of the profits on the tour. The remaining profits are transferred to a not-for-profit organization providing free educational programming in the countryside, to pay it forward to educate the next generation of women (actually this is where I learned English too).

What are our tours like?

Our trips are community based and the drivers come from the areas visited. We try to focus on the people of Siem Reap – their history, their lives, and their communities as well as our drivers’ story and experiences. We want the tour experience to be authentic and not scripted, rushed or what others are doing. We are also lucky as well because the Jeep allows us to take more difficult roads in the countryside. This lets us see places others cannot visit.

We are excited to be a member of Women Travel the World as we have similar missions – to support each other by promoting women travel through the world and engage in tours led by women whenever its possible. You might not know this, but in Cambodia women’s rights are still struggling. Most men have traditional notions of women, who they should be, and what they should do. It’s sad because so many women don’t finish their education, get married very young, and have no independence or freedom.

Lavender Jeep is changing this in a small way. We are challenging this – we are showing women can be independent, make money and provide for themselves, and even follow their dreams to travel the world (in fact, I have been lucky to go to Thailand, Macau, and Malaysia and really recommend all!). This is truly our mission and thank you for helping us do this by supporting our tour when you are in Cambodia.

If you have any question about our Siem Reap tours you can contact info@lavenderjeepsiemreap.com if you have any questions or want to talk more about the tour. Thank you again Rosemary and Women Travel the World.

Comments

Christy Herman says

April 5, 2019 at 8:04 am

This is fantastic! I will pass the word as much as I can. thank you Rosemary for helping these women! I know a lot of people who do travel like this and can use this company. Rensina just posted this on her FB and I will too.
- Rosemary Neave says
  
  April 9, 2019 at 2:29 am
  
  Thanks Christy there is this group too who do motor scooter tours in asia using young women who are students https://www.womentravel.info/profile.php?id=1103