Hello

Angkor Wat - One of the top 7 'Wonders of the World' for travellers | UNESCO cambodian temples

Angkor Wat

Recently voted 2nd best 'Wonder of the World' by readers of the well respected international travel magazine 'Wanderlust' ahead of such sites as the Grand Canyon, the Taj Mahal and the Pyramids of Egypt.

Angkor Wat is the largest religious structure ever built. This cambodian temple is surrounded by a moat 190m wide and 5.5km in length beyond which is a high laterite wall. Passing through the main gatehouse one is struck by the full scale and majesty of the central temple complex at the end of a 350m long causeway. The concentric galleries are faced with bas relief stonework of such quality that after a thousand years in the jungle one can not so much as slip a credit card in the joints between the blocks. These galleries over 800m in length tell the histories and mythologies of the Angkor world. Surely one of the highlights of your southeast asia travel.

Cambodian temples 6km from Siem Reap town.

Access by car, tuk tuk or bicycle. Temple pass required (purchase at entrance or through AboutAsia)

Angkor Thom and Bayon

Angkor Thom was the political capital of the King Jayavarman VII, greatest of the Angkor builders. In its time this was the largest city in the world with over a million inhabitants.

At over 9 square km and completely enclosed by a moat and high laterite wall the city contains at its centre the complex of Bayon. Most visitors will approach the city from the South gate which is fascinating in its own right. Bayon is dominated by the 200 enormous stone faces of King Jayavarman VII on the 54 towers. The bas-relief carvings of Bayon provide a unique insight into everyday Angkor period life.

8km from Siem Reap.

Access by car, tuk tuk or bicycle. Temple pass required (purchase at entrance or through AboutAsia)

Ta Prohm

Probably the most photogenic of the temples; dominated by giant fig trees growing on the structure; Ta Prohm provided the film set for the tomb-raider movies.

The temple is large and was supported by 3,140 villages and 79,365 people. 18 high priests oversaw the ceremonies with 2,740 officials, 2,202 assistants and 615 royal dancers. Impressive as the scale of the operation must have been at the time the temple now is simply a great place to explore and wonder at the interplay of architecture and nature.

10km from Siem Reap.

Access by car, tuk tuk or bicycle. Temple pass required (purchase at entrance or through AboutAsia)

Beng Mealea, Koh Ker and other more distant temples

With ever more visitors to Angkor Wat each year those with a little more time and the urge for adventure will enjoy gtiing away from Siem Reap to visit more distant temples. Usually half emersed in the jungles of Cambodia these places can be a photographer's dream.

Combine these longer day trips and multiday journeys with visits to local villages and waterfalls to discover the real Cambodia beyond the temples of Siem Reap

Tonle Sap water villages
A photographer's dream at either end of the day.

Arrange pre-dawn transport to Tonle Sap from Siem Reap by car or preferably tuk tuk. Experience the cambodian rural scenery emerge from the darkness with the dawn.

Take a boat out around the water villages where all of life happens afloat; homes, work, schools, pig farms; even the catholic church is built on a raft. Visit Prek Toal biosphere for captivating birdlife

13km from Siem Reap.

Access by car, tuk tuk or bicycle.

Buffaloes and Rice paddies

This remains one of the poorest countries in the world despite the end of conflict over a decade ago and the surge in international tourism. Drive a short way out of town and you are transported back 500 years in time.

As you explore the beautiful countryside; the villages and rice paddies, you can not fail to be uplifted by the warmth and optimism of the Khmer people. Everywhere you travel you will encounter people who, though they have little material wealth, show overwhelming hospitality and generosity without any cynicism. Cambodians surely are one of the friendliest people in the world.

The countryside itself is simple but beautiful. When planning your itinerary don't forget to leave some time to see past the obvious Cambodia tourist attractions to explore the real cambodian gem. For most international visitors it is a fast vanishing opportunity to witness a simpler, subsistence lifestyle.

Best seen travelling from a base in Siem Reap

Mondulkiri hilltribes and elephant trekking

Great scenery of forested and grasslands rolling hills. Go elephant trekking through some of Southeast Asia's last great forests.

Above all an opportunity to meet local tribes people and experience that wonderfully warm welcome which can only be discovered by getting off the beaten track.

Full day's drive from Phnom Penh

Ratanakiri forests, national park and local minorities cultures

Far Northeast of Cambodia. Rough roads (axle deep mud in the wet season and choking dust in the dry season) keep the crowds away.

If you want to see cultures in one of SE Asias last great wilderness areas you want to head to Ratanakiri

Pictured is a stilted house of a groom seeking privacy for himself and his new wife.

Phnom Penh

Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda

The Royal Palace is the residence of King Sihanouk in Phnom Penh. There are a number of buildings of note including the impressive Throne Hall, the Silver Pagoda (floored with over 5000 silver tiles) and an iron house given to King Norodom by Napoleon III of France.

One can also see hundreds of gifts which have been presented to the royal family over the years including a 90kg solid gold Buddha encrusted with 9,584 diamonds.

Phnom Penh Airport

Khmer Rouge genocide - Toul Sleng Museum

"Those that forget history are destined to repeat it"

If you seek to understand modern Cambodia as you travel through it and much that you see around you you must be aware of the trauma suffered by the Khmer people in our own lifetimes.

Toul Sleng was a Phnom Penh school converted into a prison and interrogation facility during the period of control of the Khmer Rouge. Thousands were killed here following torture to extract confessions.

Phnom Penh Airport

15km from centre of Phnom Penh

Sihanoukville and the South coast

Cambodia beaches - Crystal clear water and golden sand

Beaches to rival Thailand.

Relatively unspoilt and uncrowded discovery on the Gulf of Thailand.

4 hours drive from Phnom Penh or a flight from Siem Reap