Kingdom of Wonder: Angkor, the Wild Northeast, Kampot and Koh Rong in 16 Days

Your guide meets you at the airport and takes you to your hotel. The afternoon is free to rest after your journey. In the evening, enjoy a welcome dinner of Cambodian dishes with a performance of Apsara dance, the graceful classical tradition that dates back to the Khmer empire.Overnight: Siem Reap · Meals: D

Set off by tuk-tuk for a day in the Angkor complex. Enter Angkor Thom, once one of Asia's largest cities, through its great South Gate, and visit the Bayon with its towers of serene stone faces. Your guide also leads you to smaller, quieter temples between the famous sites. In the late afternoon, watch Angkor Wat glow at sunset before returning to the hotel.Overnight: Siem Reap · Meals: B, L

Drive out of town to Banteay Srei, the small pink temple with the finest carving at Angkor, stopping at Preah Dak village along the way. Visit Banteay Samre and its reliefs of Vishnu and Krishna. In the afternoon, drive 18 kilometers to the Tonle Sap for a private boat ride to a fishing village where schools and homes float, moving with the water level through the year.Overnight: Siem Reap · Meals: B, L

Today you leave the temples behind for Cambodia's quieter northeast, a drive of about 300 kilometers. As you near Stung Treng there is a chance to stop at the Sopheakmit waterfall on the Mekong. Check in on arrival and enjoy a relaxed evening in this small river town where the Sekong meets the Mekong.Overnight: Stung Treng · Meals: B, L

Drive north about an hour and a half toward the Lao border, then continue by boat into a wide, rocky stretch of the Mekong full of deep pools and thundering falls. Walk close to the falls and visit a small fishing village, where people still use traditional plant remedies. By boat, look for the rare Irrawaddy dolphins in the deep water. After lunch, kayak through flooded forest in a protected Ramsar wetland, home to many birds, before returning to Stung Treng.Overnight: Stung Treng · Meals: B, L

Cross the river to Thala Barivat, an early Khmer site with the 7th-century Preah Ko temple and its three seated bulls, along with smaller ruins worn soft by time. After lunch, drive on to Ban Lung, capital of Ratanakiri province. If you have energy left, stroll the local market, a colorful scene of fruit, fish and household goods with very few tourists.Overnight: Ratanakiri · Meals: B, L

Drive to Voeun Sai and board a traditional wooden boat for a trip along a jungle river, passing riverside homes. Visit villages of the Lao and other minority communities and see a traditional cemetery, then return by boat for lunch. In the afternoon, walk a narrow path to Chaong waterfall, the largest and most beautiful near Ban Lung. In the dry season you can swim beneath it.Overnight: Ratanakiri · Meals: B, L

Visit the Ka Tieng and Kachanh waterfalls, the second ending in a large natural pool. Continue on an unpaved road to Bai Srok, a seven-tier waterfall, for a picnic lunch. In the afternoon, see a small traditional gem mine, where locals dig narrow shafts in search of stones. End the day at Yeak Laom, a clear, round lake in an ancient volcanic crater, with time to walk the shore or swim.Overnight: Ratanakiri · Meals: B, L

Drive south toward Kratie, stopping at O'Russey Kandal, a community-run ecotourism site in the forest with a river, small falls and natural pools. Enjoy a picnic lunch and a dip. Then take a boat at Kampi to see the Mekong's rare dolphins, and visit Wat Sorsor Moi Roi, the 100 Pillar Pagoda, rebuilt in 1997. A ferry carries you to the car-free island of Koh Trong for the night.Overnight: Kratie · Meals: B, L

Explore Koh Trong by bicycle on quiet lanes through villages and orchards, stopping at the island's pagoda. Take the ferry back to Kratie for lunch, then drive to Phnom Penh. On the way, you can pause at a village market and at Wat Hanchey, a hilltop temple with one of the finest views over the Mekong. Arrive in the capital in the late afternoon.Overnight: Phnom Penh · Meals: B, L

Today brings the capital's history into focus. By tuk-tuk, visit the Royal Palace, then Tuol Sleng Museum, a school that became the S-21 prison under the Khmer Rouge, and the memorial at Choeung Ek outside the city. Your guide handles these visits with care. In the evening, unwind on a relaxing sunset cruise on the river before returning to your hotel.Overnight: Phnom Penh · Meals: B, L

Leave the city for Tonle Bati and its 12th-century Ta Prohm temple. Continue to Phnom Chisor, where 408 steps lead to an 11th-century hilltop temple with wide views over the rice fields. In Takeo, a boat takes you along canals to Phnom Da, a hill with an ancient sandstone tower in a region settled for more than 2,500 years. Continue to Kampot for the night.Overnight: Kampot · Meals: B, L

Explore the countryside around Kampot. Visit the salt fields, the cave of Phnom Chhnork with its small Angkor-era brick temple, and the pepper plantations that make Kampot pepper famous. The scenery is green and peaceful. Lunch is in the seaside town of Kep, known for fresh fish, shrimp and crab.Overnight: Kampot · Meals: B, L

Enjoy a slow morning before your driver takes you to Sihanoukville to board the speedboat to Koh Rong. Check in to your beach hotel and spend the rest of the day on the sand, watching the sunset over the sea.Overnight: Koh Rong · Meals: B

A full day to do as little or as much as you like. Swim, read, take a beach walk or book a massage. After two weeks on the road, the island is the perfect place to let the journey settle.Overnight: Koh Rong · Meals: B

After breakfast, take the speedboat back to Sihanoukville, where your private driver meets you for the road transfer to Phnom Penh airport. The journey takes about four hours. This transfer is with a driver only.Meals: B