Wats Next? Siem Reap
Trip dates: December 14, 2016 - December 17, 2016
To get to Siem Reap from Koh Chang, we did a land transfer from Thailand to Cambodia at Poi Pet. We paid extra for a private transfer where someone walks you through immigration and guides you all the way to the car in Cambodia because we read online about what a mess it is and how everyone along the way is trying to scam you. And boy were we glad we paid for the private service!
First off, we had a minivan all to ourselves from Koh Chang to the border so we got a really nice nap in after leaving quite early in the morning. The minivan dropped us off at Thailand's border, where someone met us and walked us to the immigration point, then waited for us right after immigration. She then walked us across the border and took us through Cambodian immigration. Afterwards, she took us past all the casinos to wait for the bus which would eventually take us to our Cambodian driver who would take us to Siem Reap.
The stretch of area along the border of Thailand and Cambodia is absolutely chaotic and filthy and disgusting. It's truly an assault on all your senses as the whole area smells so foul, there's people and noise everywhere, and it's insanely dirty and dusty. Sounds like a lovely introduction to Cambodia, huh?
If you arrange a group transfer, you get dropped off on the Thailand side and you have to make it yourself to the bus and driver on the Cambodian side. All along the way, there's people everywhere asking you if you need a car or hotel or whatever. While we were waiting for the bus, a lady blatantly lied to us and told us that the bus had left and there were no more. There's tons of people trying to scam you along the stretch after entering Cambodia, and it's getting past that stretch that's worth paying for. Our transfer person stayed with us all the way through the handoff to the Cambodian driver. Note: we took the shuttle to the International Tourist Terminal which is normally where the touts will take you to get ripped off by overpriced shuttle buses/taxis. This shuttle is normally free but we paid a small fee of $5 for the two of us to get picked up by our private transfer from here. For more info on the taxi mafia in Pot Poi and the madness, feel free to check out this website.
We got into Siem Reap a few hours later, where we got a tuk tuk driver to take us to the ticket office to buy a 3day pass for the temples. I had read that you can go to Angkor Wat after 5pm to check out the sunset, and it doesn't count towards your ticket pass, so we tried to do that. We got there too late to get in and it was too cloudy to see the sun though, so we ended up just watching the parade of people coming out instead. We headed back to SR shortly afterwards, just in time to check out the nightlife. There are several night markets, lots of streets vendors, and a very loud Pub Street crowded with restaurants and tons of tourists.
Ok, now on to the good stuff: visiting the various temples! There are a TON of different temples and sites to visit. Because there are so many, it's really easy to get templed out very quickly. So how do you choose which ones to visit?
As it turns out, planning our temple circuit was a bit like planning a round-the-world trip. You should make some pillars, key sites that you absolutely have to visit, and then fill in the rest of the itinerary around those based on time, interest and convenience.
To start, it's good to know what type of temples you're interested in. The temples can generally be categorized into the following: tree temples (Ta Prohm), temple mountains (Pre Rup), sprawling complexes (Preah Khan), and ornately detailed (Banteay Srei). Having your preferences in mind can help you narrow down which sites are must-sees for you. This site was essential to our planning, as it lists out all the temples and provides sample itineraries, as well as other helpful tips for getting around.
Most hotels/guesthouses have tuk tuk drivers that frequent there and they'll have suggested circuits, which all seemed to be pretty similar with only slight variations in price. There's the small circuit which hits Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom, and the grand circuit that will visit the major temples immediately outside the Angkor Thom area. These typically cost about $15-$20, and you pay $5 extra for sunrise or sunset. There are some sites that are even further out, Banteay Srei being one of the more well-known, and you can include this in your grand circuit for an additional $5. You can haggle with your tuk tuk driver a bit, especially if you use the same driver for multiple days.
Since I had done a ton of research into the temples available, I had created my own itinerary and routes of places to visit. If you have your own custom circuit, just make sure to let your driver know when you're negotiating rates. I've read that some tuk tuk drivers only want to visit their set path and aren't as willing to go to other sites that you have in mind. We ended up going with the tuk tuk driver that we used the first day since he was pretty nice and he really hustled (we paid $50 for two days). He wasn't a tour guide by any means and didn't offer many suggestions or insights, but he got us to each site impossibly fast. We were always passing other tuk tuks and cars; he might have been a bit too agro for Eric at times but I really enjoyed our ride!
