DAY 1:  ARRIVAL SIEM REAP 

Transfer from your point of arrival in Siem Reap to the hotel

After check-in at the hotel, you will have a time to rest before starting the visit of Angkor with the Royal city of Angkor Thom. We will begin at the South Gate, with its well-restored statues of asuras (demons) and gods lining the bridge and finish at the quiet area of the Preah Pithu temples. On our way, we will stop at the famous Bayon, a pyramid temple decorated by about 200 gigantic carved heads. We will also visit the Royal Enclosure, the Elephant Terrace and the Terrace of the Leper King. Then, Ta Phrom, also known as the lost-in-the-jungle-temple. This monastery was left to the destructive power of the jungle to demonstrate the awesome power of nature and has been largely consumed by the giant trees. In the afternoon, we will visit Angkor Wat until sunset. This famous temple is believed to be the biggest religious monument ever built in the world and certainly one of the most spectacular. Later, we will have dinner at a local restaurant. Overnight in Siem Reap

Meals: Welcome dinner

DAY 2:  ANGKOR COMPLEX 

On the second day, a 50 km drive northeast of Siem Reap will take us to Phnom Kbal Spean. After a 30 minutes walk in the forest, we will arrive at Sahasralina, the River of a Thousand Lingas. The remarkable 11th-century riverbed rock carvings display a gallery of gods and celestial beings. We will picnic for lunch on this inspiring site. On the way back, we will stop at the temple of Banteay Srei, founded in 967. While many of Angkor's temples are impressive because of their sheer size, Banteay Srei stands out by the quality of its craftsmanship. You will admire the beautiful apsara carvings made of pink sandstone contrasting with the main walls in laterite. Foolowing this, we will visit the landmine museum before going to Artisan Dángkor. At the end of the day we can relax for a time at the Butterfly garden, a restaurant which offers superb dining in an oasis with 1,500 tropical butterflies, while providing benefits to the community.Overnight in Siem Reap

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

DAY 3:  KOMPONG PHLUK FISHING VILLAGE 

Third day in the city of Siem Reap, we will spend the morning visiting the four temples of Pre Rup, (from the 10th-century), Ta Som, Neak Pean and Preah Khan (both of them built during the reign of Jayavarman VII in the late 12th-century). After lunch, we will enjoy a boat trip to the fishermen’s village of Kompong Phluk. We will visit the village, the pagoda on the only butte (the only building which is not on stilts) and see the activities of the villagers before doing a traditional boat cruise. Small canoes, paddled by villagers, will take you deep into the dense flooded forest. Dinner at a local restaurant with an Apsara show (khmer classical and traditional dances). Overnight in Siem Reap

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner with traditional dance show 

DAY 4:  SILK FARM & BATTAMBANG 

This morning we will check out around 10 am from our hotel and travel overland approx 3 hours to Battambang province. On the way we will visit the Silk farm of Puok, an applied research and vocational training center for all silk-related jobs which is part of Artisans d'Angkor from the Chantiers-Ecoles. This company was created to help young people to find work in their home villages and has been mentioned by IMF and UNESCO as an example of how to reduce poverty in the world. Upon arrival in Battambang, after checking in to our hotel, we will continue our journey to drive 18 km to Phnom Sampeu.

This mountain is the site of two caves formerly used by the Khmer Rouge to torture and kill some of their victims. A memorial holding some of the victims' remnants has been created. At the top are two Wats, one which was used as a prison during the Khmer Rouge era, and a small, colourful modern one from where you can enjoy a spectacular view of the countryside. At around 5.30pm we will come down to the foot of the mountain to wait and see the giant bats fly out from their cave to the sky at sunset. Overnight in Battambang

Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

DAY 5:  KHMER COOKING CLASS & BAMBOO TRAIN 

After breakfast, we will go to Smokin’Pot cooking class a friendly local restaurant, where you will have an initiation to the Khmer cuisine. Khmer cuisine is quite similar to the Thai cuisine but less spicy, with accents from Indian, Vietnamese and Chinese food. You will learn about the specific products used in Khmer cuisine and choose your menu before joining the cook to learn how to prepare and cook these meals.

