Comprehensive Cambodia Itinerary

Upon arrival at Phnom Penh international airport, you will be welcomed by your private local guide who will escort you directly to your hotel for check in.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

Enjoy a half day tour with a local vehicle called a “cyclo”. This cyclo tour includes a visit to the Silver Pagoda, Royal Palace, National Museum and Wat Phnom. If time permits, visit “Champey Academy of Arts”. (Closed on weekends and public holidays.)

Note: During your visit to the Royal Palace, you should wear shirts or blouses covering shouldersand arms and long skirts or trousers covering legs.

Lunch is at a local restaurant.

In the afternoon, tour with a car to visit Toul Sleng Museum and the Russian Market.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

Depart from Phnom Penh to Kratie via Kampong Cham (approximately a 6 – hour drive).

Stop en route for a visit to Skun which is called “spider village” because of its famous snack of fried tarantulas. The spiders are caught in the soft ground of the surrounding countryside and dug out of their burrows.

Visit AMICA, a non-profit association. It aims to support the brave people who suffered from past horrors.

Lunch is at a local restaurant.

Visit Mekong River dolphins at Kampi. Upon arrival in Kratie town, take a small boat on the Mekong River at Prek Kampi where you may see depending on the season some freshwater dolphins. They spend the dry season in deep pool refuges north of Kratie.

On the way, you will taste sticky rice called Krolan. This is made by mixing sticky rice with coconut, beans and is cooked in bamboo tubes. Kratie is famous for this.

Upon arrival in Kratie, take the Rajabori Villa’s boat to Koh Trong Island. It is a 15 – minute boat ride. Then you will be transferred by car or tuk – tuk for check in. Rest of the day is at leisure.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

Take a half day bike tour to discover local rural life of Koh Trong Village and stop on the way to taste some local fruits.

Visit Wat Ty Pram Kbal Koh Trong. In the pagoda grounds, you will find a tree planting rehabilitation project. There, you will get a tree seeding, a small shovel and a piece of land to plant your own “family tree” as well as a wooden name plaque to put next to your plant. In the future, you will be able to return to the island to check its progress.

Lunch will be served at a homestay or a Koh Trong community restaurant.

Take the hotel’s boat to Kratie town.

Visit Wat Rokakandal that was constructed at the beginning of the 19th century. It is the oldest preserved pagoda in Cambodia. The interior decorations echo those of pagodas in Luang Prabang, Laos but the roof is in the classic Khmer style.

Drive overland from Kratie to Kampong Thom via Kampong Cham which takes around seven hours.

Upon arrival, check into the hotel.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

This morning, drive about 40 minutes on a paved road to explore the pre-Angkorian Chenla capital, Prasat Sambor Prei Kuk.

Visit Grand Preah Khan or Preah Khan Kampong Svay (around a 2h 30m drive).

First stop at Prasat Preah Stung (Prohm) Temple and continue by heading west to the Boeng Sre (Sre Lake) or so – called lotus pond where there is a temple nearby on its bank called Prasat Sre Temple.

Drive back to Preah Khan or Prasat Thom Temple, the most impressive temple to visit.

Enjoy a picnic box lunch.

Visit Mebon Temple located on the hill. The temple is a single undestroyed tower with a Garuda bas-relief.

Continue directly to Preah Vihear province approximately a 2-3 hour drive on red soil and paved roads via Svay Paat Village.

Upon arrival in Preah Vihear, check into the hotel.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

Transfer to Preah Vihear Temple which is approximately 40 minutes from town. You will be driven up to the hill by a 4×4 to visit the amazing Khmer ancient temples of Preah Vihear on the sacred mountain of Dong Rek Mountain Ranges, extending for over 700 meters on the top of the Dangrek Mountains.

Enjoy a picnic lunch on site.

Depart from Preah Vihear Temple to Koh Ker, approximately a three – hour drive on paved and red soil roads.

Visit Koh Ker Temples and a single pyramid temple that dates from the late 9th to mid-12th centuries. This area is covered with over 80 ruined temples, this being the most impressive one. Simple in structure, it lacks the extreme sophistication of later twelfth and thirteenth-century temples. It is a stunning temple.

Departure from Koh Ker to Siem Reap. The drive is approximately three hours on paved and red soil roads.

Upon arrival in Siem Reap, transfer to the hotel for check in.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

Visit the great South Gate of Angkor Thom, Bayon, Terrace of Elephants and Terrace of Leper King by tuk- tuk.

Lunch is at a local restaurant.

In the afternoon, visit Angkor Wat Temple.

