Mystical Temples of Cambodia: Angkor, Preah Vihear and the Mekong in 10 Days

Your guide welcomes you at Siem Reap airport and takes you to your hotel. After a rest, set off by tuk tuk through the quiet outskirts of town to a local pagoda, where Buddhist monks offer a traditional blessing for happiness and good fortune. In the evening, enjoy dinner at a local restaurant with a performance of Apsara dance, an elegant introduction to the stories carved on the temples you will soon explore.Overnight: Siem Reap · Meals: D

Leave early to watch sunrise over Angkor Wat, built in the early 12th century for King Suryavarman II, then explore its galleries before returning for breakfast. Continue through the South Gate of Angkor Thom to the Bayon and its stone faces, the Royal Enclosure, Phimeanakas, the Terrace of the Leper King and Preah Khan. In the afternoon, wander through Ta Prohm, where silk-cotton and fig trees grow through the towers. End the day with sunset at Pre Rup.Overnight: Siem Reap · Meals: B, L

Drive out to Banteay Srei, a late 10th-century temple carved in pink sandstone with some of the most delicate decoration in Khmer art. On the way back, stop at Pre Rup, a temple-mountain linked in local belief with royal funerals. Then return to Preah Khan, a vast monastery complex built by Jayavarman VII for his father, where you can wander quiet corridors at your own pace. Finish at Neak Pean, a small shrine set on an island in the middle of an ancient reservoir.Overnight: Siem Reap · Meals: B, L

This morning visit the Roluos group, the first capital of the Angkor region in the 9th century: Preah Ko with its brick towers, the pyramid of Bakong and Lolei, once on an island in a great reservoir. After lunch, drive to Chong Kneas on Tonle Sap and board a private boat through the fishing village, where homes, schools and stores float on the water. Back in town, visit a local market and the Artisans d'Angkor workshops, where young Cambodians learn traditional crafts.Overnight: Siem Reap · Meals: B, L

Today you leave Siem Reap and head north into the heart of rural Cambodia. Stop at Koh Ker, capital of King Jayavarman IV in the early 10th century, where a seven-tiered pyramid and scattered shrines stand in the forest with few other visitors. Your guide brings the brief but ambitious reign behind these monuments to life. Continue to Preah Vihear province and check in at your hotel in Sra Em, a quiet base for tomorrow's early start.Overnight: Preah Vihear · Meals: B, L

Rise early and ride a local pickup truck up the steep road to Preah Vihear, a UNESCO-listed temple stretched along the top of the Dangrek Mountains. Climb through its series of gateways and courtyards to the final sanctuary at the cliff edge, where the view stretches across the northern plains. Return to the hotel to freshen up and have lunch, then drive south to Kampong Thom, stopping to enjoy the countryside and meet families in their homes along the way.Overnight: Kampong Thom · Meals: B, L

After breakfast, visit Sambor Prei Kuk, a group of 6th and 7th-century brick temples that are among the oldest in Cambodia and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You explore the three main temple groups by bicycle on flat forest trails, with carved flying palaces still visible on the walls. A local family serves a picnic lunch nearby. Return to Kampong Thom for a short break, then continue to Kampong Cham on the Mekong.Overnight: Kampong Cham · Meals: B, L

Spend the morning on the islands of the Mekong near Kampong Cham, traveling between villages by horse cart and meeting farmers who grow tobacco, corn and fruit on the rich river soil. Then follow the Mekong south to Phnom Penh, stopping at local markets to sample regional snacks. Arrive in the capital in the late afternoon. After time to relax at the hotel, your guide joins you for dinner at a local restaurant.Overnight: Phnom Penh · Meals: B, L

Visit the Royal Palace, home of the King of Cambodia, and the Silver Pagoda with its treasures, then Wat Phnom, the 14th-century hill pagoda at the heart of the city's legend. In the afternoon, your guide takes you to Tuol Sleng, the former school used as the S-21 prison, and the Choeung Ek memorial, to understand the Khmer Rouge years. Close the day on a gentle sunset cruise where the Tonle Sap and Mekong rivers meet.Overnight: Phnom Penh · Meals: B, L

Enjoy free time this morning for a coffee by the river or some last-minute shopping at the Russian or Central Market. At the agreed time, your driver transfers you to Phnom Penh airport for your flight home or onward journey.Meals: B