At lunch, you will enjoy your own meals with them at the local family house in Battambang. In the afternoon, visit the cultural and agricultural villages of Wat Kor commune. These villages are known for their ancient wooden houses.  We will be shown around these houses by their owners who will share their life stories. We will continue this insight into the Cambodian way of life by enjoying an ox-cart trip and travel the traditional way from village to village, learning about traditional agricultural practices such as rice planting in Kompong Seyma and fruit growing in Ksach Puoy where you will enjoy the variety of unusual fruits available. At the end of the day we will ride the bamboo train for sunset and this will be a real highlight of the tour today. Overnight in Battambang

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

DAY 6:  OUDONG & PHNOM PENH CAPITAL  

Early in the morning, we leave Battambang for the capital city of Phnom Penh. On the way we will stop to see Oudong, located about 40km northwest of Phnom Penh Capital. Here is a  mountain topped with the spires of stupas rears from the plain like a fairytale castle which is Phnom Oudong, at one time an ancient capital. As the capital, it was called Oudong Meanchey; Oudong means noble or excellent, and Meanchey means victory.

From 1618 until 1866 it was home to a succession of kings, deposed from the former capital of Longvek by the invading Thai kings. Today, Oudong remains a sacred place where a huge stupa has recently been built to store and conserve the relic of Preah Serei Roek Theat (Ash of the Buddha). It is also beautiful landscape in the surrounding area with spectacular view of rice paddies and villages.  Then we continues our drive to our hotel. Overnight in Phnom Penh

Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

DAY 7:  ROYAL PALACE & KILLING FIELDS 

Today after breakfast, we visit Wat Phnom the holy hill in the capital and on to the Royal Palace Complex. Besides the Royal Residence (closed to the public), the Throne Hall or Vinichhay Temple (the place where kings are enthroned) and the Chan Chaya Pavillon (where traditional dances took place), it includes Wat Preah Keo, better known as the Silver Pagoda. This amazing place, where the floor is covered with 5000 silver plates, houses the Preah Keo or emerald Buddha, made of Baccarat crystal. In front stands a 90 kg golden Buddha studded with 9584 diamonds.

After this, we will walk about 10 minutes to the National Museum. Built around a central courtyard, the galleries, arranged chronologically, present a collection of Khmer art, mostly sculptures. In the afternoon, we will drive about 16 kilometers to the Choeng Ek killing fields and the Tuol Sleng genocide Museum. This former high school in the suburbs of the capital was converted to a detention and torture centre - known as Toul Sleng or S21 - by the Khmer Rouges when they came to power in 1975. A genocide museum was established at Toul Sleng after 1979 and today it remains as it looked when abandoned by the Khmer Rouges. The pictures of hundreds of faces of those tortured there line the walls inside the old school. Most of the 17,000 people detained at Toul Sleng were eventually transported to Choeung Ek, a mass gravesite known to the locals as the Killing fields after the popular movie of Roland Joffre. Choeung Ek also serves as a memorial to those killed under the Khmer Rouges rule. If we still have time, we will also visit the Russian market. Overnight in Phnom Penh

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

DAY 8:  HIGHLIGHTS ON CYCLO 

The capital city of Cambodia lies at the confluence of the Mekong, Sap and Bassac rivers. Phnom Penh was regarded by many as the most beautiful of all the French-built cities in Indochina and so was formerly called the pearl of Indochina. In this morning, we will visit the city by Cyclo (rickshaw), the traditional way of transportation of Asia. We will see the Independence Monument, Wat Lank Ka, the Prayuvong Buddha factory, the Cambodia-Vietnam Soldiers Monument, Wat Botum, and Wat Ounalom, Phnom Penh’s most important Wat founded in 1443 to house a hair of the Buddha. Today our cyclo tour will end up at Central Market (Spa Thmei) where you can photograph the old French colonial architecture. The afternoon is free for you to to explore the capital city on your own or relax by the pool at the hotel. Overnight in Phnom Penh

Meals: Breakfast only 

DAY 9:  KIRIROM HILLSIDE RESORT 

We will leave Phnom Penh after breakfast and drive to the south. A 3 hour journey will take us to Kirirom Hillside Resort beautifully set in the natural surroundings of the Kirirom National Park with mountain views and tropical gardens. Kirirom, a wooded upland area of 35,000 ha famed for its huge and beautiful trees and its peaceful tranquility, was designated a national park in 1993. The park is home to many animal species, such as munjac deer, sambar deer, tigers and leopards and a specific flora. In the higher elevations the predominate tree is the pine.
The resort, where we will stay 2 nights, provides many activities for some very relaxing days. You will absolutely appreciate the swimming-pool, the spa and the sauna, as well as the numerous other activities such as tennis, horse riding, biking or canoeing. You can also fish in the beautiful lake along the side of which stand the bungalows. A wide selection of international cuisine Western, Chinese, Thai and traditional Khmer is served in the elegant restaurants set in this magical environment. Overnight in Kirirom Hillside Resort

