Cambodia is fast becoming one of the most popular holiday destinations in Asia. This is not surprising considering that Angkor Wat, which is located in Siem Reap is one of the World Heritage and one of the seven wonders of the world. This article list some of the places of attraction in Siem Reap that you should not miss.

On Day 1, you arrive at Siem Reap International Airport. The Siem Reap International Airport is a relatively small airport. Upon arrival, you are greeted by many friendly Cambodian ground staff. All non-Cambodian visitors that is visiting Cambodia have to complete and embarkation and disembarkation form when entering Cambodia. You are also required to complete a custom declaration form.

Filling up the embarkation, disembarkation and custom declaration form for your Siem Reap travel is a breeze as only very basic information is required. The immigration will also use a computer digital camera to capture your image as you go through the immigration counter. At the Siem Reap immigration counter, your embarkation form will be collected. The disembarkation form that you have completed will be nicely stapled with your passport. The custom declaration form is collected as you leave the terminal building.

Having boarded a long haul Siem Reap flight, we guessed you must be tired and therefore we suggest that the itinerary for this day to be lighter. Siem Reap is a small city in Cambodia and definitely pales in comparison to the much developed Phnom Penh, which served as the capital city of Cambodia.

Siem Reap, though not that developed, has a long history. As a matter of fact, the Angkor city that used to served as the capital city of the Khmer empire was located in Siem Reap. The word Siem Reap simply means defeating the Siamese. In the past, the country Siam (now Thailand) had invaded and occupied the current Siem Reap area. The city adopted the name Siem Reap upon their victory of driving out the Siamese.

Majority of Cambodians today consists of Khmer. Khmer have their own languages that is distinct from Vietnamese but has similar slang to language spoke in Thailand and Laos. Due to the strong initial influences of Hinduism on the Khmer empire, Khmer alphabets somehow looked liked Tamil.

Moving about Siem Reap town is a breeze by riding on the thuk thuk, a local version of their taxis. Thuk thuk can ferry up to 4 passengers. The fares charged usually ranges from USD2 to USD3 to any destination within Siem Reap. As Siem Reap is quite an undeveloped city, the road at some area can be dusty and bumpy.

West Baray

The first destination that you should visit in your Siem Reap tour is the West Baray. West Baray is a man-made reservoir that serves as a catchment pond that provide water and fishing activities to the Cambodian. Baray means a reservoir.

The West Baray is oriented east-west and located at the west of the walled city of Angkor Thom. The size of the West Baray is approximately 8 km by 2.1 km. It is currently the biggest baray at Angkor. In the center of the baray is West Mebon, a Hindu temple.

It is likely that the West Baray was constructed in the 11th century during the reign of King Suryavarman I and King Udayadityavarman II. The water of the baray was initially retained by earth dikes, but there is now an irrigation lock that is built in the baray’s southern dike to irrigate fields to the south.

As you journeyed to the West Baray, you will be able to see for yourself the living condition of the country-side Cambodian. Be prepared to be swarmed by children trying to sell you souvenirs as soon as you alight from your vehicle. The water of the West Baray is still and clear and is today a popular spot for swimming and boat rides.

Artisan d’Angkor

Artisan D’ Angkor is a school set-up to develop the artisan skills of Cambodian. The Artisan d’ Angkor program was initiated by the National Cambodian Institutions, the French Foreign Ministry and the European Union, Chantiers Ecoles de Formation Professionnelle (CEFP).

Young Cambodians between the age of 18 to 25 were selected for the artisans training. Not only the artisans do not need to pay anything during their 2 to 6 months training, they were given living allowance, provided with clothes and tools during the training period.

What can you see at the Artisan d’ Angkor? You will see how the Khmer arts of wood carving, stone carving and silk weaving. Currently about 40% of artisans are working within rural workshops that have been set up in Siem Reap area. If you are interested to buy quality craftsmanship products during your Siem Reap tour, there is a well-managed shop within the Artisan d’ Angkor for you to shop. You may be able to get cheaper similar crafts at the central and old market, but when it comes to quality, none can match the ones you see in the shop here.

You can also visit Angkor Silk Farm to see how silk and silk weaving industry works. Those of you who have visited some parts of China might have visited a silk farm before, but the Angkor Silk Farm is different from those that you have visited so far because you will see the actual physical and demonstration of how the entire process takes place.

Wat Thmei

Wat means temple in Khmer language and Wat Thmei is a temple. During the Khmer Rouge period, many Cambodians have been killed in Killing Fields. When the Khmer Rouge regime came to an end, many mass graves were discovered. Wat Thmei is a temple that currently provide the final resting place to the victims of the Killing Fields. The skeletons and skulls are housed in a glass-walled stupa.

Phnom Bakheng

The word Phnom in the Khmer language means mountain and as you can well guessed, the Phnom Bakheng is located at the top of a mountain. It is located at 1130 meters north of Angkor Wat and 400 meters south of Angkor Thom.

All visitors to Phnom Bakheng entered and leaves by climbing a long steep path with some steps to the east side of the monument. The monument has a height of 67 meters. Due to erosions, all the steps leading to the top of the temple are all very smalls and climbing should be done with extra cautions as once you missed your steps, you will come tumbling down hitting hard rock and the injuries sustained may be severe.

