Cambodia

Cambodia, in a few days

From the temples of Angkor to the white sand of Koh Rong, by way of Battambang and Phnom Penh: the map, what is worth booking, everything that costs nothing, and where to sleep at three budgets.

Day by day

1

Angkor and Siem Reap

Days 1-3

Capital of the Khmer empire from the ninth to the fifteenth century. Angkor Wat is the largest religious monument in the world, and Siem Reap is the town that grew up to serve it.

🎟️ Worth booking

• Angkor temples: one-day pass and guideFull day · from €60
  The full circuit with someone who can read the carvings: Angkor Wat, the stone faces of the Bayon, and the roots holding up Ta Prohm.
• Sunrise over Angkor WatMorning · from €15
  An early start for the moment the five towers come up behind the reflecting pool. Crowded, and still worth the alarm.

✦ Free to visit

• Siem Reap night market
• Tonle Sap lake
• Pub Street
• The floating villages

📲 Book things to do in Angkor and Siem Reap on GetYourGuide

2

Battambang

Days 4-5 · 🚌 Bus 3h

Colonial shopfronts, the bamboo railway, and rice country that has not been rearranged for visitors.

🎟️ Worth booking

• Bamboo train and the cavesHalf day · from €25
  A plank on wheels running the old rails out of Battambang, then the limestone caves in the hills above town.
• Khmer cooking classHalf day · from €20
  The market first, then the kitchen, and the balance of sour, salt and sweet that holds Khmer food together.

✦ Free to visit

• The colonial streets
• The rice paddies by bike
• Phnom Sampeau
• The markets

📲 Book things to do in Battambang on GetYourGuide

3

Phnom Penh

Days 6-7 · 🚌 Bus 5h

The capital, with its gilded Royal Palace on the river. The S-21 memorial keeps the record of the Khmer Rouge years, 1975 to 1979.

🎟️ Worth booking

• Royal Palace and the Silver PagodaHalf day · from €15
  The king still lives here. The pagoda floor is laid with five thousand silver tiles, most of them kept under carpet.
• S-21 and Choeung Ek, guidedHalf day · from €30
  The school turned prison, and the killing field outside town. Hard going, and the reason to go with a guide.

✦ Free to visit

• The riverfront
• The Art Deco central market
• Wat Phnom
• The French quarter

📲 Book things to do in Phnom Penh on GetYourGuide

4

Koh Rong

Days 8-10 · 🚌 Bus + Boat ~5h

White sand, warm water, and plankton that lights up after dark. Very little infrastructure, which is rather the point.

🎟️ Worth booking

• Snorkelling and bioluminescent planktonHalf day · from €30
  Reef by day, then a night swim where every movement lights the water blue.

✦ Free to visit

• White sand beaches
• Turquoise water
• Glowing plankton
• Snorkelling straight off the beach

📲 Book things to do in Koh Rong on GetYourGuide

Worth sorting before you go

Buses and boats · Comfortable coaches link the towns. A boat, or a short flight, takes you down to the southern islands.

📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly

🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta

🚗 Car hire
Compare the agencies before you land.
Compare · Booking

💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut

🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer

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Flavours & local habits

🍽️ Worth tasting

• Amok: fish in a mild coconut curry, steamed in a banana leaf.
• Lok lak: seared beef with a dipping sauce of lime and Kampot pepper.
• Nom banh chok: rice noodles under a green fish curry, eaten at breakfast.
• Bai sach chrouk: grilled pork over rice, the other breakfast.
• Kampot pepper: among the best grown anywhere, and cheap at the source.

⚠️ Best avoided

• Buy the Angkor pass at the official ticket office, and cover shoulders and knees at the temples.
• Agree the tuk-tuk fare before you get in, and ignore anyone who tells you a site is closed today.
• Drink bottled water, and carry small US dollar notes: change usually comes back in riel.
• Do not buy antiquities. Taking them out of the country is illegal.

Words that help

English ↔ Khmer

✈️ Flight delayed by 3 hours or more, or cancelled? You may be owed up to €600. Check your flight on AirHelp.

The practical page

Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/cambodia

Packing checklist

Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.