A lot of our tours are for first-time visitors to Cambodia, which is great, but you can’t fit in a lot of the more remote options in these tours so I always love it when returning guests want an itinerary that takes them away from the main highlights and explores a little more off the beaten track. This last week I had a wonderful guest who wanted just that. She has a short amount of time, but a large amount of energy and spirit! I was, in fact, so excited for this that I ended up putting together two itinerary options for her. One includes Battambang and its amazing train, and the other goes East out of Phnom Penh and includes some of the more remote and, in my opinion, more unique temples. Our guest did choose one of the following tours for her Easter holiday. Which one do you think she chose and which one would you choose?
-Andrea Ross, CEO of Journeys Within
Journeys Within Custom Classic Cambodia – Option 1
24 Mar 16 Phnom Penh: Arrival
Arrive on your flight – arriving Phnom Penh at 17:40.
Arrive in Phnom Penh where you will be met by an air conditioned van and driver and will be transferred to your hotel.
Meals Included: None
Overnight at La Librairie Hotel – 1Single Chambre Declassees
25 Mar 16 Phnom Penh: Royal Palace and National Museum
This morning take a tour of the Royal Palace, which to this day is still the royal residence. See the amazing royal collection and the beautiful architecture before heading to the National Museum, where you will be taken around by a trained museum guide who will show you some wonderful pre-Angkorean pieces as well as a number of special pieces from the temples. Return to your hotel for lunch or have your guide drop you off in town where they can help you find a good lunch spot. Remember to take a look at our Cheat Sheet which lists a number of our favorite restaurant recommendations!
Leave Phnom Penh early by air-conditioned car and head towards Battambang. The roads are basic and the countryside is a mix of small villages and rice fields. Here you retrace the steps of many Cambodians who, back in 1975, were forced from Phnom Penh and sent to Battambang to “work for the revolution.” On a good run the journey should take around 5 ½ hours. Once in Battambang, your guide will take you to your hotel in town.
Meals included: Breakfast
Overnight at La Villa Hotel – 1Single Standard Room
26 Mar 16 Battambang: Village Tour with Bamboo Train
Have breakfast at your hotel before heading out into the countryside and learn more about life in one of the local villages. Here you can learn about local industries, such as the methods of making jars, rice paper, and spring rolls, and visit one of the markets where you can try some local delicacies. Continue on to Wat Banan, one of the best preserved temples in the area. Please note it is quite a climb up to the temple (360 steps!) but the view at the top is well worth the climb.
Enjoy a well-earned lunch at a local restaurant, before finishing your tour with the unique experience of riding the bamboo train. This fun little adventure will take you along an old track through some wonderful local countryside, where you will stop to visit the nearby brick factory and village before heading back to your hotel mid-afternoon.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch
Overnight at La Villa Hotel – 1Single Standard Room
27 Mar 16 Battambang: Thma Puok Village Homestay with Narla
After breakfast, you will be met at your hotel by your driver and Narla at 9:00am. The drive to Thma Puok is approximately 2 1/2 hours, and along the way you will stop in a village for an opportunity to try local snacks such as sticky rice. When you arrive in Thma Puok, you will go straight to Narla’s family home which will be your homestay for the evening. A traditional family lunch will be served, and you will have some free time to relax and chat with Narla’s family. Later in the afternoon, you will take a village walking tour where you will meet some of Narla’s relatives and neighbours before walking to Prasat Kasen (Mote Temple), and ancient Hindu temple located next to the village. In the evening, return to your homestay and enjoy a traditional dinner with Narla’s family and friends.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight at Homestay
28 Mar 16 Banteay Chhmar Temple and Drive to Siem Reap
Start the morning with your choice of a home-cooked traditional breakfast or go into the village for local-style noodle soup. After breakfast you will drive approximately 30 minutes to the beautiful Banteay Chhmar temple. Banteay Chhmar dates from the late 12th to the early 13th century and it means Narrow Fortress. The massive temple complex, along with its satellite shrines and reservoir (baray), comprises one of the most important and least understood archaeological complexes from Cambodia’s Angkor period. Next, you will take a short drive Banteay Top (Fortress of the Army) a small, but impressive temple that was constructed around the same time as Banteay Chhmar. You will enjoy a local picnic lunch at Banteay Top before making the 2 hour drive to Siem Reap. Narla will accompany you to your hotel for check-in before saying goodbye.
Meals Included: Breakfast and Picnic lunch
Overnight at The Aviary Hotel – 1Single Tailorbird Standard
29 Mar 16 Phnom Penh: Departure
Your guide will meet you at your hotel for your private hour-long transfer to the airport in Danang and will ensure that you arrive in time for your onward flight – Cambodia Angkor Air K67114 departing Siem Reap at 16:25 & arriving Phnom Penh at 17:10.
