The northern Cambodian town of Siem Reap, is the main stop off for tourists visiting the UNESCO world heritage site, Angkor Archaeological Park. It’s sleepy, village feel also makes it a popular destination for digital nomads and other expats. Many of which have traded life in the rat races to set up NGO’s, yoga retreats, and a variety of other ethical business concerns.
Many tourists, both foreign and domestic, come to Siem Reap to visit the temples at Angkor Wat. While travelling through Asia it is easy to become used to the sight of the temples, but the sheer size and magnificence of the Angkor Wat complex overwhelms the visitor. There would be about 100 temples in the whole area with the most famous being the massive Angkor Wat and the ancient walled city of Angkor Thom. Another captivating section is the Elephant Terrace which at 350 metres long has visitors realising that this is the epicentre of ancient civilisation.
Siem Reap, literally translates as “Siam Defeated”. These days, the rampaging hordes are limited to the droves of tourists heading to Angkor Wat, making this once quaint village largest boomtown and construction site in Cambodia. It’s still quite laid-back though, and all in all a pleasant place to stay while touring the temples. Siem Reap offers a nice compromise between observing Cambodian life and enjoying modern amenities, services and entertainment. This is, in part, thanks to the large expatriate community in Siem Reap. As business has increased, so have the numbers of people wanting your custom, and so have the prices, which are often double or more what you would pay elsewhere in Cambodia.
Getting Around Siem Reap
In the town centre it is completely normal to be constantly propositioned for motodop and tuk-tuk rides, along with everything else which drivers may be able to offer to you. While it can be annoying, try not to take it too personally, as the drivers are just trying to make a living and in a lot of cases are the main breadwinner for their extended family.
On Foot
Most of the sights in the centre of Siem Reap can be seen on foot. For the foot-sore and sun-weary, you’ll have plenty of offers from locals on motorbikes and Tuk Tuks.
By Bicycle
Siem Reap is pretty flat and getting around on a bicycle is perhaps the most enjoyable, and eco friendly way of getting around town. Just be sure to lock up your bike once you dismount.
Some hotels and guesthouses provide bicycles free for “round town” use, others charge guests a minimal fee for use of the bikes. It’s also a great way to see Angkor at your own pace – the terrain is mostly flat and most of the surrounding roads are decent. You should leave early to avoid the midday heat. As of 2008, the electric bicycle renting agency is no longer in business. There are,however, plenty of places to hire bicycles around town for a few dollars a day.
By Motorbike
You can hire a motodop (motorbike taxi with driver) for a full day for US$10-15 or so. Some motodops will be able to provide you with a helmet, others don’t carry a spare, if this is of concern, ask the driver before hopping on the back. The rental of motorbikes to tourists in Siem Reap used to be prohibited, but this seems to no longer be the case as there are several places offering motorbikes for hire around town.
By Tuk-Tuk
Tuk-tuk drivers can be hired for US$30/day to take you wherever you like, they will arrange meeting places with you or wait where you tell them to. They are a great way of seeing your surroundings without the barrier of a car window! You will not find it hard to find a tuk-tuk, as you will be offered the service everywhere you walk on the streets, especially in the touristy areas such as Pub Street. Always negotiate your fera before getting in, and never pay until after everything you have arranged is completed.
By Car
Hotels are usually happy to arrange a car w and driver for you, or you can use one of the many ride hailing apps such as Grab or PassApp; expect to pay around US$30-35 per day, this is a good way to visit the temples if time is short. On arrival at the airport there is an official taxi service, which is available at the airport for the fee of US$10 to the city and payable to the counter at the airport. Whilst in the taxi you will more than likely be offered the services of the car and the driver for US$35/day, which is very good value if you want to visit several temples in one day. Cars, unlike Tuk Tuks also have the added luxury of air conditioning, which you may be craving after walking around the temples for a couple of hours. Another benefit of the official taxis are that the driver will usually speak English, have had training, and will hold a proper driving license. They will also know the temples and surrounding area like the back of their hand.
The Tourist Transport Association also has an office just behind the tourist information office in Siem Reap, which you can contact if you have any questions or queries. Their services and prices are listed on the back of the receipt you receive when you pay the US$10 at the airport for the trip into town, so make sure to hang on to it.
Siem Reap Shopping
Heritage Friendly Businesses
The large, flashy souvenir shops around town, complete with temple-style decorations and a surplus of staff are best avoided as they happily charge 2-5x the going price elsewhere in town.
