Cambodia is a small country near Vietnam to the northeast, Thailand to the north-west and Laos to the north. It is a comparatively new evolving tourist destination for the Western world but the country has now opened its doors wide to show off its exceptional treasures. Participating in the Cambodia travel packages, you will get the experience in the culture of the people, landscape, customs, and cuisine. Come to Cambodia, tourists will discover the magical country of the Khmers. On the road, you will get a glimpse at Cambodia’s brutal history through plenty of temples on this fascinating tour through the best of Cambodia.

 

On the first day and second day in Phnom Penh

First of all, you should choose a famous brand of tour guide and have a good prepared-plan for the trip. Phnom Penh is the vibrant bustling capital of Cambodia, which is a veritable oasis. This city is situated at the confluence of three rivers like the Mekong, the Bassac, and the great Tonle Sap. Thus, it has the previously known as Krong Chaktomuk meaning “City of Four Faces”. Moreover, the local people are very friendly. Highly renowned as the ‘Pearl of Asia’, Phnom Penh conjures the image of an exotic city with classical architecture, loveliest French-built patterns of Indochina, glittering Royal Palace, coupled with colonial buildings, grand boulevards and alluring café culture. You will admire a sort of provincial charm and tranquillity with Angkorian architecture.

There are many destinations in there such as Royal Palace, the Silver Pagoda, the National Museum, the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, the Choeng Ek Killing Fields and Wat Phnom. Especially, numerous goods you can buy in Phnom Penh like carvings, paintings, silk, silver, gems, and even antiques. Indeed.

Phnom Penh is the largest religious complex in the world, the temples of Angkor in the west, the beaches of the southern coast and the ethnic minorities of the North-eastern provinces. To raise the tourism field, many hotels and restaurants appear in some recent years. You should stroll the streets of Phnom Penh and explore the interesting French colonial architecture. You should go to the National Museum, with its collection of classic Khmer craftsmanship. One suggestion for you is to go to Wat Phnom which is a peaceful temple situated on a hill for which the city is named.

In the evening, you can enjoy a coffee or cocktail at one of the many cafes while observing the busy river traffic.

Continuously, you visit the Tuol Sleng Prison Museum and the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek. Tuol Sleng is a symbol history like a former school that served as a Khmer Rouge torture center. Next, the Choeung Ek Memorial is home to stupa made up of some 8,000 human skulls in Killing Fields. Next, the private quarters of the Royal Palace are home to King Sihamoni and are closed to the public. Nearly King Sihamoni place is Silver Pagoda situated in the palace complex, which is the most sacred temple in the country.

On the third day in Battambang

Travel by public bus to Battambang, you will approach Cambodia’s second-largest city, Battambang, is a pretty riverside town of French elegance, friendly Khmer people and beautifully preserved colonial architecture. You will admire many statues of animals and divinities on the streets and buildings. In the evening, you should walk along the riverfront where locals indulge in hobbies such as yoga and folk dancing.

Here, you discover the local rural way of life which has the small cottage industries producing sticky rice, noodles, and fish paste. One suggestion for you is to set up the trip in the beginning of week like Monday and Thursday as the circus and music school, and young painters at work in visual arts opened on two days. In this city, you also join in the cooking class to learn the secrets of local dishes such as amok, Khmer curry, and fried spicy chicken.

On the fourth day and fifth day in Siem Reap

A very early morning start today, you watch the sunrise at Angkor Wat of Khmer architecture which was built by Suryavarman II between 1113 and 1150 AD. The first place you should go to is Angkor Wat’s moat which is the home of the gods and are the largest single religious site on earth. The central tower stands 65 meters above ground level.

The Angkor Thom was entered through one of five gates. The South Gate is famous for its towers with 4 faces looking out to each of the cardinal points. Then, you visit Ta Prohm Temple which an impressive location made famous by the film ‘Tomb Raider’. Here you can experience in the dark corridors, open plazas, and the massive trees growing from stone towers.

If you have a plan in all temples, you should make sure your polite dresses such as cover your elbows and knees. Cambodian people hope that all visitors respect this custom. Your ticket will have your photograph on it and you will not be allowed entry to any temple without it. Thus, you should remember to bring them with you each day after they have been issued.

The constructions you will see yesterday and today include the eponymous Angkor Wat, the largest and most complete structure, and the only one of Angkor’s temples that has its entrance facing west – the others face east. Angkor Thom is known as the ‘Great Royal City’ which is famous for its series of colossal human faces carved in stone. Bayon temple is one of the most popular temples as it owns 200 smiling carved faces and more than 50 gothic towers. Next, Ta Prohm temple is famous for large trees in the stone you shouldn’t miss.

