Compare Cambodia Adventure by Exodus Travels vs Khmer Culture & Coast by Audley Travel
Compare details and see what other travelers are saying.
| Trip |
5 | Excellent
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5 | Excellent
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| Duration | 13 days | 16 days |
| Price From | $ 2,775 | $ 5,434 |
| Price Per Day | $ 213 | $ 340 |
| Highlights |
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| Trip Style | Small group tour | Private guided tour |
| Lodging Level | Standard | Standard |
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| Countries Visited | ||
| Cities and Attractions |
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| Flights & Transport | Ground transport included | Internal airfare and ground transport included |
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| Meals Included | All breakfasts are included. Food is cheap in Cambodia and you can generally avoid the spicier dishes if you wish. Cambodian food is all about contrasts: sweet and bitter, salty and sour, fresh and cooked. It shares many dishes with its neighbours, and you’ll find noodle soup similar to Vietnamese pho, the refreshing salads and sour soups of Thailand, Indian-inspired curries, and noodles and stir fries handed down from years of Chinese migration. From Cambodia’s days as a French Indochina colony, there’s a national love of coffee, pâté, and good bread. Baguettes are served with soup, made into sandwiches, and sold by men riding bicycles carrying baskets of long loaves. Western food is also available in most of the places visited. Vegetarian food is widely available; however, the offering will be fairly similar in most places. Please advise at time of booking if you have any dietary requirements. | N/A |
| Description |
Discover Cambodia, a diverse country with a captivating history. After arrival in bustling Phnom Penh, we head to picturesque Kampot, a land of paddy fields and pepper plantations. We pause for lunch at Kep Bay and enjoy views across the Gulf of Thailand before transferring to tropical Koh Rong island. Returning to Phnom Penh, we visit the Royal Palace and the sobering Killing Fields before departing for Battambang, a well-preserved colonial town. Finally, we explore the temple complex of Angkor with a sunset visit and a bike ride to the less visited temples.Explore the Angkor temples, majestic Phnom Penh and rural countryside |
The intricately carved Temples of Angkor are Cambodia’s main draw, but elsewhere in the country you’ll find vibrant minority villages and great swathes of wilderness. Our Southeast Asia specialists have visited Cambodia time and time again, meeting knowledgeable guides and seeking out comfortable beds in sublime locations. Aiming to take you beyond the obvious, our specialists can build a tailor-made itinerary to help you make the most of your Cambodia holiday. |
Day 1 Start Phnom Penh
Sousadei! Welcome to Cambodia. There will be a welcome briefing with your leader this evening followed by an optional group dinner at a local restaurant. Accommodation: Ohana Hotel (or similar)
Day 2 Transfer to Kampot; sunset river cruise
Leaving Phnom Penh, we travel into rural Cambodia to Kampot, which sits on a picturesque river. On the way, we stop at the 11th-century Phnom Chisor mountain temple, which is set on a hill with a magnificent view. Upon arrival, we check into our centrally located hotel, our base for the next two nights, before boarding a local boat for a sunset trip on the Kampot River. The waterway runs through the town centre and can flow in both directions as it is closely connected to the sea. Accommodation: The Columns Hotel (or similar)
Day 3 Explore fruit and pepper plantations; visit Kep
Today, we venture into the countryside to discover the highlights of the Kampot province including salt fields, rice fields, fruit and pepper plantations, and the Phnom Chhnork caves. Kampot is also one of the largest producers of durian fruit; the durian, once opened, has a smell so pungent it is illegal to take it indoors in some Southeast Asian countries. After exploring the countryside, we visit Kep ghost town. Once a popular seaside resort, Kep now houses old resort buildings marked with bullet holes from the Khmer Rouge period, a reminder of the not-so-distant past. It is regaining popularity with local tourists and you might like to join them in having lunch in the simple crab shacks that line the beach (the crab in Kampot pepper sauce is a must). Accommodation: The Columns Hotel (or similar)
Day 4 Journey to Sihanoukville for speed boat transfer to Koh Rong