Here was our itinerary, and pictures from each of the temples.
- Day 1: Prasat Kravan, Ta Prohm, Pre Rup, Banteay Srei, Ta Som, Neak Pean
- Day 2: Preah Khan (originally planned for Day 1 but we got too templed out and pushed it out a day), Angkor Thom, Bayon, Angkor Wat
Prasat Kravan - brick temple with bas-reliefs, only one in the area
Ta Prohm - famous tree temple (think Tomb Raider)
Pre Rup - temple mountain with carvings. This wasn't a must-see for us, especially since we had gone to Ayutthaya and this looked very similar
Banteay Srei - famous for its intricate and ornate carvings. I don't think you can find another temple with more details
East Mebon - wasn't on my list but we stopped by since it was on our route and it's pretty quick to see
Ta Som - lesser visited tree temple, a smaller version of Ta Prohm in some sense
Neak Pean - temple on an island, this one is very unique and different from other temples
Preah Khan - one of the larger sprawling temples, also has some tree-overtaking-temple areas
Angkor Thom - royal city that includes several popular sites, not to mention the gates that lead into the city
Bayon - temple in Angkor Thom that's best known for its big head statues
Angkor Wat - you know wat this is
Wat impressions and other thoughts:
- Favorite temple? Probably Ta Som. It's smaller and less touristy, so it had a more ruin-y, jungly feel to it. Plus it has a lot of character and some pretty well-restored detailed carvings
- Honorable mentions: Banteay Srei and Preah Khan
- Banteay Srei is a bit out of the way but completely worth it. It's so different from anything else you'd see and the details are just incredibly beautiful
- Preah Khan is huge and is a nice mix of architecture, tree-encroaching-temple shots, and details. The East entrance is my favorite part of this complex!
- Ta Prohm wasn't my favorite but it's worth checking out. It's actually really cool but what I didn't like about it is that it all felt very staged. As you walk through it, the guards will tell you about the best spots for pictures with the trees coming over the temple and you'll see platforms built around these spots. It just doesn't feel as naturally ruin-y and overtaken by the jungle to me (whereas Ta Som in comparison does).
- Bayon and Angkor Wat are so incredibly crowded so be prepared. We weren't very impressed by these, which are probably the most famous sites. Maybe it's because we went the second day, or maybe it's because it was just so packed. Either way, try to level set your expectations to avoid disappointment!
- Also, try to visit Bayon early in the day. The crowds there are just unbearable compared to Angkor Wat. It's a tighter space and everything echoes, which just magnifies the sheer amount of people that are up there with you and could ruin the ambiance and your experience of it. Eric and I were completely overwhelmed by the crowd here :(
- The other smaller sites aren't necessarily must sees but many are along the way so it's worth hopping out at some of these just to check out
- When planning your route, pick just a couple must-sees for the day. We did 7 on one day and got totally templed out, even though some were tiny and many were very different from one another so they were still memorable and didn't all blur together
- If you're tempted to bicycle, don't. I was tempted and then I realized how incredibly far apart everything is. Plus the roads are pretty crowded and not in very good shape.
- Everyone everywhere wants your monies! There are food and merchandise vendors everywhere you go that's trying to sell you stuff, as expected. But all the people in the temples, ones that look like security guards or park rangers, are also trying to sell you their services. They'll offer up information about the temple and then either want to be your tour guide or take pictures of you, in return for a small tip. Just be aware that even official-looking people aren't that official!
- Last tip: invest in some face masks! It's super dusty in Siem Reap (and in Cambodia in general), especially if you're riding around in a tuk tuk all day. You can get them at a pharmacy, or even some convenience stores
poncho pillow!
And now I leave you with some assorted food pics. If you're in Siem Reap, go eat at Genevieve's! And make a reservation, we got lucky the first night but it was packed when we tried to go again the next night. Their food is delicious and they have a great story and cause, helping to employ and give back to the locals.
