So you finished to visit the Angkor Wat temples and don’t know what to do in Siem Reap after? Stick around for a couple of suggestions and alternative activities to do!
Is just mad because no one told him what to do after visiting the temples (and maybe because someone stole his nose, this could also be the reason)
For cultural insights, the Angkor National Museum is a must do, with many galleries filled with artifacts from the time of the Angkor empire. Learn a little more about cambodian culture and this incredible empire that, in its peak, had the largest city on the planet and a power only comparable to the one held by the Roman empire. Opening hours from 8.30am to 6.30pm and with an entrance ticket of 12 dollars, plus 2 dollars for a camera. Definitely worth it for all the history junkies out there!
If you came out the museum hungry, why not taking a street food walking tour to taste some of the cambodian specialities at very reasonable prices? Have a look on Angkor Street Eats for more info.
The evaluation metric is: if the flies like the food it’s because it’s probably good!
For something a bit different, you can head to Naga Earth for some recycling workshops. Have a look on their website for getting to know their cool activities.
If you feel like hanging out somewhere to run away from the Cambodian heat, meet interesting people and support a trendy and valuable project, head to the Peace Café Community Center to experience their freshly baked goods, delicious vegetarian food, cooking classes, meditation and monk chat, pilates and yoga, free khmer classes for foreigners and english classes for Cambodians, relax garden and movie screenings. They also have a fair trade shop to support local artisans and sell products made by underprivileged people, besides providing other community services and charitable actions within nearby villages.
You can always join the locals to relax and do some fishing on Siem Reap’s river…
You can also go explore the surroundings, for instance visiting the floating villages of the nearby Tonlé Sap, the largest lake in southeast asia. The Chong Kneas village is quite touristic already (you can find many one day tours in travel companies around town) but if you would like to experience something more local and genuine, head to the Kompong Khleang fishing village and emerge yourself in the life on the lake!
You also have plenty of options in terms of tours in nature, for instance bird watching in the Prek Toal bird sanctuary with Sam Veasna Center or visiting the Angkor Centre for Conservation of Biodiversity. For cultural or village tours, exploring the country side by mountain bike or trekking to more remote places, check the websites of different alternative travel companies providing cool services and travel options, most of them with also tours to Tonlé Sap’s floating villages: Build Friend Travel Cambodia, The Adventure Story, Beyond Unique Escapes, Cambodia Trails, Cambodian Experiences, Cambodian Travel Partner, Kampoul Adventure Tour and Hidden Cambodia Adventure Tours. Have a look on the different options they have and book yourself on one of the most memorable days of your trip!
A local passing by near a floating village, in what they call ‘morning traffic jam’
Hope we gave you some ideas of alternative activities to do in Siem Reap and its surroundings, for you to mingle yourself in this amazing province which has so much more to offer than just the Angkor Wat. Take a look on Camboticket website for different timings and prices to get to Siem Reap by bus and… happy traveling!