Cambodia is often considered a quick stopover destination for travelers who want to check off seeing the incredible temple of Angkor Wat. And while Angkor Wat does live up to the hype, Cambodia, as a country, is so much more than just its famous temples. The culture, the history (albeit a sad history), the beautiful rural scenery, and of course, the incredible people, make Cambodia a destination worth as much time as you can afford to spend.
Anmol and I spent six days in this incredible country, and we honestly wished we had more time! Our itinerary, however, covered a lot of what makes Cambodia special, in particular, experiencing and connecting with locals. The people of Cambodia are the highlight of the country and the more time you can spend connecting with them, the more you will take away from your visit. We will never forget our time with many of our local guides and the conversations we shared with them.
This six-day itinerary is one of my favorites for any country I have visited. I hope it convinces you to visit Cambodia and spend even more time than we did!
Itinerary Summary
- Day 1: Arrive In Siem Reap
- Day 2: Sime Reap- Angkor Wat
- Day 3: Siem Reap- Local Village Tour
- Day 4: Battambang -Mr Sam Tuk Tuk Tour
- Day 5: Battambang-Soksabike Local Livelihood Bike tour
- Day 6 Siem Reap/Depart
Day 1- Arrival in Siem Reap
Siem Reap is the best place to start your journey as it is home to Cambodia’s most famous temple, Angkor Wat. Day 1, however, is all about getting settled in and acquainted with the lively city of Siem Reap.
Afternoon Plans
If you arrive in the city early, I recommend spending the afternoon visiting the Angkor Museum to get background on the Angkor Temples before you visit tomorrow (don’t worry if you don’t have time for this).
Evening Plans
For your first evening, I recommend heading to the downtown area (around Pub Street), getting lost, and wandering around. Downtown Siem Reap has many restaurants, bars, and shops, so there will be no shortage of entertainment. I recommend not staying out too late today, however, because tomorrow will be a very early start! You will spend more (if not all) evenings in this area, so don’t stress too much if you can’t see it all tonight.
How to Get to Downtown Siem Reap Area
From the airport, you can book a taxi via the Grab App (a local Uber-like app). A Grab to the main area of Siem Reap should cost around $30-$40 and take about one hour to arrive.
Where to Stay
Siem Reap is the perfect place to splurge on a nicer hotel. Not only are higher-end properties very affordable here, but you will also get some time each day to utilize them. Afternoons get hot in Siem Reap, so we found ourselves spending them at the hotel, relaxing and unwinding.
Most hotels are located near Pub Street or a few miles away from that area. Don’t worry if your hotel is not within walking distance to the area, as tuk-tuks are very cheap and easy to call via the Grab App.
We opted to stay at the highly rated Metta Residence Property, which was a few miles away from Pub Street. It was one of the best hotels we have ever stayed at and a true oasis! We also decided to spoil ourselves and book a suite with a private pool! The room cost us around ~$150 a night, which was an absolute steal, in our opinion. If you book via booking.com, they sometimes offer packages for this specific room that include free daily complimentary massages and free happy hour drinks (an incredible deal)!
Vegetarian Food Rec: New Leaf Restaurant
Day 2- Siem Reap/Angkor Wat
Today is the day that most people dream of when they think about visiting Cambodia, the day they get to see the sunrise over Angkor Wat! You will have to leave your hotel by 5 am, but it will absolutely be worth it!
Hiring a Guide for Angkor
The Angkor temple complex is massive and you will need a driver/guide to take you around for the day. We decided to hire Vichay to be our guide, and couldn’t be happier with our choice.
Vichay charges around $100 for a full-day tour of Angkor, which is pricer than the average tuk-tuk tour quote for an Angkor Wat tour (around $20-$40). That being said, we decided to go with Vichay for a few reasons:
- He is an excellent photographer and will take amazing pictures of you around all the temples (at no extra cost).
- He is a knowledgeable guide who will teach you a ton about the history of the temples and the myths and stories behind many of the carvings.
- Vichay’s knowledge can save you a trip to the Angkor Museum if you don’t get the chance to visit on Day 1.
- His transport vehicle is very comfortable and has AC, which is critical in keeping your energy up during a long day of sightseeing.
Given Angkor Wat is one of the most amazing places and things you can see anywhere in the world, we think it’s worth it to spend a little bit more to get a knowledgeable guide, some incredible pictures (seriously, it’s like having a free photoshoot at Angkor Wat), and a comfortable journey.
