6 Days in Cambodia: Phnom Penh Palaces & Angkor Temples

Welcome to Phnom Penh, the riverside capital of Cambodia and the starting point of your journey.

On arrival at Phnom Penh International Airport, complete the immigration procedure, visa on arrival is available, or may be obtained online in advance, collect your luggage, and continue to the Exit Gate, where your driver and guide will be waiting. From there, it is around a 60-minute drive into the city and your hotel, with check-in as per the hotel’s standard time (from 2:00 PM).

The rest of the day is free at leisure to settle in, perhaps with a first walk along the riverfront where the Mekong and Tonle Sap meet.

Meals are on your own.

Overnight in Phnom Penh.

After breakfast, set out at around 8:30 AM for the Royal Palace, a complex of gilded halls that remains the official residence of the King of Cambodia. Continue to the National Museum, home to one of the world’s greatest collections of Khmer art, spanning sculpture, ceramics, bronzes, and a beautifully carved wooden royal barge.

Then visit Wat Phnom, the hilltop “Mountain Pagoda” that gave the capital its name; according to legend, the first temple here was raised in 1372 to house four Buddha statues found in the waters of the Mekong by Lady Penh.

The afternoon turns to Cambodia’s recent history. Southwest of the city lies Choeung Ek, known through the film The Killing Fields, where a memorial stupa now stands in remembrance of those who died between 1975 and 1978. Returning to the city, visit Tuol Sleng Museum, the former S-21 prison and the largest detention centre of the Khmer Rouge regime. Both places are visited quietly and respectfully, offering an essential understanding of the country.

If time permits, a brief stop at the Russian Market (Phsar Toul Tom Pung) brings the day to a lighter close before your drop-off at the hotel.

Overnight in Phnom Penh.

After breakfast, your driver takes you to the bus station for the shared coach north to Siem Reap – a journey of 314 kilometers and around six hours, with one stop en route at a service station or restaurant where refreshments are available at your own arrangement.

The road passes through a broad stretch of Cambodian countryside: villages and schoolyards, roadside pagodas, sugar palms, and paddy fields that shift between green and gold depending on the season. On arrival in Siem Reap you are met and transferred to your hotel for check-in.

The rest of the day is at leisure, with the temples waiting for tomorrow.

Meals are on your own.

Overnight in Siem Reap.

To make the most of the cooler morning lights, set out at around 8:30 AM for Angkor Wat, the most celebrated monument in Cambodia and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Known as the “City of Temples,” it is one of the largest religious monuments in the world and the crowning glory of Khmer architecture.

Continuing to Ta Prohm, one of the most atmospheric temples in the complex, left much as it was rediscovered – its stone galleries held in the grip of colossal tree roots, and a location in the film Tomb Raider. The day continues in Angkor Thom, the last great capital of the Khmer Empire, established in the late 12th century by King Jayavarman VII, where you visit the Bayon Temple with its serene stone faces, along with the Royal Enclosure, Phimeanakas, the Elephant Terrace, the Terrace of the Leper King, and Baphuon.

Return to town and your hotel in the late afternoon.

Overnight in Siem Reap.

This morning, travel some 58 kilometers north of the province, the road winding through open countryside past villages, schools and pagodas, paddy fields, palm trees, and mango and cashew farms.

Your destination is the sacred hilltop of Phnom Kulen, known as Mahendraparvata — Cambodia’s holy mountain, a place of pilgrimage for Hindus and Buddhists alike and the symbolic birthplace of the Khmer Empire, where King Jayavarman II proclaimed independence in 804 CE. Within Kulen National Park, a magnificent waterfall dominates the forest terrain.

Visit the River of a Thousand Lingas, where sacred carvings honoring the Hindu god Shiva lie beneath the flowing water, then climb a flight of steps to the country’s largest Reclining Buddha, resting upon a massive boulder and revered as one of the holiest sites in Cambodia.

Return to Siem Reap in the afternoon, with the rest of the day at leisure.

Overnight in Siem Reap.

On the last day of the journey, enjoy free time at leisure until your private transfer to the airport (driver only, without guide) for your departure flight.

Depending on your flight schedule, this final morning offers a chance to relax or reflect on the temples, cities, and countryside gathered over six days in Cambodia.

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