Day 01

Morning

Pick Up Time: 5 am

Pick Up Location: Hotel

1. We start this tour at 5 am to explore the temple of Angkor Wat. This way, we will avoid the huge crowds that gather late in the morning. You will enter the temple through the east entrance where it is still dark at just before dawn. But, this walk is all worth it when you see the beautiful sunrise light up Angkor Wat like nothing else on earth. Your tour guide will find the best place for you to wait for the sunrise, so you can enjoy it in peace.

After we have seen Angkor Wat, you will return to the hotel for something to eat and a short break.

Afternoon

Angkor Thom Gate
Angkor Thom South Gate

You leave the hotel again at 2 pm to explore the royal city of Angkor Thom.

1. You will start the tour from the Terraces of Elephant and Leper King. They stand in front of the palace in Angkor. The Elephant Terrace was used as the royal platform for the royal family in the Angkorian time.

2. You walk through the trees to visit the temple of the Preah Palilay in the jungle behind the pagoda of Tep Pranam. It is a peaceful temple in Angkor Thom. It is a good location for taking pictures for the professional and amateur photographer. There is a hidden tower in the area which is perfect for photos.

3. You continue to go through the trees to experience the palace in the royal enclosure. In the royal enclosure, you can see the tower of Phimeanakas and 2 swimming pools. The royal family had lived in this palace since Angkor became the capital city of Cambodia.

4. You continue walking to the south to visit the temple of Baphoun. It is a rectangular structure which was built in 1060 AD. You can climb this one to see some beautiful motifs that still remain in good condition.

5. Finally, you will go to the north west of the Bayon temple where you can take some good photos. This is my favorite temple because of the view around the jungle. Bayon is a favorite for so many visitors in Angkor. You can learn a lot about the daily life of Cambodians in the 12th century in this temple.

Day 2

Morning

Pick Up Time: 7:00 am

Pick Up Location: Hotel

Ta Prohm
Ta Prohm

1. You will leave the hotel early to explore the temple of Ta Prohm (the Tomb Raider temple). This is the perfect time to arrive because you can stay away from the crowds and the hot sun. If you are a photographer, you can get some brilliant shots without people standing in the way of your view.

2. You will continue to the temple of Ta Nei. It is one of the most peaceful temples in Angkor. It was built by Jayavarman VII, but enlarged by his son Indravarman II in the 12thcentury.

3. You will continue to visit the temple of Ta Keo which was built by Jayavarman V in 974. It stood in the middle of the city of the victorious King. The name was found on the written inscription on the doorway.

4. You will then go to explore the Chao saydevada, the Angkor wat style temple built by Suriyavarman II in the 12th century.

5. Finally, you visit the peaceful temples of the Preah Pithou group. You can see some beautiful carvings in them. Some say these towers were built by Suriyavarman II in the 12thcentury, but some parts were carved in the 16th century.

Relax and lunch

1.First, you will pause to visit the brick tower of East Mebon. It was built under the time of King Rajindravarman II in 952 AD. It is very good place to stop for some pictures of the elephant statues.

2. Second, you will visit Ta Som, which was used by the King’s Guru. It stands on the east bank of the last Baray in the Khmer Empire.

3. Then you will go to Neakpean, which was the hospital for King Jayavarman VII. It stands in the middle of the last Baray of Jayatadaka.

4. Finally, you will visit the Preah Khan, known as the “City of the Sacred Sword” which was built in 1191. It is the biggest Buddhist temple in Angkor and was used to house Jayavarman VII’s father’s statue.

Day 03

Morning

Pick up time: 630 am

Pick Up Location: Hotel

Banteay Srei
Banteay Srei

1. On this day, you are going to visit the pink sandstone at Banteay Srei. It is considered to be the diamond in Cambodian art. It is a very famous place in Cambodia and we think it was built by women at the time, hence the name ‘Srei’ which means ‘woman’ in English.

2. Afterwards, we will drive back to Banteay Samre, the 12th century temple. Some believe this was used by the soldiers under the time of King Suryavarman II. It is displayed on the wall of Angkor Wat. The name Samre refers to the group of the hill tribes in Cambodia.

3. On the way back to the hotel to rest, you will stop to visit the Pre rup which was built in 961 by King Rajindravarman II. It was used to store his tomb.

Relax and lunch at your own cost

Afternoon

Preah Ko
Preah Ko

1. First, you continue to explore the temple of Lolei. It was built in 893 by Yosovarman I. He was a King who moved the city from Rolous to Angkor. He founded the temple Phnom Bakheng for his state temple.

2. Second, the temple was built to honor the great King Jayavarman II in 879 AD by Indravarman I (877 to 889). It is a strange 6 towers in Angkor and dedicated to God Shiva. It is in the East of Angkor and in Hariharalaya, the present day, Rolous. It’s an amazed lime stone carvings on the towers. You can also see the intricate fake doors in the Preah Ko style.

3 . Finally, we will drive to the south to Preah Ko to visit the temple of Bakhong. It was built in the middle of Rolous city in the 9th century. It stood on the shore of the Tonle Sap lake. Bakhong stands on a high foundation.
It is only sandstone tower in Rolous.

Day 04

Morning

Pick Up Location: Hotel

Pick Up Time: 08:00

1. First, you will head to Chao Srei Bol it was constructed in Khmer Empire by King Suriyavarman I (1002 to 1050) near the Ancient city of Angkor. It is a great place to explore. Most locals do not know this site. You can see it was built on the top of the natural hill near by Wat Trat. You can learn from both temple and monastery.

2. Next, you will visit In the north east of Angkor about 120 Km, you can visit the ancient city of Koh Ker. Jayavarman IV constructed this in order to dedicate it to God Shiva. Jayavarman IV, moved the capital city to Koh Ker in 928AD to find a victorious city for himself. They built more than 200 temples in the area, according to the written inscriptions. If you go to Beng Mealea, you should continue to explore this area. In Kor Ker, there is a temple, Prasat Thom. It is the most beautiful temple in the area. It stands on 7 different levels. During the civil war, they used this temple as the military base. They put the artillery on the top of this temple. Behind the Prasat Thom, you can see a handmade Pyramid mount.

Beng Mealea
Beng Mealea

3. Finally, on the way back to Angkor you are brought to Beng Mealea it is in the east of Angkor and it has been left in its natural state. It is overgrown with fig trees. The tree’s roots are entwined around the temple’s structure. Suriyavarman II founded this temple in the 12th century to be a model of Angkor Wat. It is located near the quarry, where they took the sandstones to build the temples in Angkor. A new study indicates that the temple was dedicated to Buddhism, because they found the Buddhisatwa in the complex. On the pediment and lintel, the story shows Indian episodes such as Ramayana and Churning of the sea of milk and Mahaparata. It can be a heaven for professional photographers.