To contact Vichay please reach out to him via Instagram (angkor_hunter_tour) or through WhatsApp (+855 98 444 847).
Angkor Wat Experience
As for Angkor Wat at sunrise, words can not describe how magical and mystical of an experience this is. With the Angkor temples sitting inside a jungle, you feel like you are in a scene from a movie or a book as you see the biggest temple in the world appear in front of your eyes as the sky brightens. It is something you will never forget!
There are many more amazing temples to see in this surrounding area apart from just Angkor Wat, and Vichay will take you to the key ones. In case you are not booking with Vichay, be sure to ensure your guide takes you to see Ta Prohm and Bayon during your visit. These are two of Angkor’s other must-see temples and should not be missed!
Rest of the Day
Most tours will end around lunchtime (1 pm or so). By this time you will be exhausted and hungry so I recommend grabbing some lunch and then relaxing at your hotel for a few hours. In the late afternoon, you can treat yourself to a massage (at your hotel or downtown) which will feel amazing after a long day of walking and exploring in the heat.
The evening is free for leisure. Enjoy a drink at the famous Pub Street or shop your way through the Siem Reap Market for some souvenirs.
Vegetarian Food Rec: Ellie’s Greek
Day 3- Rural Siem Reap/Village Tour
Having read so much about the Cambodian people and Khemer culture prior to our visit, we wanted to spend as much time as we could interacting and learning about their way of life in this country. Luckily, we found a local family that runs a village tour offering this exact sort of experience. The tour company is called Village Life With Peng, and after much debate on whether to spend our third day doing this tour or something more touristic, we decided to go with the more local experience.
Skipping the Traditional Itinerary
Per many of the online itinerary recommendations, you might be tempted to visit Tonle Sap Lake or see more temples on your third day. While these are both valid options, I highly recommend considering Peng’s tour as an alternative to the touristic sites. We would have loved to spend more time exploring temples, but we felt as though our tour allowed us to get a good sense of what the Angkor complex has to offer. Temple fatigue is also a real thing, and unless you truly are into temples and architecture, we don’t think it is a must to spend a second day seeing more temples (though I wouldn’t blame you if you can’t get enough of it). The floating village, on the other hand, is, without a doubt, unique, but from our research, seems to have become a very commercialized and unauthentic experience (at least the ones near Siem Reap), so we decided to skip this as well.
Peng’s Village Tour Experience
Ultimately, we could not be happier with our choice to book a tour with Peng! The experience was one of the most memorable and wholesome experiences of our entire trip. The tour is private and the itinerary is simple, flexible, and laid back. Peng and his wife will show you around their village, invite you into their home, cook you an incredible meal, and spend plenty of time talking and exchanging stories with you. Getting to learn about life in rural Siem Reap and talking with Peng and his incredibly sweet family is something we will always cherish. If you want to leave Cambodia feeling like you have connected with the people while also helping a local small family-run business, this is the tour for you. It is truly one of the best tours/experiences I have had in Southeast Asia.
Rest of the Day
Upon returning from the village, if you have the energy, I would recommend visiting Artisan’s De Angkor, a well-known souvenir shop near Downtown Siem Reap that supports locals looking to earn an income. The items here are not cheap, but the store offers free tours to all visitors to see how some of the incredible items are made. If you do have some budget, this is a great place to purchase a few things and support a good cause and some incredibly hard-working people.
The rest of the evening can be spent hanging out in the downtown area. Alternatively, you can look into going to the Phare Circus, a cultural show in Downtown Siem Reap.
Day 4- Battambang
It’s time to move on to the second city on this 6-day itinerary, Battambang!
Why We Chose Battambang over Phnom Penh
You might be wondering why we did not choose to visit, the more popular, Phnom Penh instead of Battambang on this itinerary. While we were very interested in visiting killing fields and the S21 museum in Phnom Penh, we generally prefer smaller towns and cities to larger ones, which is why we selected Battambang. Additionally, the author of one of our favorite books about Cambodia during the Khmer Rouge Period, Slow Noodles, was from the city and shared many stories about this city, which tipped the scale in favor of Battambang for us.