After breakfast, we drive (approximately 2hr 30min to three hours) from Kampot to Sihanoukville, before taking a speed boat ferry transfer (approximately 45 minutes to one hour) across to beautiful Koh Rong island, our home for the next two nights. Upon arrival, we have free time to relax, refresh with a sea swim, or sip cocktails as the sun sets. Accommodation: Sok San Resort (or similar)
Day 5 Free day on Koh Rong
Our resort is on one of the most mesmerising and secluded white-sand beaches on the island. Today, you have free time to relax on the beach and enjoy the crystal-clear ocean waters, try various optional activities such as snorkelling, kayaking, and other watersports, or just soak up the exotic surroundings. Your leader can advise of all options available. Accommodation: Sok San Resort (or similar)
Day 6 Transfer back to the mainland and onto Phnom Penh
This morning, we transfer back to the mainland by speed boat (45 minutes to one hour) and drive on to Phnom Penh (approximate transfer time: five to six hours) with a stop for lunch. Phnom Penh, on the banks of the Tonle Sap and the Mekong River, is home to 2.2m people. It's the capital city, but retains a laid-back, typically Cambodian feel where the pace is slower than one might expect. We set out on a sunset cyclo (bicycle rickshaw) lap of the town giving us a unique view of this bustling city and providing us with an easy orientation. Stopping to see street food served by the waterfront, we have the chance to try local specialities. We finish at a restaurant serving tasty Khmer cuisine. There are also many waterfront bars worth a visit; the Foreign Correspondents’ Club (FCC) overlooking the Tonle Sap river is recommended. Accommodation: Ohana Hotel (or similar)
Day 7 Sightseeing including Royal Palace, Killing Fields and Russian Market
Enjoy a full day of sightseeing in the capital, which takes in the beautiful Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda, so named for the solid-silver tiles that make up the floor. Thankfully, the complex escaped the Khmer Rouge regime. Similar in style and scale to the Grand Palace in Bangkok, the Royal Palace has significantly fewer visitors and there is plenty of time to wander among the traditional buildings. There is also time today to shop at either the impressive Central Market or the sprawling Russian Market, a souvenir hunter's paradise. We visit Tuol Sleng museum or S21 (Museum of Genocide), which graphically displays the horrors of the four years when Pol Pot ordered the murder of between 2m and 3m Cambodians. Tuol Sleng was originally a school but was used as a torture and interrogation centre between 1976 and 1979. It is a sobering and disturbing place to visit. Please be aware, the images at the museum are very graphic. We complete our day with a moving late afternoon visit to the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek. A football field-sized area surrounded by farmland, the Killing Fields contain mass graves for perhaps 20,000 Cambodians, many of whom were tortured before being killed. Accommodation: Ohana Hotel (or similar)
Day 8 Journey to colonial city of Battambang
Our destination today is Battambang (pronounced Battambong). The second-largest city in Cambodia, it is centred around an attractive riverside hub with traces of French elegance, friendly Khmer people and well-preserved colonial architecture. There are also striking examples of art deco architecture: central market, the Victory swimming pool and the train station to name a few. En route to Battambang, we can stop at a pottery village, a silversmith village and a marble handicraft workshop for an insight into local handcrafts and industry. In the evening, we enjoy an orientation walk alongside the Sangke River and observe daily life of the local people. Accommodation: Classy Hotel (or similar)
Day 9 Leisurely cycle ride through rural Battambang (otherwise explore on foot)
Today, we cycle through countryside to explore the local rural life. Stopping at villages to see cottage industries, traditional scarf weaving and farming, there will be countless opportunities to interact with the villagers who may be surprised to see us travelling, as they do, on a bicycle. We reward our morning’s efforts with fruit and a refreshing coconut. The cycle is easy riding on flat terrain with lots of stops along the way. If you would like to opt out of the cycling and hop on a tuk-tuk instead, let the leader know at the beginning of the trip so alternative arrangements can be made. Accommodation: Classy Hotel (or similar)
Day 10 Transfer to Siem Reap
