Visit Angkor Wat

Angkor Wat, Cambodia’s gift to the world. Cambodia has long hidden one of the world's great treasures. Angkor Wat stands side by side with the pyramids, the Taj Mahal and the Great Wall of China as one of mankind’s greatest achievements.

Siem Reap is the town on the outskirts of the Wat, or temple. It is a bustling town with a blossoming tourist infrastructure, with quite a number of new hotels and local and international restaurants waiting to welcome visitors to its unique attractions.

There is a thriving night market running from dusk until midnight, offering local crafts and other unusual local items. The silk farm offers a fascinating look at the traditional way of producing silk garments.

Visas to Cambodia are available upon arrival in the country, for all western nations, citizens. There are many flights each day from surrounding Asia cities such as Bangkok, Singapore, Hong Kong and many others directly into Siem Reap. The capital city Phnom Penh is easily accessible from countries all over the world.

Angkor Wat at sunrise

Then you can take quick one hour flight to Siem Reap, or you could opt for the boat trip along the mighty Mekong River and Tonle Sap Lake that takes a leisurely 6 hours. It is very advisable to pre-book a hotel, you may arrive to find the town very quiet, but it is equally likely that there will be no rooms available, as this is a very popular destination for Asian tourists, so rooms can become scarce in Asian holiday periods.

At the very least you will need a guide book to help you to understand the labyrinth of temples and buildings, a better option is probably a local guide at around $30, so that you can take in the incredible sights and understand what you are seeing. A three day pass costs $40, and allows you all the time you need to get around the entire complex.

Visitors to the Angkor Wat are often shocked at what they see; many are expecting to visit a temple.  And then are amazed to discover that this is not just another Buddhist place of worship, this is actually a whole city hidden in the jungle.

This moated city complex can easily take three days to get around, and enjoy all the ancient wonders that make it one of those rare ‘must see before you die’ places of pilgrimage.

A thousand years ago when London was a small town, Angkor was the largest urban center in the world. In addition, most of it remains today for visitors to marvel at, and be enthralled by. To give you some idea of the scale, the total area of Angkor and its ‘suburbs’ is about the same as modern day Paris.

Many visitors may want to go very early to avoid the afternoon heat, and then return to their hotel for a dip in the pool and something to eat. And then return in the late afternoon to spend some more time at Angkor without the oppressive heat.

Angkor Wat is just 5km outside of Siem Reap; the main complex began construction in the 12th century. Antonio da Magdalena, a Portuguese monk was probably the first tourist to visit the site in 1586.

There are a multitude of sites to explore, some of the most popular are Ta Prohm which is a photographers dream, as the jungle relentlessly tries to reclaim the structures. The roots of the Banyan trees wrap their tentacles around the buildings providing a wonderfully unusual backdrop.

Banteay Srei is the small complex within Angkor famed for its namesake, Banteay Srei sculptures. Angkor Thom is a second, less well preserved ‘suburb’ of Angkor Wat, with many interesting architectural features.

In reality no amount of description can prepare someone for the shear scale of Angkor Wat, which is the real attraction of the site, its incredible majesty comes from the idea that ancient people could produce such a magnificent and awe-inspiring city.