Siem Reap Travel Guide — Angkor, Markets and How Many Days

See & Do

Everything orbits the Archaeological Park, but the town has hours of its own.

Angkor Wat and the main circuit

Angkor Wat is the headline: 162.6 hectares, the largest religious monument on earth, worth the 05:00 alarm once. Inside Angkor Thom, the Bayon's stone faces are the other must. Buy tickets only via the official Angkor Enterprise site, counter, kiosk or app: $37 for one day, $62 for three (valid within 7), $72 for seven (valid within 30). Gates open 05:00, close 18:30; under-12s free.

Beyond the postcard temples

Ta Prohm's tree roots and Banteay Srei's pink sandstone carvings (25 km north-east) reward the extra kilometres. Koh Ker ($15) and Beng Mealea ($10) sit further out, far quieter. Angkor Enterprise lists 90+ accessible sites; plan day two from its temple list.

Town: markets, river and Tonle Sap

Off the temple grid: Psar Chas (Old Market) for fabrics and snacks, the Made in Cambodia Market for crafts, and the riverside for an evening walk. Tonle Sap's floating villages sit south of town; Kampong Phluk is the common half-day. Phare, the Cambodian circus, is the town's best night out.

Eat

Khmer food is gentler than Thai, heavier on herbs, fermented fish and river catch. Numbeo: cheap local meal $2.50, mid-range dinner for two $24.

What to order

Fish amok (coconut steamed fish) first; lok lak (stir-fried beef, lime-pepper dip), Khmer red curry and num banh chok (breakfast rice noodles with fish gravy) complete the list. Pub Street is the tourist strip; walk two blocks out for the real prices.

Coffee and drinks

Cappuccino $1.67, draught beer $1.00, bottled water $0.44 (Numbeo, Aug 2026). Tap water is not drinkable — boil, filter or buy bottled. Street food is generally fine, though nomads.com rates food safety only 'Okay' here, so pick busy stalls and cooked-to-order.

Where to Stay

Siem Reap is compact enough that the choice matters less than usual: the town sits 15 minutes from the park gate either way. Compare basing costs on Bangkok's living page.

Old French Quarter / riverside

The classic base — walkable to Old Market, Pub Street and the river, with the widest spread of guesthouses, cafes and travel agents. Best for a first visit.

Wat Bo and the lanes south

Quieter, greener and full of small hotels with pools. Popular with longer-stay remote workers; a scooter makes it easy.

Taphul and the western strip

Budget guesthouses and hostels, closest to the supermarket end of town. Numbeo puts a 1-bedroom in the centre at $334/month, $235 outside it: monthly rentals here undercut most of Southeast Asia.

Logistics

Siem Reap Angkor International Airport (SAI) is the gateway, 40-50 minutes from town; the old airport closer in has been superseded, so check which one your airline uses before booking a transfer. Grab is the taxi app of record; tuk-tuks negotiate by the day for temple circuits. The town is flat and compact: a rented scooter or a tuk-tuk covers it.

Cambodia runs on cash: nomads.com flags Siem Reap as 'cash only, especially for foreigners'. US dollars and Cambodian riel circulate interchangeably — riel comes back as change for dollars, and small notes suit market purchases. ATMs are plentiful (suggested withdrawal ~1,000,000 KHR / $247).

Weather: hot all year. November to February is the cool dry window for walking ruins; March to May is brutal (31C and climbing), and June to October is monsoon — greener and cheaper for it.

Visas: a $30 tourist or $35 Ordinary e-visa on arrival covers 30 days, and the Ordinary one is the visa you extend. Full ladder, fees and the FPCS registration trap are in the Cambodia visa hub.