Duration: | 12 Day(s) - 11 Night(s) |
Tour Category: | Adventure Tours |
Cambodia Explorer
Siem Reap / Kg. Thom/ Stung Treng/ Kratie/ Phnom Penh
12days / 11 nights
All wonders of Kingdom of Cambodia in one Intension tour: from the formal capital city, Phnom Penh, amazing ancient Angkor Wat complex in Siem Reap to truly rural local life of Cambodians in Kompong Thom and Rattanakiri. The differences between ways of life will not leave you indifferent.
Day 1: Arrival Siem Reap (D)
Welcome to Cambodia! Upon arrival in Siem Reap airport, complete Cambodian visa customs then meet our guide and driver transfer you to the hotel. Free relax as your leisure time. This evening you will be transferred for dinner at a local restaurant.
Choose option accommodation in Siem Reap
Day 2: Siem Reap –Ta Prohm & Preah Khan (B/L/D)
Breakfast at the hotel; Today we visit some of the most beautiful temples on the small circuit, including the huge pyramid of Takeo, built in the 10th century. We continue to jungle-clad Ta Prohm.
This temple was a monastery built by Jayavarman VII as a residence for his mother. Ta Prohm has been controversially left to the destructive power of the jungle by French archaeologists to demonstrate the awesome power of nature. It has been largely consumed by the jungle and as you climb through the dilapidated stone structures you see many giant trees growing out of the top of the temple itself. Lunch will be at a FOU-NAN Lounge Bar & Restaurant or similar.
Afternoon, we continue our Angkor encounter with a visit to the spectacular temples of the grand circuit.
We first explore Preah Khan or Sacred Sword, one of the largest temples at Angkor with huge corridors extending in every direction. Built by Jayavarman VII in the 12th century, this is a highlight of Angkor. We continue to Neak Poan, a delicate temple set in a square pool and surrounded on all sides by fountains and ponds.
Next are Ta Som and its famous strangler fig tree smothering the eastern gate. We wind up at Pre Rup, built in the 10th Century by Rajendravarman. Pre Rup means turning the body and the Khmer people believe this temple was used for cremations. This is the perfect place for sunset over the beautiful Cambodian rice fields. Enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.
Choose option accommodation in Siem Reap
Day 3: Siem Reap – Angkor Wat & Angkor Thom Temple (B/L/D)
Breakfast at your hotel; in the morning, we visit magnificent Angkor Wat to view its architecture and bas reliefs. This temple is the largest religious buildings ever constructed and is truly one of the wonders of the world. Believed to have been undertaken as a temple and mausoleum for King Suryavarman II at the peak of the Khmer empire in the first half of the 12th century, Angkor Wat is the best-preserved of the Angkorean temples.
Lunch will be at Angkor Café Restaurant or similar. Afternoon, we visit the sites of Angkor Thom. This Royal city was first built under the reign of Udayadityavarman II in the 11th Century. It was destroyed when the Chams from Vietnam rose up against the Khmers and invaded, sacking the city, and was subsequently renovated by King Jayavarman VII at the end of the 12th Century. Its vast walls, some 6m wide, 8m high, and 13km in length contain many monuments. We begin by visiting the South Gate, flanked by demons and gods engaged in a tug of war to obtain the elixir of immortality.
We continue to the Bayon, a temple mountain built by Jayavarman VII.
It is situated in the center of the city of Angkor Thom. It is a three-tiered pyramid with its entrance facing east. The central shrine is surrounded by 54 towers all crowned by gigantic faces, representing Avalokiteshvara but with the features of Jayavarman VII. We also visit other important sites in this immense walled city, including the pyramid of Baphuon, Phimean Akas, and the royal viewing stands known as the Terrace of the Elephants and the Terrace of the Leper King.
Enjoy dinner with the Apsara dance show.
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Day 4: Siem Reap- Kompong Thom (B/L/D)
Breakfast at the hotel; in the morning, we leave from Siem Reap to Kompong Thom. Enrooted, we visit Kompong Kdei pre-Angkorian Bridge. Continue to Kompong Thom where upon arrival you will head to the beautiful, peaceful, and remote temples of Sambor Prei Kuk. These are without question some of the most striking and remarkable examples of 7th-century Pre-Angkorean art (615-650AC).
The main temple complexes are walled, containing a number of Prasats in differing states of ruin. Some of the carvings on the Prasats' lintels, columns, and pilasters are in very good shape and display wonderfully detailed examples of pre-Angkorean artistry. Large bas-reliefs rendered in brick on the prasats and compound walls represent some of the earliest use of this art form in Khmer art. Lunch will be at a local restaurant. You will spend the afternoon exploring the Buddhist Wat Kapong Thom and the local market. Arrive at Kompong Thom in the early evening and enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.
