Attraction
Angkor Wat
Suryavarman II's 12th-century temple to Vishnu, the largest religious monument in the world and the centrepiece of the Angkor World Heritage Site.
Most of the things to do in Siem Reap revolve around Angkor, the vast temple park just north of town, where Angkor Wat, the face towers of the Bayon in Angkor Thom and the tree-wrapped ruins of Ta Prohm draw visitors from around the world. Further out lie the carved pink sandstone of Banteay Srei, the sacred plateau of Phnom Kulen and the unrestored jungle temple of Beng Mealea, while the Tonle Sap lake, with its floating villages and bird sanctuary, is a short drive south.
The town itself sits on the Siem Reap River. The Old Market lies between Pub Street and the river, Wat Bo and Wat Damnak on the east bank hold many of the best restaurants, and the evenings bring cocktail bars, Phare, The Cambodian Circus and several social-enterprise restaurants that train young Cambodians. The food scene ranges from market stalls to modern Khmer tasting menus. Three days is enough to see the main temples at a comfortable pace, and four or five days allows time for Kulen, Beng Mealea and the lake.
Attraction
Suryavarman II's 12th-century temple to Vishnu, the largest religious monument in the world and the centrepiece of the Angkor World Heritage Site.
Attraction
Jayavarman VII's state temple at the heart of Angkor Thom, famed for its towers of serene stone faces and lively bas-reliefs of Khmer daily life.
Attraction
Jayavarman VII's monastery temple of 1186, left partly in the grip of giant silk-cotton and strangler fig trees and famous from the film Tomb Raider.
Attraction
A small 10th-century temple to Shiva, about 25 km north-east of the main Angkor group, carved in pink-red sandstone with exceptionally fine decoration.
Attraction
Jayavarman VII's sprawling 12th-century temple honouring his father, a largely unrestored maze of corridors, carvings and trees just north-east of Angkor Thom.
Attraction
A modern museum on Preah Sihanouk Avenue that explains Khmer civilisation, religion and the Angkor temples through sculpture, artefacts and themed galleries.
Café
A speciality coffee café open since late 2014, blending Australian café culture with Cambodian touches, known for espresso, cold drip and simple breakfasts.
Café
A riverside social-enterprise café founded in 2012 that supports young Khmer students and gives a large share of its profits to landmine clearance.
Café
A café and second-hand bookshop in a renovated shophouse near the river, serving Cambodian coffee and all-day food, with profits going to education projects.
Café
The coffee shop of Ecole du Bayon's pastry school, where disadvantaged young women learn French baking and sell croissants, tarts and light lunches.
Café
A relaxed all-day café in a refurbished 1960s building in the Wat Bo area, part of the Pages Rooms complex, with breakfasts, tapas and wine.
Café
A vegetarian café, bakery, fair trade shop and community centre near the Old Market, offering yoga, meditation and vegetarian cooking classes.
Hotel
Siem Reap's grand hotel since 1932, an Art Deco landmark with a pool, spa, Cambodian restaurant and the celebrated Elephant Bar.
Hotel
Aman's intimate 24-suite retreat in a 1960s New Khmer building that once hosted King Sihanouk's guests, with private temple tours and plunge-pool suites.
Hotel
A Bill Bensley-designed hotel of 105 rooms and suites in Siem Reap's Royal District, with pool villas, the Kroya restaurant and a hospitality training foundation.
Hotel
A boutique hotel of restored traditional Khmer wooden houses on stilts, set in tropical gardens with a pool, spa and open-air Cambodian restaurant.
Hotel
A 36-room riverside boutique hotel with two pools, a spa and a Khmer restaurant, known for its plastic-free policy and the Refill Not Landfill campaign.
Hotel
A 35-room mid-century modern boutique hotel on a leafy Wat Bo street near the river, with a 20-metre pool, spa and Khmer and continental dining.
Bar
An intimate cocktail lounge on Street 26 styled after 1930s Shanghai, serving martinis, a Raffles-recipe Singapore Sling and home-style Chinese dishes.
