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Phnom Penh took over from Angkor as Cambodia’s capital city in the 1440s. It is now a pleasant city with many French colonial buildings and plenty to see. This afternoon we'll enjoy a guided visit to the National Museum and a cyclo trip to Wat Phnom.
Overnight Standard Hotel (H+)
This morning we head south from the capital and stop at the town of Takeo and board our speedboats. Phnom Da is spectacular in its remotenesss, a small hilltop with the main shrine overlooking the flooded plains below. Please note that during the dry season (Mar-Apr), when the water levels are low, it may not be possible to visit Phnom Da. We pass through a pre Angkorian system of canals that spreads right up to the Vietnam border. Hundreds of kilometres of canals were dug out around the 8th century and provided water to the Funan Kingdom. Before reaching the sight, we stop at the small museum in the old capital Angkor Borei exhibiting a few of the uncovered finds from this pre-angkorian era. Returning by boat to Takeo we continue south by bus for about 2hrs to Kampot town.
Overnight Standard Hotel (H+) Included meals: Breakfast
In the morning we swap our bus for ‘remorques’; a peculiar local form of transport based on a cart pulled by a motorbike. We spend the morning travelling through the fascinating countryside, observing typical Cambodian scenes on our journey to Phnom Chnork Prassat. Our presence in this little visited area never fails to amuse the friendly locals! We then continue a short distance by bus to Kep in time to enjoy sunset in this eerie colonial town.
Today we head out by boat to the small island Ko Tonsay, or Rabbit Island as it is commonly known. Rabbit Island, located just 3 miles off shore from Kep, is a small and peaceful island with a fishing hamlet, a handful of low scale tourist developments and two sand beaches. The sea here is shallow and has a long slope, making it excellent for swimming. We spend our time exploring the island by foot, just 2km square, relaxing and swimming. Kep Crab with Kampot pepper is a local speciality and we recommend trying it at one of the local, simple seafood restaurants. Rick Stein featured one of these shack restaurants and the marvellous food on TV. We return to Kep by boat in the late afternoon.
After an early departure we leave the coast behind and head back to Phnom Penh. En route to the city we stop at the ‘Killing Fields’ of Choeung Ek (the memorial stupa is a huge glass tower filled with human skulls – a sombre reminder of the scale of Pol Pot’s atrocities). We'll also visit Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (a High School which became the Khmer Rouge’s main torture and interrogation centre). You should be aware that many people find Tuol Sleng and the ‘Killing Fields’ quite distressing. The afternoon is free to enjoy the vibrant capital.
We spend the morning visiting the impressive Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda. After lunch we continue our adventure and drive to the town of Skoun, where we can try the local delicacy of fried spiders(!) Our journey then continues by bus to Kompong Cham, Cambodia's fourth largest city. Later we aim to organise a cycle ride (optional) to visit the villages on the beautiful island of Koh Paen, which is joined to the mainland by a bamboo bridge. Alternatively you may choose to hire a local tuk tuk to drive up to Phnom Pros and Phrom Srei; two hills which offer great views along the Mekong.
This morning we board our bus and drive to Wat Nakor, which is interesting as it houses a modern working wat inside the 11th century Khmer temple ruins. Originally constructed as a Mahayana Buddhist Shrine, it was rebuilt in the 15th century and converted to a Theravadan temple. We reach our overnight stop at Kratie which was quite well preserved during the wars and one can still see an array of older Khmer and French houses around the town. This afternoon we will have a unique opportunity to spot the rare irrawaddy dolphins. These are some of the last freshwater dolphins that live in the Mekong and we take to small boats for a peaceful sighting session.
This morning we travel to Kompong Cham, first by boat passing floating villages and bathing buffalos to name but a few of the sights along the way. We swap to a bus to continue our journey to Kompong Thom with stops en route at Santuk Silk Farm to learn silk production process and visit a village with stone masons
Overnight Cabin (H) Included meals: Breakfast
This morning we drive to the beautiful pre- Angkorian temple sight at Sambor Prei Kuk. Sambor Prei Kuk was the capital of the Chenla kingdom around the 6th-7th century and maintained its importance during the Angkor period. Today over 100 temples are scattered around the forest and one really has the sense of a ‘lost city’. Our journey this afternoon takes us north to Siem Reap, where we base ourselves in the small town for the next 3 nights, a few kilometres south of the amazing temple complex.
Over the next 3 days we will explore this amazing ruined city (actually a series of cities), built between the 9th and the 13th centuries by the Khmer kings. Situated deep in the Cambodian jungle it is spread out over some 155 square kilometres, scattered with magnificent carved stone temples, elegant sculptures and incredible bas reliefs. Our sightseeing will take us to the 2nd Angkor capital which includes the temples of Prasat Kravan, Sra Srang, and East Mebon and later we will visit Angkor Wat- the best known and most breathtaking of all the sights and a highlight of any visit to Angkor. Originally built as a funerary temple for Suryavarman ll in honour of Vishnu, the temple is unique as it faces west – symbolically the direction of death. It is a very grand and imposing structure but its most stunning features are the extensive and intricately carved bas reliefs that stretch throughout the galleries and inner temples. We continue our exploration with a visit to the temples of King Jayavarman Vll, reputedly Angkor’s greatest king. The fortified city of Angkor Thom which he had built at the end of the 12th Century is enclosed by a square wall 8 metres high with five 20 metre high monumental gates decorated with stone elephant trunks. Originally the moat was said to be inhabited by crocodiles and each gate was protected by huge statues of 54 different gods. The city contains another of Angkor’s true gems – The Bayon. Not nearly as impressive as Angkor Wat from a distance, The Bayon is nevertheless incredible for its maze of corridors, gothic style towers and magical central temples with 1200 metres of the finest bas reliefs depicting scenes of every day life in 12th Century Cambodia. From Angkor Thom we will walk to Phimeanakas, located in the middle of the old Royal Palace area, and to the Terrace of the Elephants and the Leper King. We will also visit Banteay Srei with the most stunning carved lintels at Angkor and Banteay Samre, a fortified temple built by Suryavarman II and located far away from the normal temple crowds. Another highlight is Ta Phrom, a temple half consumed by the Cambodian jungle and famous in the west as the film location for “Tomb Raider”. While in Siem Reap we will also visit the Cambodian Landmine Museum, where education and support are provided for dozens of children whose bodies, hearts and minds have been affected by landmines. Time permitting, it may be possible to arrange an optional boat excursion on Tonle Sap lake.
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