Heritage Watch, a non-profit organization, has launched a campaign that aims to encourage support for Cambodia’s arts, culture, heritage and development. Heritage Friendly certified businesses give back to the communities that manufacture handicrafts and are permitted to display either a gold or silver Heritage Friendly logo.
Angkor Market
As Siem Reap has grown it has attracted several of the supermarket chains that have sprung up in Phnom Penh. Angkor Market, Sivatha Blvd. is Siem Reap’s largest supermarket, offering a good range of food, snacks, alcohol and even some souvenirs. They stock a range of imported foods and beer from both sides of the Atllantic, so if you’re craving something from home, it’s likely they have it.
Siem Reap Markets
Psar Chas (Old Market), is located to the south of town. The market sells a reasonably varied collection of reproduction artifacts and tourist souvenirs. Please don’t buy anything purporting to be antique; it probably isn’t a genuine antique, and if it is, it is most likely stolen.
Central Market, at the corner of Sivatha Blvd and Achamean Street. Offers an eclectic collection of clothes and trinkets for good prices. A bit of friendly haggling is expected in Cambodian markets, so don’t forget to negotiate down the price. Most of the sellers carry a similar selection of goods, making it easy to shop around and find the cheapest price. Many of the goods here cannot be found in Thailand.
Khmer Ceramics
Khmer Ceramics and Fine Arts Centre, on river road (#207). The Khmer ceramics and Bronzes Centre trains and sells the work of young Cambodians in Khmer ceramic and bronze arts. They also host half-day introductory courses in ceramics and bronze casting for both adults and children at the centre. Guests are instructed by local artisans in various khmer art techniques.
Places To Eat in Siem Reap
There are plenty of restaurants in Siem Reap, and most visitors have no trouble finding something which suits their tastes and budget. If you don’t want to go out, most hotels have a basic restaurant attached, and can quickly whip up a decent fried rice.
Head into the town centre for a wide range of western and Khmer options. As a popular tourist town, Siem Reap has whole streets catering for travellers tastes, with pizzas, hamburgers, or tasty westernised Khmer offerings such as Amok and ‘Khmer curry’. For a true Khmer dining experience, try one of the authentic Karaoke-style restaurants hidden in the backstreets of the town centre, ask moto or tuk-tuk drivers, as they will no doubt know where to take you.
Elia Greek Kitchen Siem Reap
Overview Elia Greek Kitchen is located in an old colonial building in the “Pub Street” area of Siem Reap’s Old Town. Much of the downstairs…
Budget Eats
The street west of Pub Street is filled with a wide variety of stalls, each serving up simple yet filling meals for $1-2USD apiece, the choice is a little limited visitors can choose between several types of fried rice and fried noodles. The food seems to be fairly clean compared to the markets, where the hygiene can often be a little dubious.
Pro-Tip: If there are plenty of locals eating at a stall, it’s usually a good sign. Places that make people sick, don’t stay in business long.
There are also numerous good options elsewhere in town. The numerous Karaoke restaurants offer a real authentic experience of modern Khmer dining. Try to sit as far away as you can from the speakers, and come prepared with mosquito spray. There is often no english menu, but the staff will usually be happy to help you order. Try Phnom Pleung, a delicious cook-it-yourself beef barbecue. Another sensational dish, which is only available at these types of restaurants, is the Trei Bung Gancet – a whole fish bubbling in a tasty peanut sauce with green veggies.
Bar Street
Most of Siem Reap’s watering holes are concentrated in a few lanes north of Psar Chas (the old market), mainly on a street known appropriately as “Bar Street” or “Pub Street”. Drinks are usually US$2 and up, although most if not all bars have happy hours before 8 PM and draft Angkor often goes for as little as US$0.50.
Pub Street may be best known as a watering hole, but it also has many nice restaurants that offer reasonably priced fayre. There are also a whole range of pizzerias nearby, including the original Happy Herbs Pizza and Ecstatic Pizza, which depending on how the police are feeling that day either may or may not sell you cannabis-laced “happy” pizza.
Siem Reap Attractions
The reason most people come to Siem Reap is the Angkor Archaeological Park, however, the town boasts a number of beautiful temples, quaint, colonial style buildings, and is well worth a stroll around in its own right.
Highlights include The Angkor National Museum on Vithei Charles de Gaulle, which has an entry fee of $12, and Phoum Salakanseng is a $2 tuk tuk ride from the Old Market Place. This modern site houses over 1300 genuine artefacts with the highlight being the Gallery of 1000 Buddha Images. The use of multi-language audio-video and multimedia technology presents an easy to understand picturesque story of the legend of this ancient Khmer civilisation.