Meals: Breakfast only 

DAY 10:  CHAMBOK COMMUNITY 

We will spend a full day in this outstanding place and you will be able to enjoy the facilities of the resort or make an excursion in the surroundings at Chambok Community-base Ecotourism site which lies at the border of Kirirom National Park. It boasts a beautiful 40-meters high waterfall, which can be reached via a 3 km nature trail. The site serves as a model for best practice in community-based ecotourism in Cambodia.
Trained local guides are available to share their knowledge of the nature, history and cultural aspects of the area. The site also has a visitor centre and a restaurant where the local youth stage dance performances and Khmer food is served. There are a wide range of outdoor activities and attractions such as trekking, hiking, bird watching, animal tracking or visiting a bat cave. You can also swim in the stream, ride a bicycle or experiencing Khmer rural lifestyle on an ox-cart ride. Members of the homestay families have participated in a food preparation training and can prepare delicious Khmer meals.
The Chambok eco-tourism site is community-based and one of the few sustainable driven tourist sites in Cambodia where visitors can enjoy nature and culture while supporting environment conservation and local livelihood. All the revenue from the tourism services in Chambok go directly to the community. Overnight in Kirirom Hillside Resort

Meals: Breakfast only 

DAY 11:  KEP CITY 

Today, we will drive about 4 hours to Kep province located along the coastline. we will cross the Cambodian countryside, passing bucolic villages and scenic rice paddies. On the way, you will see people at work in the rice fields, driving oxcarts and other strange vehicles as well as peaceful water buffaloes lying on pond along the road. Our destination is the small city of Kep, famous for its seafood, especially fresh crab. Overnight in Kep

Meals: Breakfast only 

DAY 12:  KAMPOT SUNSET ON THE BOAT

Kampot is the durian growing region of Cambodia and is also renowned for producing some of the world’s finest peppers. Today, you will have morning off to explore the Kep city on your own and in the afternoon, we will visit to the pepper farm, durian farm and salt farm before we continue our journey to Kampot city. On arrival, we will explore the town by foot along the Kampot River to take see the  French colonial buildings. At the end of the day, we will enjoy a boat on the Prek Kampong Bay River, which runs along the city for a sunset river cruise and our guide will prepare some cold beers, soft drinks, water and snacks. Overnight in Kep

Meals: Breakfast only 

DAY 13:  RABBIT ISLAND 

After breakfast at the hotel, we will start our walking tour to see the crab market and continue to climb the hill to see the view of the coastline and some islands from the hilltop. Our walk will end up at a Buddhist temple where our driver will pick us up and drive to the boat dock for our 30 minutes boat trip to Rabbit Island. Here we will have a full day to enjoy and relax on the beautiful white sand beach.This small island has two white sandy beaches with coconut trees and shallow waters. You can also walk along the beaches or inside the island through the beautiful forest where you may see giant bats, unless you are just dreaming of lying on a hammock with a good book and cocktail drink. We return to Overnight in Kep

Meals: Breakfast, BBQ lunch

DAY 14:  ONWARDS HOME 

This is departure day so no activities are planned. Check-out will be at noon and you are free to leave at any times. Today depending on your international flight out of Cambodia so we will transfer back to Phnom Penh International Airport based onto your flight times.

Meals: Breakfast only

End of services…

Service included:

• Entrance fees during guiding
• Accommodation on twin share basis with all kind of taxes
• An experienced English-speaking guide
• All private transfer with air-conditioning vehicles
• Boat trip onto the Tonle Sap
• Meals as stated on the itinerary
• Water and cool napkin during the trip
• Homestay with villager
• Bamboo Train
• Ox-Cart tour
• Cyclo tour
• Traditional dance show
• Cooking Class
• Arrival and depart transfer

Service excluded:

• Personal travel insurance (compulsory!)
• Donation during visit NGOs
• Airfare, airport taxes & excess baggage charges
• Visa & visa fees, passport & vaccination charges
• All optional tours & activities during free time
• Expenditure of a personal nature, such as souvenir, laundry, postage, Phone calls…
• All beverages during the included meals
• Tips

Experience Indochina, the local way…