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 Traveller's Tales: Places to go and see in Siem Reap, Cambodia
Take a tour of the top places to go in Siem Reap, Cambodia. You may read about must see places and activities in the area. Also, you might want to read our
Angkor / Siem Reap city guide,
and Phnom Penh city guide.
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| L Ly |
31 May 2005 |
Stayed at Angkor Saphir Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Siem Reap is much more westernized than I thought it would be. One could go and never eat Cambodian food because of the number of American/Western options. Pub Street is an area that has only western bars/restaurants, which is nice. But tourists should try and avoid spending all their time there as they would miss the real Cambodia.
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| I Baroni |
17 May 2005 |
Stayed at Borei Angkor Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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To visit all the temples you need to buy a pass: US$20 one day, US$40 3 days, US$60 6 days. You need a passport picture! The must see: Angkor Wat, Bayon, TaProhn, the rest you can skip if you don't have lots of time. Take 1/2 day for the Floating Village (US$13 pp)1 1/2h tour. Rent a Tuk-Tuk (US$6 1/2day) to visit the town. The open air war museum is a nice change from all the temples. AngkorWeb, opposite Provincial Hospital, for $l 1hr internet. Go to the Old market for local souvenirs. You can pay everywhere in US$, but have small notes ready. If you can, visit Siem Reap in the low season, when there are less tourists and looks less commeercial!
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| L Barratt |
26 April 2005 |
Stayed at Bopha Angkor - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Went to the floating villages. Worth going to. We hired a taxi for the day. Actually the taxi that brought us from the airport. It cost approx £15 for the day. You have to pay a fee at a checkpoint before getting there but this includes the boat that takes you around. The boat trip was approx 1-2 hours. The road is pretty bad getting there but you see a lot of life on the way.
On the way back we went into Raffles hotel for lunch.It was worth it just to see it and it wasn't very expensive. The taxi also took us to see the Landmines museum run by an ex Khmer Soldier. They have volunteers from this country helping there as they run a sort of orphanage for children that are amputees. It really makes you think. Very interesting place.
Of course we went to see Angkor Wat. We only spent one day here and found that it was enough for us. We hired a taxi again for the day with a guide. It was 20 dollars each to get in plus 45 dollars for the taxi and guide. It was really beautiful. One other thing that we saw was a cultural dance at a hotel just two streets away from our hotel. Can't remember the name of the hotel but it was in a 4-5 star small hotel which had a theatre next to it which I think was the National Dance Theatre. Dinner was included and it was very, very good. More expensive than most of the other shows (like double) but worth it.
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| C Banton |
04 April 2005 |
Stayed at Preah Khan Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Siem Reap ia a must see destination - the size of the ruins is astounding as was the size of their Empire. Nothing compares to seeing Angkor Wat - and I have seen most there is to see at least in Asia. To understand the magnitude of the atrocity of the Pol Pot Khmer regime and to realise how far Cambodia has moved forward in a relatively short period of time is amazing. They will be fully back on their feet within 10 years for certain. The local cuisine is compartatively mediocre in comparison to Vietnamese and Thai cooking, but a brilliant French restaurant in a courtyard at the back of a library/art gallery was the culinary highlight for me. Definitely Angkor Wat is a must see - two full days of sight seeing is sufficient and if you are lucky enough to have a good driver and tour guide (ask for No. 0091) then all the better.
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| K Hunkeler |
28 March 2005 |
Stayed at FCC Angkor - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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We did take a trip to Angkor Wat and some of the other ancient temples and it was beautiful and very impressive. Our favorite was the Bayon and should not be missed. For all the trips and everything else it is recommended to always ask for the prices in advance to avoid surprises. We went to the Victoria Hotel for lunch and dinner a couple of times, the service and the food was very good. The restaurants in Angkor are much more reasonable than in a lot of other places in Asia. A lot of tourists go to the old market area where all of the bars and restaurants are. There is very good value for the money, good to ask for the Siem Reap Visitors guide which is free and is available at most hotels and shops. It explains the different temple areas and gives very good info about trips and restaurants.
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| G Schaafsma |
27 March 2005 |
Stayed at Mysteres d' Angkor - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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I traveled to Siem Reap/Angkor from Phnom Penh. I met a super-friendly/knowledgeable driver named Nol (cell phone 855.12.998.352) at the airport in PP. He took me around PP for the night, and made arrangements for me to be driven around by an associate of his in Siem Reap. These guys are well worth the $20 or so a day you pay them. Tuk Tuks are fun for a short ride, but if you are seeing temples all day, you need a car with airconditioning. Saw most of the temples in Angkor over 2 days, and saw the main highlights of PP, including the Killing Fields, Royal Palace, Tuol Sleng museum, etc.