Note: To visit the Bakan Tower of Angkor Wat Temple, visitors are required to wear proper attire, covering shoulders and knees to show their respect. This temple is still considered a sacrificial site for the Khmer people (no short skirts or short trousers). Children under twelve years old are not allowed to climb up the tower. The tower will be closed on the Buddhist Sabbath days, the Buddhist religious days and four days a month in accordance with the Lunar Calendar.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

Drive out of Siem Reap to visit Banteay Srei Temple and Banteay Samré Temple.

Note: During the visit of Banteay Srei Temple, visitors should wear shirts or blouses covering shoulders and arms and long skirts or trousers covering legs (no short skirts or short trousers).

Lunch will be served at the Bong Thom Homestay. It is like a small country side village with a beautiful garden, rice fields and veggies in which to enjoy your meal. The homestay’s project supports the local community and provides free English training and school materials for children.

On the way back from Banteay Srei Temple, stop in a village for a fresh coconut drink to observe how Cambodian people prepare the sugar palm and work in the rice fields (depending upon the season).

In the afternoon, visit Ta Prohm, Preah Khan, Neak Pean and view the sunset from Pre Rup Temple.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

After breakfast, transfer by road from Siem Reap to Battambang. You will stop to visit the Silk farm in Pouk and witness the process of how to make some of the finest silk worldwide.

NOTE: The road from Siem Reap to Battambang is under construction and the driving will take approximately 4-5 hours by car without visiting along the way.

Lunch is at a local restaurant.

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Transfer from Battambang to Siem Reap by boat (around 6-7 hours and is best from August to February). Cruise on the Sangke River and cross Tonle Sap Lake. Admire the wonderful landscape and the daily life along the river. Picnic lunch on board.

Upon arrival in Battambang, transfer to the hotel for check in. The rest of the day is free at leisure.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

This morning, experience a local livelihoods tour. You will discover some of the artisans who open their homes/workshops: sculptors, manufacturers of incense, rice cakes, rice wine, Khmer noodle’s production, produce rice paper, prahoc (typical Cambodian fish paste) and Krolan (sticky rice stuffed in bamboo). In the village, you will taste Krolan and local fruit. (Some of these activities can change according to the season.)

Lunch is at a local restaurant.

Visit Wat Kor Village and a very old traditional Khmer house that dates from 1920. The owner will tell you the story of this house made of precious wood, which escaped destruction during the Khmer Rouge. The village, typical with the many houses of the last century, is home to fruit vendors and farmers who come daily to the market to sell their crops.

Afternoon, visit Phare School which is a Cambodian non-governmental organization (NGO) aiming to support community development through providing social, educational and cultural services to children and their families. Note: The school is closed every Saturday, Sunday and during public holidays.

Take an art gallery tour (private tour) at Sangker Gallery.

Tonight, embark on a culinary journey with “Battambang Foodie Tour”. This foodie tour will take place in the old colonial quarter of Battambang and along the banks of the Sangker River. Local Khmer cuisine will be on the menu. You will stop at several food stalls with your guide to try the local delicacies. You will end the tour with a glass of wine and a selection of Khmer desserts at the “bric-a-brac” shop, sitting along the sidewalk and observing the authentic local life after dark. This tour is from 6pm to about 8:30pm.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

Continue your journey to Phnom Penh approximately an 8 – 10 hour drive including stops on the way and lunch.

From Battambang to Phnom Penh you will be crossing four provinces: Pusat, Kompong Chhnang, Kompong Speu and Kandal Province. Among these four provinces you will stop at Kompong Chhnang to see traditional handmade pottery.

During harvest season, you will have an authentic experience to see the harvesting of the sugar plum and learn more about the daily life style of the local people in this province. The visit is about 1 – 1 1/2 hours.

Lunch is at a local restaurant along the way.

About 46 km from Phnom Penh, visit Koh Chen, an island on Tonle Sap River, specializing in carvings of silver or copper: trays of all sizes, ornaments used during wedding ceremonies in pagodas, animal figures, boxes and jewelry.

Continue to Phnom Penh and upon arrival, transfer to the hotel.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

Transfer overland with the driver and no guide on a very smooth road with nice scenery along the way from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville. This is approximately a 5 – 6 hour drive.

Upon arrival in Sihanoukville, check into the hotel.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

Enjoy the beach. Day is at leisure with no guide or driver.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

Enjoy the beach. Day is at leisure with no guide or driver.

Breakfast is at the hotel.

The day is free at leisure until the appointed time to transfer to Phnom Penh airport for your departure flight.