Angkor Archaeological Park - Angkor Wat.

Sightseeing the archaeological sites around Angkor including Angkor Wat - also the many other fantastic temples and palaces to be found in this part of Cambodia.

The temples and palaces that have been discovered and reclaimed from the jungle and forests at Angkor Archaeological Park which is located near to Siem Reap in Cambodia are truly amazing. The world famous huge temples at Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, Bayon Temple and Ta Prohm are just as impressive as the Egyptian temples and tombs which can be seen at Luxor and Karnak - and that takes some doing!. Although these temples are probably the ones most visitors have heard of and want to visit there are many other temples and palaces within or close to Angkor Archaeological Park including the Roluos Group and the Banteay Srei. The Park itself is around 400 square kilometres and just to see the sites within it does really need several days - if travelling further afield to see Roluos etc then at least 3 days are needed.
Most visitors to Angkor stay at Siem Reap which is located only a few kilometres away from the entrance to the Park - Siem Reap has all the hotels, facilities and transport links necessary to support the several million tourists who visit the area each year.

Angkor Entrance Fees. The ticket office is around 5km outside of Siem Reap - there are a variety of options from a day ticket at USD20, three day pass at USD40 (this can be used on any 3 days within a week) and a seven day pass which costs USD60 and can be used within a month. It is worth bearing in mind that these ticket conditions and of course prices seem to change so check before buying. You no longer need to take a passport size photo with you as your photo is now taken as part of the ticket purchase. Tickets can be purchased using USD, Euro or Riel but you cannot use a credit card.
Important. Tickets are always checked at the major temple sites so remember to take your ticket with you - your driver will/should anyway check you have a ticket before you start out each day.

Transport around Angkor. As mentioned the area is huge and there is no realistic possibility of walking to the various sites - cycling is an option but the few people we did see on bikes seemed to be struggling - not least because of the temperature and the high humidity. There are organised coach trips of course but these seem to rush people about from place to place and if you enjoy picking out how long you want to look at things then these can be a disappointment. Hiring a car is another option but this is of course very expensive. The best way is to hire a licensed tuk-tuk - if you are staying for say 3 days then if the driver is ok the first day retain him for all of your sightseeing. He will be almost certainly very accommodating on what YOU want to do and will let you change itinerary and so on without any argument. Also these tuk-tuk drivers know of various lesser visited temples and sites and will probably suggest ones to visit that you may have missed.
Drinks etc. Everywhere you go you will find plenty of opportunity to buy drinks etc. - the going rate for a can of drink or a small bottle of water was USD1 for two drinks - as you can imagine the vendors will try hard to get much more than this but by simply starting to walk away you get the correct price. Since many hotels have fridges in their rooms perhaps consider freezing 3 or 4 small bottles of water or fruit juice each evening and take these frozen with you the next day and top them up as necessary - cold water to drink all day long.
What to wear. Firstly having a rimmed hat is quite important - some of the more exposed sites are like frying pans. For the same reason sleeved tops are best and underfoot the surfaces are often either sandy or quite rutted so flip flops are not a good idea. Finally of course take lots of sun-cream.

Our itinerary was as follows:

Day 1: Angkor Wat**, Phnom Bakheng, Prasat Krajan, Banteay Kdei and Ta Phnom. (Tuk-tuk cost USD10).
Day 2: Roluos Group (12 km away), Angkor Thom. (Tuk-tuk cost USD10)
Day 3: Banteay Srei (30km away), Preah Neak Pean, Preah Khan, Ta Som and East Mebon (Tuk-tuk cost USD20).

Touring Angkor Wat. Angkor Wat is located around 6kms from Siem Reap. The temple is unusual in that it is orientated to the West so although many tour groups arrive in the morning to visit the best time - **certainly from a "taking Photos" point of view - is to visit Angkor Wat during mid to late afternoon because of the Sun. (Facing west towards the setting sun was a symbol of death). The parking area outside of the temple is quite substantial and there are many stalls where you can buy (do haggle your price) all sorts of drinks and some food.

Angkor Wat is the single largest religious monument in the world - the name perhaps says it all as it means "The City which is a Temple". Angkor Wat was constructed in the 12th century by Suryavarman II and originally dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu - the Protector of Creation. However the four entrances to the central sanctuary have images of Buddha - which shows the change from Hinduism to Buddhism. The layout is of a five towered temple which is shaped like a lotus bud and represents Mount Meru - the mythical abode of the gods and centre of the Universe. The temple's outer walls represent the edge of the world and the moat represents the cosmic ocean.

