Cambodia in Depth: Phnom Penh, the Mekong, Kratie and Angkor in 10 Days

Your guide meets you at the airport and takes you to your hotel. In the afternoon, begin with the Royal Palace, built by King Norodom in 1866, and the Silver Pagoda within its grounds, named for its floor of some five thousand silver tiles and home to a gold Buddha and a small crystal Buddha. Note that parts of the palace close when the King is in residence. Dinner tonight is at a local restaurant.Overnight: Phnom Penh · Meals: D

Ride a cyclo, the city's pedal rickshaw, to Wat Phnom and the art deco Central Market. Visit the National Museum, a red Khmer-style building from 1917 filled with Angkor-era sculpture. In the afternoon, your guide leads a respectful visit to Tuol Sleng Museum, the former S-21 prison. Browse the Russian Market for silk, silver and crafts, then end the day on an hour-long sunset cruise on the Mekong (shared boat).Overnight: Phnom Penh · Meals: B, L

Leave the capital for Kratie, passing through Kampong Cham and Snuol, where you stop for lunch. Kratie is a sleepy Mekong town with handsome colonial buildings and a lovely riverside. After a short walk, continue north to the best viewing point on the river for the rare freshwater Irrawaddy dolphins, which are usually easiest to see in the late afternoon. Return to Kratie for the night.Overnight: Kratie · Meals: B, L

Visit Kratie's pagoda and morning market, then drive to Chhlong, a peaceful riverbank village of Khmer and colonial houses. Its best-known building is a 19th-century wooden home supported by a hundred columns. On the way to Kampong Cham, stop at Chup, the country's largest rubber plantation, founded in the French era. After lunch, visit Wat Nokor, where a modern pagoda stands inside a 12th-century temple, then continue to Kampong Thom.Overnight: Kampong Thom · Meals: B, L

Drive 35 kilometers to Sambor Prei Kuk, the capital of the Chenla kingdom, where more than a hundred brick temples lie scattered in the forest. After lunch in Kampong Thom, continue to Siem Reap, stopping at the old Naga bridge of Spean Praptos. In the early evening, a tuk-tuk takes you through the villages around town to a pagoda for a traditional blessing by Buddhist monks.Overnight: Siem Reap · Meals: B, L

Begin with the Roluos group, the first large temples built by the Khmer kings in the 9th century: Preah Ko, Bakong and Lolei. In the afternoon, follow the eastern circuit to the brick carvings of Prasat Kravan, the royal pool of Srah Srang, Banteay Kdei and the Eastern Mebon, then climb Pre Rup or Phnom Bakheng for sunset. Tonight's dinner includes a classical Apsara dance performance.Overnight: Siem Reap · Meals: B, L, D

This morning is for Angkor Wat, the 12th-century masterpiece whose five towers appear on the Cambodian flag. Your guide explains the carvings and the cosmic plan behind the moat and walls. Enter Angkor Thom through the South Gate, lined with figures churning the ocean of milk, and visit the Bayon with its smiling faces, the Royal Enclosure, Phimeanakas and the Terrace of the Leper King. Return to Angkor Wat for sunset.Overnight: Siem Reap · Meals: B, L

Drive through rice paddies and lively villages to Beng Mealea, an 11th-century temple left to the jungle, about 60 kilometers from Siem Reap. A picnic lunch is served at the site. Continue to Banteay Srei, the small pink-sandstone temple known as the jewel of Khmer art, and Banteay Samre, beautifully restored stone by stone, before returning to Siem Reap.Overnight: Siem Reap · Meals: B, L

Take a traditional wooden boat to the floating village of Chong Khneas on the Tonle Sap, one of Asia's largest lakes. From February to July, when the water is too low, you instead visit the Puok silk farm, Wat Inkosei and Wat Bo, known for its old wall paintings. In the afternoon, explore Preah Khan, a vast temple of corridors and courtyards, the island shrine of Neak Pean and the small temple of Ta Som.Overnight: Siem Reap · Meals: B, L

Make the most of your last morning with Takeo, Thommanon and Chau Say Tevoda, then Ta Prohm, where silk-cotton and fig trees have grown through the stones. It still looks much as it did when European explorers first saw it. Your guide and driver then take you to Siem Reap airport for your onward flight.Meals: B