Further south on the road out of Siem Reap is another site to check out the Cambodia Landmine Museum and Rehabilitation Centre ($2 donation). This is also a modern facility where visitors are educated about Cambodia’s tumultuous past in the 1970s-1980s which has caused landmine and unexploded ordnance problems to this day. An interesting challenge at the museum is to find deactivated mines and booby traps hidden around a mock garden.
Ta Prohm Temple
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Angkor National Museum Siem Reap
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How To Reach Siem Reap
Siem Reap, Angkor is the most attractive place in Cambodia in terms of cultural tourism, and its location in the heart of Southeast Asia. Siem Reap is located 314km northwest of Phnom Penh capital city.
There are around 7 flights daily between Phnom Penh and Siem Reap with 4 domestic airline companies. Traveling by road from Phnom Penh and the Poipet Thailand border are also popular ways to reach Siem Reap.
By Airplane
Siem Reap International Airport (IATA: REP, ICAO: VDSR) has frequent domestic flights from Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville international airports, and it takes less than an hour to fly from either. Internationally, there are direct flights to/from Korea, Laos, Malaysia, China, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. Low-cost carriers Air Asia and Jetstar Asia now fly to Siem Reap from Kuala Lumpur and Singapore respectively, but the popular route to Bangkok is still monopolized by Bangkok Airways, which charges an extortionate $350USD (approx.) per person, round-trip for a 1-hour flight.
The airport is less than 15 minutes from the town centre by car (US$10) or motodop (US$7 or less). Many hotels in Siem Reap offer a free airport transfer service, usually in one of their tuk-tuks.
By Land
Although there’s still plenty of room for further improvement, Cambodian highways have continued to improve in recent years, some routes that were once epic adventures are now sealed roads. This is especially true in Siem Reap where the government has recently ordered the building of 38 new roads to improve access to the city.
From Phnom Penh
Several bus companies operate along the route from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap. The most popular bus companies with tourists include Capital Transport, GST, and Mekong Express. Each bus company has their own schedule and leaves from a different location, although most of them are located in the sidestreets around the Central Market. Nearly all of the bus companies have buses leaving at 7:30AM – 14:00PM, and the trip costs US$10-11. Expect to get to Siem Reap in 5-7 hours, with a couple of toilet breaks on the way, with one being halfway between Siem Reap and Phnom Penh at Kompong Thom.
From Thailand
Road between Siem Reap and Poipet
The most popular overland route from Thailand, and the most direct from Bangkok and Eastern Thailand, is via the Aranyaprathet – Poipet border crossing. The once infamous Poipet-Sisophon-Siem Reap road was completed 2009 and, for time being, it’s a very smooth ride that can be covered in just a few hours.
Once you’re through the border checks and into Poipet, take the free shuttle bus from outside the entry stamp office in Poipet to the transportation depot about 1 km away or find a taxi driver close by to begin bargaining for a taxi, or obtaining a bus ticket.
The fastest and most comfortable way to get from Poipet to Siem Reap is by taxi. The cost of this trip will vary depending on your own bargaining skills and payment can often be made in Thai baht if US dollars are not available. The taxis will not usually take more than four tourists per car, despite the fact that they are often seen carrying ten or more Khmers at a time.
Alternatively, you can take the official but to Siem Reap for US$10/person. Scheduling can be difficult as the bus only leaves when full, even if it takes a few hours – and can take about 15 people, with all the bags on the back seat. Extra people will be squeezed onto the back seat if necessary, which might not be so comfortable. Two fold down seats in the centre aisle are also not so comfortable. The trip is advertised as taking 3-5 hours, but in reality it takes at least 6 hours when the road is bad. There are usually 1 or 2 toilet stops along the way which can add some time to the journey, also.
Hat Lek – Cham Yeam Border Crossing
The newest route that heads from Phnom Penh to the Hat Lek International border crossing, as the crossing has less traffic, the time to clear immigration on both sides is much faster, with far less scams and hustlers. This route offers a scenic trip through one of the last old growth forests in Asia, passing through 3 different densely covered watersheds. The road is in excellent condition, and the time to Bangkok is nearly the same as the above routes, on regularly scheduled air con buses. You can also transfer to and from Sihanoukville, Cambodia’s main beach city, and gateway to the islands of Koh Rong and Koh Rong Samloem.