Angkor Wat is surrounded by a huge moat and is entered by a causeway to reach the thick outside walls. Once through the main entrance you then get the full view of the massive towers. There are five towers on three levels - on the top level sits the grand central shrine. Before reaching the entrance to the main temple complex another raised causeway is crossed - this has balustrades which are carved with nagas (serpents) which guard each side. Set in large open grounds there are two library buildings one on each side and just in front of the temple complex there are large (but at the time of our visit dry) lakes. The huge complex is surrounded with galleries which contain very good Bas relief's showing the King and his warriors - also the temple contains over 2000 carvings of apsaros (dancing girls). The central sanctuary is reached by very steep steps but it's worth the climb as there are quite a few carvings to look at.

Phnom Bakheng. The Hindu Temple of Phnom Bakheng takes a little effort to get too as it sits on a low 67 metre high hill so involves a 10 or so minute stroll up a track - this may not seem that much of a climb but is actually quite hard going in the heat and humidity especially if you have already been out all day.

Unlike many of Angkor's sites there are no facilities for buying drinks etc. at the top. The temple is a very popular tourist destination for tourists wishing to watch the sunset - especially with views over nearbye Angkor Wat. The photo bottom far right shows the remains of wide steps cut into the hillside - these were the original way up to the site and are not walk able. Phnom Bakheng is a Temple Mountain style of architecture often used on Khmer religious buildings and originally had 109 Towers. Phnom Bakheng was built in the late 9th Century by Yasovarman I who dedicated it to the Hindu God Shiva and was constructed in pyramid form with six tiers (it pre-dates Angkor Wat by around 200 years).

The very top has five sanctuaries which are built from sandstone. When we visited the Temple in March 2010 there was a considerable amount of renovation work being performed so quite a lot of scaffolding around but you can still easily be impressed by it's design and size. There are several lots of steps leading up to the top terrace all of which are fairly fragile, very steep and extremely narrow in depth.

Visiting Prasat Kravan. One of the smallest Temples in the area Prasat Kravan is dedicated to the Hindu God Vishnu and was built in the early 10th Century by Harshavarman I and consists of five brick towers. Inside there are some excellent engravings which represent Vishnu and Lakshmi.

Don't miss stopping off to see Banteay Kdei.
Often missed out by tourists and almost certainly most of the tour groups Banteay Kdei (Citadel of the Cells) is a small pleasant Temple which should be visited if possible - not too difficult really since its very close to the much visited Ta Prohm Monastery.


If you have sufficient time then an idea is to be dropped off at Banteay Kdei's western gate and to get your transport to wait for you at the Ta Prohm car park. You can then wander through the temple and at the far end (Eastern Gate) you come out opposite Srah Srang Lake (Royal Lake). Turn left and walk along the road to the crossroads - turn left and follow the excellent outer walls of Banteay Kdei - where you will find several closed gates which feature some really good stone faces (see photos). At the next road junction turn right and shortly reach the car park and entrance to Ta Prohm.

Ta Prohm.
Ta Prohm - Ancestor of Brahma - was originally a Mahayana Buddhist Monastery and built in the Bayon style during the reign of King Jayavarman VII. A very wealthy Monastery in silks, diamonds and pearls, Ta Prohm was a huge complex which once owned and was supported by 3000 villages, had 80,000 attendants, 18 High Priests and around 600 Temple dancers.

When you visit Ta Prohm there is a quite mysterious feel about the place - much of the dense forest and jungle has been cleared away but quite of a few of the temple buildings have been left with the roots of huge banyan trees growing through and around the structures. Not all parts of the site are reachable because of various collapses and also you do find yourself walking through narrow almost walled alleys which are often rubble strewn - good idea to have something reasonable on your feet when visiting Ta Phohm.

The authorities have however built wooden walkways within the main parts of the monastery which due to the huge numbers of visitors is probably necessary but these walkways do mess up some "classic" photo shots. As with quite a few of the Temples and sites a fairly long, hot and dusty walk is necessary before reaching either of the two still accessible Monastery entrances.

The second part of our Cambodia holiday and touring guides about Angkor Park covers touring The Roluos Group - including Angkor Thom.
Please also take a look at our Cambodia holidays, travel and touring topics about Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. Closely related if touring this part of the Far East are our (Laos) Vientiane and Luang Prabang, Thailand Holidays and Touring Vietnam holiday and touring guides.