How to Get There
To get to Battambang from Siem Reap, you can take a private transfer, which will cost somewhere between $50-$70, or book a bus via 12go (which costs around $10-$15 a person). If you do book a tour with Mr. Sam (more on this below), he can help connect you with private transfer drivers that he knows.
I recommend leaving around 7 am from Siem Reap so that you can arrive at Battambang around 10:30 am and get settled in before Mr Sam’s Tuk Tuk tour. Today’s tour will be a long day so catch up on some sleep during the ride, or take in the amazing countryside views if you feel awake!
Mr. Sam’s Tuk Tuk Tour
If there is one other reason to visit Battambang, it is for the tour we took (and recommend you take as well) with Mr Sam. Mr Sam’s Tuk Tuk tour through Battambang gave us so much insight into the country of Cambodia and its history. Not only will you see some of Battambang’s most famous stopover points during this tour, including the famous suspension bridge, the Killing Caves, Bat Caves, and the Bamboo train ride, but more importantly, you will also get to learn from Mr. Sam throughout the entire journey. Mr Sam has a textbooks worth of knowledge about his country, its current affairs, its history with the Khmer Rouge and so much more. He truly was one of the best guides we have ever had anywhere, and spending a full day with him was more informative, in our opinion, than visiting any museum. There is just something different about getting to hear perspectives and stories from locals!
The tour starts around 12pm and ends around 7 pm. You can grab some dinner around the downtown area after the tour concludes.
Advice For Traveling Around Battambang
A word of caution, Battambang, and its roads, are less developed than Siem Reap or Phnom Penh. You will see more trash and debris on the streets and while driving around see a lot more dust. This shouldn’t deter you from visiting as there truly are some amazing local experiences to be had here. However, while riding around in a Tuk Tuk, I recommend bringing sunglasses, and a mask, in case the dust bothers you.
Day 5- Battambang
Soksabike Tour
We came to Battambang for more local experiences, so it is only fitting we continue that theme today. Another amazing tour, and one we highly recommend, is Soksabikes local livelihood tour. They offer a half day starting at 7:30 am or a full-day longer bike ride. Because it gets hot in the afternoons, we opted for the half-day tour. The tour will take you biking through the villages and streets of Battambang. Along the way, you will stop at several local houses to learn about different things they produce to earn money. During our tour, we saw:
- A family specializing in making Rice Paper
- A family specializing in making dried Banana snack
- A family specializing in making rice Wine
- And a family who makes the town’s most popular Bamboo stick rice cakes.
We also stopped at Battambang’s Killing field (different than the one seen on Day 4).
The tour was an amazing way to continue to see local village life and learn about how families make a living in a small city like Battambang.
After the Tour
After the tour conclusion and lunch, you have two options depending on what time your flight is on Day 6. You can either opt to transfer back to Siem Reap in the evening (what we ended up doing) or spend the remainder of the day in Battambang and explore the night market/downtown area and some of the French Colonial buildings of the city.
Day 6- Depart From Siem Reap Airport
Depending on your flight time and whether you are transferring directly from Battambang to the airport or not (based on what you decided for day 5), you can spend your final day shopping and soaking in any places you may have missed in the city. If nothing else, enjoy some relaxation time after a long but hopefully amazing time in Cambodia.
Have More Time?
If you do have a few more days to extend your trip tp Cambodia, here are several additional suggestions on how you can spend your time:
- Visit Phnom Penh and the country’s most famous killing fields/Khmer Rouge Museum.
- Relax in the sleepy but beautiful town of Kampot.
- Visit an off the beaten town/province of Mondulkiri, and check out the Modulkiri Elephant Project (we really wanted to do this!)
Overall Itinerary Thoughts
I am glad we opted for this slightly unconventional itinerary that skipped some “must dos” and instead let the Cambodian people guide us through their country. It ended up becoming one of my favorite itineraries of any country I have visited!
The village tour with Peng gave us insight into rural Cambodia and the life of villagers, Mr. Sams’ tour gave us more knowledge than any book or museum could about the history and current affairs in Cambodia, and Soksabike’s local livelihood tour showed us more about local economies and the hard work that is put in to make a living. Top that all off with Angkor Wat (and our amazing local guide Vichay), and the trip was as perfect as we could have dreamed.
Cambodia will always have a special place in our hearts, in large part because of the people we met. I hope this itinerary convinces you to visit this amazing country, and if you do, remember to support and travel as locally as possible.
