Discover Cambodia

Over a million visitors each year use Siem Reap as a base for visiting the Angkor temples. The upside its popularity is a wide choice of quality hotels, restaurants, bars and shopping opportunities. A few pockets of authentic Cambodian atmosphere also survive in the local fresh produce market, and numerous performances of Khmer Apsara dance, music and shadow puppetry are staged in the evenings. Visitors interested in traditional Cambodian arts and crafts may also visit workshops of the renowned Artisans Angkor company, which has spearheaded the revival of silk-making, stone and wood carving, lacquering and painting in the area.

To make the most of the soft morning light, an early start is recommended when visiting Angkor Wat, the greatest of all the shrines created by the Khmers, and a vivid testament to the power, ambition and unbridled narcissism of the region’s ancient rulers. Colonnaded galleries of exquisite stone-carved apsaras (celestial dancers) enfold the corn-cob towers of the shrine, reflected to sublime effect in the lotus-dappled moat. No less emblematic of Angkor are the colossal smiling faces adorning the nearby Bayon, in the walled royal city of Angkor Thom, where you’ll also find the famous bas relief panels depicting battles with the Cham – some of the finest stone carving to survive from the Khmer era.

Begin the day at Ta Prohm, a hauntingly beautiful temple where the roots of giant banyans and strangler figs enfold much of the stonework, creating scenes little changed since the French adventurer Henri Mouhot re-discovered Angkor in the 1850s. Later, you’ll continue with your guide north to Banteay Srei, whose show-stealers are the voluptuous female deities standing in intricately framed niches around the base of the main sanctuary towers. Afterwards, consider spending under canvas on our popular ‘Jungle Safari’. Our camp is close to a wonderful temple tower that can be climbed, and which yields magnificent sunrise views over the forest canopy at dawn – surely one of the most magical views Southeast Asia has to offer.

The largest freshwater lake in Asia, Tonle Sap, swells to six times its usual size during the annual monsoons, when the waters of the Mekong back up and start flowing in the opposite direction. Huge numbers of wetland birds congregate on the water at this time. The best place to observe them is the Preak Toul Sanctuary, at the northwestern corner of the lake. Although reachable in a day trip from Siem Reap, it’s well worth spending the night in one of the stilted cottages next to the sanctuary in order to be there at dawn and dusk, when the vast flocks of painted storks and black-headed ibis are at their liveliest.

One of the most scenic drives in Cambodia leads from Siem Reap to Battambang, a venerable old city boasting a bumper crop of colonial-era architecture ranged along leafy, French-style boulevards, and a handful of picturesque temples dotted around the outskirts.

Anyone who enjoyed the dazzling performance by the Phare Ponleu Selpak Circus in Siem Reap may also wish to visit the company’s academy here in Battambang, where disadvantaged youngsters are trained in music, dance, circus acrobatics and juggling.

The Cambodian capital doesn’t feel in quite so much of a rush to embrace the future as its counterparts elsewhere in Southeast Asia. High-rise buildings are beginning to spring up, but they’re still outnumbered by colonial-era shophouses and the flaking facades of French-style villas.

With its ranks of cafés, trinket sellers and strollers, breezy Sisowatch Quay is the place to head after you’ve freshened up from your journey. At the Foreign Correspondents Club, enjoy a sundowner while savouring the views over the confluence of the Tonlé Sap and Mekong Rivers.

Begin your sightseeing with a visit to the splendid Royal Palace and adjacent Silver Pagoda, whose central shrine, lined with thousands of solid silver tiles and marble pillars, hold a Buddha made from an enormous emerald. Then admire the impressive collection of antiquities at the National Museum before joining our guided tour of Boeung Keng Kang Market, where you’ll sample local delicacies such as pungent durian and dragon fruit.

In the afternoon, consider a visit to the Killing Fields memorial, on the outskirts of the city, where a Buddhist stupa containing 8,895 human skulls – all victims of the Khmer Rouge – commemorates the 20,000 people who were put to death here. Phnom Penh’s heart-rending Genocide Museum tells the full story.

As a base for exploring the area, our favourite accommodation is the dreamy Four Rivers Floating Lodge, where rows of luxury canvas tents have been erected on platforms at a picturesque bend in a river. Surrounded on all sides by greenery, you can savour the sounds and sights of the forest from the privacy of your own private sundeck or wooden Hinoki bathtub. No need for plunge pools: simply climb down the ladder in front of your tent and dive into the glassy water of the river.

With guidance from an American NGO, locals from the village of Chi Pat have opened up a network of trails that allow visitors to experience the majestic landscape and forest of the Cardamom Mountains. Treks of varying lengths string together remote villages, bat caves and enigmatic jar burial sites dating from the Khmer era. You can also embark on kayaking trips, join early morning birdwatching parties on misty rivers and swim in pools below thundering waterfalls on the Tatai River.

By far the loveliest coastal retreat in Cambodia is Kep, a town originally founded by the French in 1906, and which has since become popular among wealthy city dwellers, who travel here on weekends in search of the famous local peppered crab. There’s no beach to speak of, but visitors may catch an excursion boat out to nearby Rabbit Island, whose palm-fringed shoreline is scalloped by coves of white sand and turquoise water. Guided trips to hidden cave shrines and rock formations in the dramatic karst hills nearby are options should you wish to extend your stay.

With its dilapidated colonial-era buildings, rows of Chinese-style shophouses and wide, dusty streets, Kampot exists in an appealing time-warp where the pace of life hasn’t picked up since the French left. The riverside location at the foot of the Elephant Mountains adds to its charm. You can kayak, standup paddle board or rent a cycle for a peddle through the sleepy streets. There are also some great cafés to lounge in.

Kampot's pepper is widely regarded as some of the best, and the plantations can be seen around the town. It is possible to visit them to find out more about the growing and processing of the spice and photographers will also want to pay a visit to the salt pans on the outskirts of the town.