If you feel like some adventure, you should go to the forest to take the views of the beautiful rainforest and an adrenaline rush. You could get to experience local village life, and, best of all, eat your culinary creations. Another option is to visit the sobering Landmine Museum located a little further afield but is well worth the journey.

On the sixth day in Tonle Sap

Another interesting point in the trip is to take a boat through the region’s floating villages, where you will get a glimpse of the local lifestyles on the Tonle Sap River. Currently, more than half of the fish consumed in Cambodia is exploited in this lake. Chong Khneas is the famous floating village at the edge of the lake which locates at the Southern part of Siem Reap town so you can approach by the boat dock. The boat trip through the floating village takes approximately two hours. On the Cambodia travel packages, you can explore the different culture of Khmer, Muslim, and Vietnamese in the floating households and floating markets and something. Moreover, Tonle Sap is home to dense flocks of hundreds of resident and migrant bird species, as well as crocodiles and giant fish.

The Tonle Sap is a natural wonder of the world, but during the rainy season, the river that flows out of it reverses direction, flooding the lake and increasing its size almost tenfold to become the largest freshwater lake in South-East Asia.

Enjoying the traditional foods in Cambodia travel packages

Not only be the country of the famous Angkor, Cambodian cuisine is also extremely colorful and attractive. If you have ever tried, you will be impressed by the unique taste of this country. Here is the list of 8 dishes that tourists should try when visiting this beautiful land.

Bai Sach chrouk

This is the food that is always available on the streets of Cambodia early in the morning. This is a simple and very popular dish in this country. Bai Sach chrouk consists of white rice and thinly sliced pork, marinated in garlic or coconut milk. After that, the meat is grilled on charcoal so that it is slowly permeable and has a naturally sweet taste. Accompany that soup bowl is cooked from chicken, a small bowl of radish pickled ginger and fresh cucumber.

Amok fish

Amok is a very popular dish in Cambodia with full of the taste of this country. It has the taste similar to the dish of Vietnam. Amok is made from coconut milk, tamarind juice, prohok. All are wrapped in a banana leaf. You can enjoy different types of amok such as amok fish, amok chicken,… Amok fish is usually made from catfish or snakehead. Grated beef, sugar, and eggs are mixed into a mixture, then cooked, then wrapped fillet with the mixture, some slok Ngor, a local herb and then wrapped Banana leaves and steamed.

Khmer red curry

Khmer red curry is usually made from beef, chicken or fish, eggplant, green beans, potatoes, fresh coconut milk, citronella, and very little chili. Less spicy than the curry of neighboring Thailand, it will be easier to eat. This dish is often eaten with bread – influenced from the French and is served at Cambodian special occasions such as weddings, family gatherings and religious holidays such as Pchum Ben, or ancestral date – the occasion for Cambodian people to make dishes to offer the monks on behalf of the deceased.

Nom banh chok

Nom banh chok is a very popular dish in Cambodia, so in English, it is simply called Khmer Noodle. As a typical breakfast snack, visitors will find this dish sold on the street side of the women.  Nom banh chok consists of rice noodles with water made from traditional spices, banana, fresh mint, cucumber and other green vegetables.

Fried crab

Fried fish is a specialty dish – Kampot pepper in coastal towns in Cambodia. Kampot is a famous spice in the world of gourmet cuisine, although visitors can find this pepper in dry form but can only enjoy the unique flavor of these green peppers. in Cambodia. Once you have the opportunity to go to the coastal areas of Cambodia, do not overlook the taste of fried crab with garlic and pepper.

Grilled beef with ant

Insects are a very ordinary dish in Cambodia, you will find all kinds of insects on the menu at the restaurant in this country. And one of the most tempting dishes you should try is the fried bean with beef and basil. Ants with sizes ranging from small to invisible or about 1 inch long will be fried together with ginger, citronella, garlic, shallots, and sliced beef. The dish has a unique taste due to its subtle sour taste and the penetration of beef. This dish is usually served with rice.

Ang dtray – meuk (grilled squid)

In coastal towns such as Sihanoukville and Kep, visitors will easily see seafood vendors, carrying small charcoal on their shoulders and serving tourists right on the beach. Squid will be marinated with fish sauce or lemon juice, then be roasted on wooden skewers and served with a typical Cambodian sauce, made from fresh chili, garlic, fish sauce, sugar, and lime juice.