Angkor Historical Park is, if not the first, one of the most visited places in Southeast Asia and, by far, the Cambodian place most famous in the world.
It is the pride of Cambodian civilization. In the national flag, in the Riel notes, everywhere Angkor Wat appears.
Hundreds of groups of Vietnamese, Japanese, Koreans or Northamericans fly to Cambodia just to visit it.
We are not going to explain what Angkor really is or how any of the temples you can find in the huge area are, books and specialized websites are more useful.
On the other hand we are giving you some tips about how to visit the park:
– First of all, buy a 3 days ticket (40$). In one day (20$ ticket) you don’t see too much and what you see is in a rush. And one week (60$) is maybe too much, unless you live for.
– Forget visiting it by walking, it is too big for. In the same way, forget renting a motorbike. It would be really useful but in Siem Reap you are not allowed to rent one unless you have been living in Cambodia for at least 6 months.
A. You can rent a bicycle. It’s not far (first temple at around 6 km. It’s a nice way and not very tiring. In some temples there are guides available (cheap), or even some policeman (tip).
B. You can also go in tuk-tuk. He will be with you all day long and will drive you wherever you want. Price: discuss about with the driver.
C. Organized tour. You have your guide, ok, but you will feel as another sheep.
Note: tuk-tuk drivers cannot be a guide; guides cannot be tuk-tuk drivers.
How to visit Angkor, “from the smallest to the biggest” :
FIRST DAY. 8am to 16pm.
Visit the small temples. Forget about Angkor Wat or Bayon.
There are not many tourists in any of them as tours usually don’t visit them, so any time is good.
All temples worth a visit.
You can finish the day seing the sunset around 17.30pm, but unless you haven’t seen many, you can skip it as it’s over the forest and not Angkor. It’s really crowded, a problem when everybody is leaving at the same time.
SECOND DAY.
See the sunrise (6.20am) over Angkor Wat, lovely.
Inside is crowded and outside not many people.
We stayed outside and we really enjoy it.
When sunrise ends, the hordes of tourists go out, time to visit Angkor Wat. After that, just relax, enjoy a peaceful promenade, play with the monkeys near Bayon or visit the temples around Bayon.
We really recommend the “East Gate or gate of the Dead”. It is peaceful and the most savage.
Visit Bayon at lunch time or after 3 pm.
THIRD DAY.
Time to revisit what you enjoy the most. Relax in the peaceful temples. Breath the atmosphere out of the tourists.
Avoid Bayon or Angkor Wat in the rush hours, they are crowded.
Think you will find tourists, that is unavoidable.
Be patient with all sellers, specially with the kids. They are annoying but think they really need the money.
Be sure you’ll be with many tourists, and you’ll find groups anywhere, that’s unavoidable, but on the other hand, be sure as well you will enjoy the visit.
The Asian Market 