Choose option accommodation in Kompong Thom
Day 5: Kompong Thom- Stung Treng (B/L/D)
After breakfast we depart Kompong Thom for Stung Treng. This drive takes approx 4 hours with a few stops for journey break. Arrive at Kratie for a lunch break at a local restaurant. In the afternoon, we continue to drive to Stung Treng for an hour drive. Arrive at Stung Treng and we transfer to your hotel. Afternoon at leisure or explore the town with your guide. Enjoy dinner at a local restaurant in the town.
Choose option accommodation in Stung Treng
Day 6: Stung Treng- Rattanakiri (B/L/D)
Breakfast at the hotel; this morning you will take a motorboat to see the villages along the Mekong River and then visit the local market, where you can experience the lifestyle of local people in Steung Treng town. Mid-day, we continue to drive to Rattanakiri. Arrive at Rattanakiri in the late afternoon and we transfer to your hotel. The rest of the time of this evening and try to explore the city with your guide then enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.
Choose option accommodation in Banlung
Day 7: Rattanakiri (B/L/D)
Breakfast at the hotel, we travel to the remote district of Andong Meas, about 80km from Banlung. From Andong Meas, we continue on foot to nearby Jarai villages where we learn about their lifestyle. We walk to the banks of the San River where we find a Jarai cemetery in the forest complete with many ancestral tombs. From here, we take a boat across the river to a small, isolated Jarai community before continuing downstream back to Andong Meas.
We return to Banlung by boat. Enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.
Choose option accommodation in Banlung
Day 8: Rattanakiri (B/L/D)
Breakfast at the hotel, we journey by road to the small town of Voen Sai on the banks of the San River. We take a ferry across the river to a Lao village on the other side. We follow the riverbank to a unique Chinese village that has been located here for more than one hundred years.
Chinese is still the language of choice among residents and in places, it looks like a slice of rural China. From here we continue on foot to another Lao village with a wooden pagoda; Packed Lunch will be provided. We make our way back to Voen Sai by boat and return to Banlung by road. Enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.
Choose option accommodation in Banlung
Day 9: Rattanakiri – Stung Treng – Kratie (B/L/D)
Breakfast at hotel; early morning, we depart from Rattanakiri to Kratie via Stung Treng. Arrive at Kratie and lunch will be at a local restaurant. In the afternoon, we visit the dolphin site. Return to your hotel for dinner.
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Day 10: Kratie – Phnom Penh (via Kompong Cham) (B/L/D)
Breakfast at hotel; at 9:AM we depart Kratie for Phnom Penh via Kompong Cham. You will visit some of Kompong Cham's Rubber Plantations on route to Kompong Cham.
Then you will continue to visit Wat Nokor also called Nokor Bachey Pagoda (Kampong Cham), an 11th century Mahayana Buddhist shrine made of sandstone and laterite with a large reclining Buddha and numerous alcoves containing images of the Buddha.
An interesting feature of Wat Nokor is the Angkorean structures which have been incorporated into the modern temple buildings and their colorful paintings that line the walls and ceiling. After lunch will be at a local restaurant you will continue to Phnom Penh.
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Day 11: Phnom Penh (CITY TOUR) (B/L/D)
Breakfast at the hotel, we visit the Royal Palace, located on the shores of the Mekong. Inside its walls is the Throne Hall, the Chan Chaya Pavilion, used for performances of classical dance, the Napoleon III Pavilion, and the King and Queen's residential quarters.
The next stop will be the Silver Pagoda, home to a glittering array of Buddhist statuary. The Silver Pagoda is also called the Pagoda of the Emerald Buddha, it is located in the walls of the Royal Palace. Inside, its floor is made up of 5,000 silver blocks. In the center of the pagoda, there is a magnificent 17th-century emerald Buddha statue made of baccarat crystal.
The walls enclosing the pagoda are covered with frescoes depicting episodes from the Khmer version of the Ramayana. Continue to visit the National Museum, home to the world’s leading collection of Khmer sculptures. Situated near the Royal Palace, Cambodia's National Museum offers a charming setting for the stunning collection of Khmer art. Predominantly worked in stone, the sculptures date from both the Angkorean and pre-Angkorean eras, complimented by more recent examples of Cambodian art.
The museum is housed in a terracotta-roofed structure of traditional Cambodian design, which was built between 1917 and 1920. Lunch will be at a Lotus Blanc or similar. In the afternoon, Time permitting and depending on interest, we visit to the harrowing genocide museum at Tuol Sleng and the Killing Fields of Choeng Ek, both enduring memorials to the gruesome and brutal rule of the Khmer Rouge. Enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.
Day 12: Phnom Penh-Departure (B)
The hotel check-out time is 12:00 noon. Today you will be transferred to the airport for onward your flight time.
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