Bar
The historic bar of the Raffles Grand Hotel d'Angkor, known for its Airavata cocktail, a large whisky collection and evening piano music.
Bar
A cocktail bar in a traditional 1960s wooden family home near Pub Street, serving herbal Khmer cocktails and running daily cocktail-making classes.
Bar
A lively cocktail bar on Alley West, opened in 2020, known for its bold design, Khmer-Western cocktails such as the 43 Smash and upstairs karaoke rooms.
Bar
A discreet riverside cocktail bar with dark, moody interiors and a wraparound bar, mixing drinks inspired by Angkor and Cambodian culture.
Bar
A tranquil garden cocktail bar on Chocolate Road from the Tomoka Cocktail Company, with wooden villas, a pool and drinks built on local flavours.
Restaurant
Chef Joannes Riviere's dinner-only restaurant in a traditional wooden house, serving regularly changing eight-course tasting menus of seasonal Cambodian produce.
Restaurant
An intimate fine-dining room where chef Kimsan Pol and an all-female team serve seasonal set menus of modern Khmer cooking for lunch and dinner.
Restaurant
The Siem Reap branch of Luu Meng's influential Malis, a large riverside restaurant serving refined Cambodian dishes on a terrace surrounded by greenery.
Restaurant
Owner-chef Sothea Seng's farm-to-table restaurant on the edge of Siem Reap, cooking seasonal 'New Mekong Cuisine' with produce from his own farms and gardens.
Restaurant
A Khmer restaurant in a wooden house and garden, serving traditional Cambodian dishes for lunch and dinner and running cooking classes with its own organic farm.
Restaurant
Chef Kethana's long-running restaurant and bar on Street 27, cooking home-style Cambodian dishes learned from her mother and grandmother.
Thing to do
A nightly hour-long show of circus, theatre, music and dance by graduates of a Cambodian arts school, staged in a big top on Siem Reap's Ring…
Thing to do
A sacred plateau about 48 km north of Siem Reap with waterfalls, a giant reclining Buddha and riverbed carvings, where King Jayavarman II proclaimed independence in…
Thing to do
A large, mostly unrestored 12th-century temple about 40 km east of the main Angkor group, explored on wooden walkways over tumbled stones and tree roots.
Thing to do
Workshops in central Siem Reap where visitors can watch Cambodian artisans carve stone and wood, lacquer and gild, then browse the company's craft boutique.
Thing to do
Siem Reap's long-established central market, where local food stalls and produce sit beside souvenir stands selling silk, silverware, carvings and T-shirts.
Tour operator
A conservation organisation running eco-tours to the Prek Toal floating village and bird sanctuary on the Tonle Sap, with income supporting lake communities.
Tour operator
Siem Reap photography tours led by photographer Laurent Dambies since 2014, timing visits to temples, villages and the Tonle Sap for the best light.
Tour operator
A Siem Reap company running guided quad bike rides through villages and rice country on the edge of town, from short loops to full-day trips.
Tour operator
A tour operator with a team in Siem Reap that plans private and small-group Angkor trips around crowd-avoiding routes, with profits supporting local schools.
Tour operator
A four-hour evening food tour by tuk-tuk, with five stops from noodle shops and barbecue stalls to a home-cooked meal in a countryside village at sunset.
Three days covers Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, Ta Prohm and Banteay Srei at a comfortable pace; allow four or five days to add Phnom Kulen, Beng Mealea or the Tonle Sap
The Old Market area suits travellers who want to walk to restaurants and bars, while Wat Bo and the riverside are calmer and still central; resorts on the road to Angkor are convenient for early temple starts
Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport is about 50 km from the city, roughly an hour by road; many hotels arrange transfers, and taxis are available at the airport
It can suit most budgets, from hostels and market food to luxury hotels and tasting menus; the Angkor Pass is the main fixed cost for sightseeing
It is generally a relaxed place to visit; take normal precautions with bags and phones, use reputable transport at night and drink bottled water