The best time to visit this place is either before sunrise or just before sunset. The sun usually sets at around 5:45pm local time, and you would want to make it to the top to see the panaromic view of the sunset at the Angkor city. Moving to the top from the road at the foot of the mountain takes around 30 minutes, and if you are a slow walker, you should take this into consideration. The sunset over Angkor city is a memorable sight and you should really not miss this sight.

From Phnom Bakheng, it is possible to see the five towers of Angkor Wat in the west, Phnom Bok in the northwest, Phnom Kulen in the east and the West Baray. Phnom Bakheng was built in the ninth century. Making your way down the hill after dusk is a challenge and bringing your own torch light is a must.

Angkor Thom

Angkor Thom was the last capital city of the Khmer empire and was constructed by the king Jayavarman VII. The land area covered by Angkor Thom was around 9 km square and located at the center of the ancient capital is its state temple the Bayon. The Victory Square is immediately to the north. The name Angkor Thom simply means the great city of Angkor.

Angkor Thom is located at the right bank of the Siem Reap River. The south gate of Angkor Thom is 7.2 km north of Siem Reap city and 1.7km away from the Angkor Wat entrance. It is surrounded by 8m high walls and flanked by a moat. Another gate is the Victory Gate that is located 500m north of the east gate. There is also the Victory Way that runs parallel to the east road to the Victory Square and the Royal Palace.

As one enters the south gate of Angkor Thom, they are greeted by a causeway with a row of devas on the left and a row of asuras on the right. These are built in reference to a myth that was popular in Angkor, the Churning of the Sea of Milk. The gateways are 3.5m by 7m and would originally have been closed with wooden doors.

There are many temples within Angkor Thom with some these covered by thick forest and are definitely worth visiting. Some of the structures worth visiting includes the Baphoun, the Elephant and Leper King Terrace, the Phimeanakas Thommanan, the Chaosay, the Ta Keo and the Ta Prohm.

Angkor Wat

Angkor Wat is one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Ankor Wat is a temple complex built for the king Suryavarman II in the early 12th century that serves as his state temple and capital city. It is the best preserved temple at the Angkor site. The temple is the epitome of the classical style of Khmer architecture and has became a symbol of Cambodia.

Most temples in the ancient Angkor city is oriented to the east. However, the Angkor temple is oriented to the west. There are many theory for this. One says that the architect that designed this temple was not favourable of king Suryavarman II and had wished for his downfall. Another theory has it that it was the king’s intention to use it as his funeral temple.

The name Angkor Wat was only used in the 16th century, which means City Temple. Prior to this, the temple was known as Preah Pisnulok, the posthumous title to the king Suryavarman II.

Angkor Wat is the southernmost of Angkor’s main sites. The Angkor Wat was initially constructed as a dedication to Visnu, the Hindu god. In the 14th or 15th century, the temple was converted to a Buddhist temple, which continues to the present day.

Angkor Wat is surrounded by outer wall, 1024m by 802m and is 4.5m high. The wall is further surrounded by a 30m apron of open ground and a moat of 190m wide. Access to the temple is through the earth bank located to the east and a sandstone causeway to the west.

There are 5 towers in the Angkor Wat. There are galleries that run between the towers and there are two further entrances on either side referred to as the elephant gates. The ceilings of the galleries are decorated with lotus rosettes and many of the walls are decorated with dancing figures.

Tonle Sap Lake

The Tonle Sap means large body of water in Cambodia and is also frequently referred to as Large Fresh Water River. The Tonle Sap Lake is a combination of lake and river system and is the biggest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia. It is also an ecological hot spot designated as a UNESCO biosphere in 1997.

The Tonle Sap is also unique for two other reasons. The flow of the Tonle Sap changes direction twice a year. During Cambodia’s dry season from November to May, the Tonle Sap drains into the Mekong River. When heavy rain begins in June, Tonle Sap backs up to form an enormous lake.

For most part of the year, the lake is fairly small and shallow. It is only 1 meter deep with an area of 2700 square km. However, during the monsoon season, the Tonle Sap river that connects to the Mekong river, reverses its flow and the Tonle Sap lake grew in size to cover 16000 square km with a depth of 9 meter.

Old and Central Market

Be sure that you do not miss out the Central Market at Siem Reap city. The Central Market is an excellent place to hunt for souvenirs and cheap T-shirts. Some T-shirts with images of Angkor Wat may be bought at a bargaining price of USD1.50 per piece!

Bargain for anything that you want to buy at the Central Market, Siem Reap. It is very likely that you can get for discount price up to 50% of its original offer price.

Cultural Shows

Many restaurant in Siem Reap city offers dinner buffet that comes with a free performance of traditional Khmer cultural shows. It is a great way to taste the wonderful delicacy of Cambodia and get accustomed to Khmer traditional culture at the same time.

Foot Massage

Siem Reap has one of the most wonderful foot massage centers after Thailand. You can get a 1 hour foot massage for the price of USD8.00 per person. Transport back to your hotel may be arranged by the massage center and is included in the fees. Tipping of USD1 or more is encouraged to be given to the massager or the driver if you are satisfied with their services.

This conclude some of our suggested places for your Siem Reap travel. You may be able to cover all the above places in a 3 full day tour package. One full day should be given to visit the Angkor cities and Angkor Wat.