Angkor in 4 Days

The great temples, a sacred mountain, a lost capital and a stilt village on Tonlé Sap lake

Start

Hotel pickup each morning

Duration

4 days, about 6–8 hours a day

Transport

Private air-conditioned car

Guide

Driver included; guide optional

Four days takes you well beyond the main park. Day one follows our Essential Angkor route. After that you climb Phnom Kulen, drive north to the remote capital of Koh Ker, and finish among the earliest Angkor temples and the stilt houses of Kompong Phluk. It’s a private tour, so the pace is yours.

What you will see

Day 1

1. 

   Angkor Wat

   Cambodia's best-known temple: five towers, long galleries and some of the finest bas-reliefs in the park.

2. 

   Angkor Thom — South Gate

   Enter the walled royal city through its South Gate, along a causeway lined with stone gods and demons.

3. 

   Bayon

   The temple at the centre of Angkor Thom, where more than 200 carved stone faces look out from the towers.

4. 

   Ta Prohm

   Tree roots have grown through the walls of this jungle temple, which you may know from Lara Croft: Tomb Raider.

Day 2

1. 

   Phnom Kulen

   A sacred mountain and national park. See the River of a Thousand Lingas carved into the riverbed, the reclining Buddha at Preah Ang Thom and, when conditions allow, the waterfall.

2. 

   Banteay Srei

   A small 10th-century temple in pink sandstone, covered in some of the most detailed carving anywhere in Angkor.

Day 3

1. 

   Koh Ker

   A remote former Khmer capital, well off the usual routes. Its centrepiece is Prasat Thom, a stepped pyramid rising above the forest.

2. 

   Beng Mealea

   A large temple left largely unrestored in the jungle. Walk among collapsed galleries and overgrown courtyards, well away from the busiest sites.

Day 4

1. 

   Roluos Group

   Bakong, Preah Ko and Lolei: some of the earliest temples of the Angkor era, and a look at how Khmer temple building began.

2. 

   Kompong Phluk

   A village of houses on tall stilts beside Tonlé Sap lake. Walk through and see how families here live with the rise and fall of the water.

3. 

   Boat through the flooded forest (optional)

   When the water is high enough, you can take a local boat through the waterways and flooded forest. The fare is paid on the spot and is not included.