Cambodia is a beautiful country with a long history. Like many countries that history contains a number of prosperous periods of time, but also some darker stretches. It’s important to review and learn from all points of history to better the future. The Siem Reap ideas listed below will help you get a fuller view of Cambodia’s culture and history.
1. Tour Angkor Wat
Angkor Wat is the largest religious monument in the world by land area. It’s also surrounded by many other temples that made up the city of Angkor, near Siem Reap. This is the top attraction in all of Cambodia and likely the reason you are traveling there in the first place. See our Angkor article for full details on planning a trip to visit Angkor Wat.
2. Take a boat tour of a floating village
Just south of Siem Reap is Cambodia’s largest lake, Tonle Sap. Charter a boat tour to explore one of the famed floating villages to see stilted houses, fisheries, and even a floating hospital. Get a glimpse of the less modern, more traditional lifestyle of Cambodia. Also, for a small fee there is usually an option to go on a quick tour of the flooded mangrove forests.
3. Visit Wat Thmey killing fields
Wat Thmey has a small killing field museum that won’t take too long to go through, but it’s still worth a visit. The museum has stories from survivors of the Kmer Rouge regime that led a genocide resulting in more than 2 million deaths. While it is a sad experience, I think it’s important that people take the time to learn about these atrocities to avoid them happening again. The experience is even more horrifying when you put it into perspective that this didn’t happen very long ago.
4. Siem Reap Pub Street
If you’re looking for a variety of restaurants and live music, check out Pub Street. Siem Reap is a smaller city, so it doesn’t have a very large night life, but Pub Street is still a nice option for some late entertainment. Plus, the food and drinks are cheap. Don’t necessarily stop at the first restaurant you see as the waiters compete for your business. Walk the strip to at least see all of your options before making a decision.
5. Explore Phnom Kulen Waterfalls
Book a guide to pick you up from your hotel and take you on a day trip to Phnom Kulen Waterfalls. Get away from the city life of Siem Reap to see tropical forests and rural communities. The beautiful landscapes and chance to see rural communities make it worth the trip.
6. Visit the landmine museum near Siem Reap
The landmine museum outlines the horrific toll war had on Cambodia. Landmines were heavily used during the Vietnam War and the Khmer Rouge regime. The museum seeks to bring awareness to the gruesome injuries mines continue to inflict to this day. They estimate that millions of active landmines are still in the ground throughout Cambodia.