Catch your connecting flight – Departing Phnom Penh at 19:15.
Meals included: Breakfast
PLEASE NOTE
This itinerary is currently in progress and does not reflect hotel room availability. The pricing is not final until the itinerary has been confirmed and booked.
Tour Rate: $ 1,890.00 per person based on 1 people traveling.
Price includes:
- Air tickets Siem Reap – Phnom Penh
- Boat tickets as specified above
- Accommodation as specified above
- Air-conditioned car/van with driver
- Licensed English speaking guides
- Tours and admission fees as mentioned above
- Meals as specified in itinerary, including water
Price excludes:
- Personal expenses
- Visa fees
- Airport tax
- Drinks (except water) and meals not mentioned in itinerary
- Tips
Journeys Within Custom Classic Cambodia (Option 2)
24 Mar 16 Phnom Penh: Arrival
Arrive on your flight – arriving Phnom Penh at 17:40.
Arrive in Phnom Penh where you will be met by an air conditioned van and driver and will be transferred to your hotel.
Meals Included: None
Overnight at La Librairie Hotel – 1Single Chambre Declassees
25 Mar 16 Day 1: Phnom Penh – Sambor Prei Kuk
Your driver will meet you at your hotel and will drive you to Kampong Thom. Arrive and relax at your hotel and enjoy the swimming pool.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight at Sambor Village Resort – 1Single Deluxe Single
26 Mar 16 Day 2: Sambor Prei Kuk – Preah Vihear
You will be met by a local community guide at your hotel and head to Sambor Prei Kuk, Pre-Angkorean temples that date to the 7th century. You can explore the temples by bicycle before enjoying lunch in a local home. After lunch, say goodbye to your guide then get back on the road to Preah Vihear and arrive in the early afternoon.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch
Overnight at Preah Vihear Boutique Hotel – 1Single Deluxe Room
27 Mar 16 Day 3: Preah Vihear Temple
Today you will go to the much disputed border with Thailand to see Preah Vihear Temple. Preah Vihear sits atop a plateau overlooking the lower lands of Cambodia making for stunning views. The road getting to Preah Vihear varies depending on the season, but you drive through some wonderfully remote parts of rural Cambodia to get here, passing local villages and markets. Return to back to your hotel for afternoon at leisure.
Meals included: Breakfast
Overnight at Preah Vihear Boutique Hotel – 1Single Deluxe Room
28 Mar 16 Day 4: Koh Ker – Siem Reap
Visit Koh Ker in the morning when it is still cool. This was the old capital of King Jayavaraman IV when he moved the capital north from Angkor Wat to here. The temple itself has faced a lot of vandalism and many of the once beautiful sculptures are missing heads, but it still is a beautiful legacy to the Khmer Empire. If you have the energy, and aren’t afraid of heights you can climb to the top of the temple, the second tallest in Cambodia, so you can see above the forest line and enjoy amazing views of the rural countryside and the border of Thailand in the distance. Enjoy a basic noodle lunch at Koh Ker and if available meet an infamous soldier from the civil war. Known as a magic man, Ta Kok (Grandfather Kok) was a hero in his village…legend goes that bullets bounced off him and even a landmine exploding under him didn’t leave a scratch! He will be happy to answer questions through your guide and he can show you the tattoos that give him his magic power. He is now the head of police in Koh Ker and his wife runs the noodle stall.
After lunch start your return drive to Siem Reap, stopping for some famous bamboo sticky rice along the way.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch
Overnight at The Aviary Hotel – 1Single Tailorbird Standard
29 Mar 16 Phnom Penh: Departure
Your guide will meet you at your hotel for your private hour-long transfer to the airport in Danang and will ensure that you arrive in time for your onward flight – Cambodia Angkor Air K67114 departing Siem Reap at 16:25 & arriving Phnom Penh at 17:10.
Catch your connecting flight – Departing Phnom Penh at 19:15.
Meals included: Breakfast
PLEASE NOTE
This itinerary is currently in progress and does not reflect hotel room availability. The pricing is not final until the itinerary has been confirmed and booked.
Tour Rate: $ 1,815.00 per person based on 1 people traveling.
Price includes:
- Air tickets Siem Reap – Phnom Penh
- Boat tickets as specified above
- Accommodation as specified above
- Air-conditioned car/van with driver
- Licensed English speaking guides
- Tours and admission fees as mentioned above
- Meals as specified in itinerary, including water
Price excludes:
- Personal expenses
- Visa fees
- Airport tax
- Drinks (except water) and meals not mentioned in itinerary
- Tips