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| T Rothschild |
13 March 2005 |
Stayed at Borei Angkor Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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We had an absolutely wonderful time in SR. We travel alot & this trip was no exception. The people in this wonderful country are doing such an amazing job considering the devastation they have suffered time & time again. We used Saron Soeun as our tour guide. He was fantastic! His english is great & his knowledge of the temples is amazing.You can look at Saron's web site at www.sarontours.com. We had three days in SR & had Saron as our guide for 2 days. We found that this was ample time to spend around the temples. We pretty much saw every temple in the area & even went out to Bantreay Srei which is 35km out of Siem Reap. We did these temples in great detail & didnt feel like we skimmed over them at all.
By the 3rd day we were most happy to have the day to ourselves to do a bit of shopping & go back out to Angkor Wat in the pm for one last look. Angkor Wat is best in the am. The crowds are much less & you can have many spots to yourself. Would suggest going out there in the am to do the big tour & then go there again one arvo for a look with the sun setting,but the crowds at this time are huge & the place takes on a whole different experience-not as pleasant as in the morning when it is all still a little mysterious.
If you are there on a Fri or Sat nite, please take an hour out of your time & go and see Beatocello. He is the Western Doctor who has spent his life dedicated to building Children's hospitals in PP & SR & caring for those who cannot get care. He plays the Cello and sings a little,which is quite entertaining. He plays in the Children’s hospital at 7.15pm for one hour & its free. The more important part about this is he shows 2 movies which will change the way you will think forever(not gorey)just eye opening. If you can please go, make a donation to this very necessary cause & if you are there during the opening hours of the hospital, please go and give blood. I know that this sounds like a scary thing to do in such a poor country, but I can assure you that it is totally safe. These children need us to help. Please dont just be a tourist, give something back to these people who have had so much taken away from them. I urge you. We had the best time in Cambodia & are already planning our next trip back there.
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| M Betz |
05 March 2005 |
Stayed at Ta Prohm - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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If you're not on a package tour, speak with several tuk-tuk drivers and find one who speaks passable English and knows something about Angkor Wat, then hire him for the day (arund $10, plus drinks). It may be more interesting.
If you're going in the dry season, and if you decide to see the floating market, avoid, at all costs, taking a tuk-tuk to the boats! Take car or bus. The unpaved riverbed they use for a road when the water is low results in the tuk-tuk ride from hell. Three days later my kidneys still hurt.
Take the time to see the war museum. The collection of junk weaponry is very uninspired, almost boring. But the attraction is to talk to Mr. Cat, as he says his friends call him. Because he has 9 lives. After he relates his life story and shows you all his war wounds, you'll really think he does have 9 lives. And, if, after hearing of the unspeakable tragedy visited upon him and his family by the war, land mines, etc., you don't have a king-sized lump in your throat, you're not human.
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| J Stone |
26 February 2005 |
Stayed at Angkor Saphir Hotel - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Venture beyond the temples to the open markets around Angkor Wat to avoid the tourist hoards. Get their soon-hotel development is booming and the serenity of the temples is rapidly being ruined by too many tourists. Make sure you are there for two sunrises and two sunsets--no need to stay longer. U.S. dollar happily accepted everywhere, but bring home some local currency (a 500 denomination has Angkor Wat depicted--a Cambodian national cultural treasure)!
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| S Schiff |
01 February 2005 |
Stayed at Shinta Mani - Siem Reap, Cambodia.
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Tuktuks are cheap and always available (for $1) to go about town. Often they are willing to wait for your return trip. For temple hopping, a private car with driver is easily arranged by the hotel and, in the heat of the day, that A/C was most welcome between stops. The 'sunset' from the hill was too hazy to merit the tourist-marathon climb so check the sky before you trek up. The boat ride to the Lake Tonle Sap floating village is dicey. Make sure that you are in a working boat which can go reasonably fast, without spewing foul exhaust, AND with life jackets. We learned this the hard way and had to beg a ride from other tourists when our assigned boat broke down. The floating village itself was of interest if in the area seeing other things but not really worth a special trip.
Local restaurants are cheap. I often over-ordered so that I could try more dishes, and then had the leftovers bagged with extra rice, to give to the many street people. They were always most grateful for the food and this is preferrable to giving money as you are sure that the mother, child, or land mine victim benefits directly. A visit to the Angkor Hospital for Children, a small 45 bed concern that emphasizes education and training along with care, was most interesting. They have a charitable arm, operated by Friends Without Borders, that uses all but 8% of the funds directly for programs and patient care.(Do NOT confuse this hospital with the large, slick, BEATCELLO concern nearby).
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