After breakfast, we head to the town of Siem Reap with stops at the local market at Pouk. Cambodian markets tend to be fragrant affairs – on offer here is Cambodian ‘cheese’; one of the strongest smelling cheeses around, perhaps because it is made entirely of fish. The local market is nonetheless a great insight into the daily life of the Cambodian people. We also make a brief stop at the Angkor Silk Farm for an introduction into the life of a silkworm and the production process of this fine textile. This afternoon, we walk past the Royal Gardens and along the Siem Reap River to the Old Market, helping us get our bearings in this small town. You may like to finish with a visit to the Artisans DÁngkor workshop – a not-for-profit organisation that provides vocational training for young people in traditional Cambodian arts. Accommodation: Angkor Holiday Hotel (or similar)
Day 11 Full day at Angkor temple complex; sunset visit
Our first full day of temple touring is by private bus so we can visit some of the outlying temples such as Banteay Srei. Known as the Women’s Citadel, this small temple complex with intricate carvings is devoted to Brahma. Particularly impressive are Banteay Kdei and Ta Prohm, still covered in jungle, similar to how it was when it first came to light. Described as being 'grander than anything of Greece or Rome' by French explorer Henri Mouhot, this World Heritage site stands alongside the Pyramids and Machu Picchu as one of the most spectacular archaeological sites in the world. Tonight is free to enjoy one of the many restaurants on the 'Bar Street' boulevard in central Siem Reap. You may also wish to marvel at the skills of the Phare Cambodian Circus troop or chose to watch traditional Apsara dancing. Accommodation: Angkor Holiday Hotel (or similar)
Day 12 Leisurely bicycle tour of temples
This morning, we get set up on mountain bikes for an easy but active ride around the Angkorian ruins that are closer to town. On the bicycle, we can avoid some of the crowds and get a unique perspective on this amazing site. If you want to rise early, you can arrange with your leader to take in Angkor at sunrise prior to the day’s cycling. We visit the incredible Angkor Wat, the many temples inside the Royal City of Angkor Thom, including the magnificent Bayon, which is comprised of 54 intricately carved towers in one single temple. The Bayon certainly left an impression on an early traveller in 1925 who stated 'we stand before it stunned. It is like nothing else in the land.' Angkor is a truly magical experience and a photographer's paradise, one of the real highlights of our trip. The ride will be approximately 15.5mi (25km) with plenty of opportunities for refreshment stops and to take photos. If you would like to opt out of cycling and instead cool down in the support vehicle, please let your leader know who can arrange the logistics of this and the rest of the group. Accommodation: Angkor Holiday Hotel (or similar)
Day 13 End Siem Reap
The tour ends this morning in Siem Reap after breakfast. If you’d like to spend a little more time to explore, speak to your sales representative about extending your stay.
Day 1 : International outbound flight
Today you begin your journey by boarding your international outbound flight to Siem Reap.
Day 2 : Siem Reap
On arrival into Siem Reap you will be met and taken to your hotel, with the rest of the morning to relax. You will then head out on a cycle ride through the Cambodian countryside in the afternoon, a great way to see the area.
Day 3 : Siem Reap
This morning you will visit the Rolous group of temples - one that is not on the main circuit, but again gives you an insight in to some of the local area. In the afternoon you will head to the Angkor Centre for Conservation of Biodiversity and also visit the intricately carved temple of Banteay Srei.
Day 4 : Siem Reap
An early start this morning to see Ta Prohm - also known as the jungle temple. After some time to relax at your hotel you will then be taken to visit Artisans D'Angkor - a fascinating insight in to the arts and crafts of the region.
Day 5 : Siem Reap
A full day to explore the stunning temples of Angkor. Visit Angkor Thom with its crumbling ruins being engulfed by the jungle, the many faces of the Bayon and last but not least a return visit to the magical Angkor Wat itself.
Day 6 : Phnom Penh
Transfer to the airport today for your flight to Phnom Penh. On arrival transfer to your hotel where you have time to relax. Travel around Phnom Penh by cyclo at sunset seeing this vibrant city seeing the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
Day 7 : Phnom Penh
A full day tour today with your guide. Visit Tuol Sleng prison and the Killing Fields to gain insight into the turbulent past that this country has overcome. You will also visit For the Smile of a Child, a worthy project helping children gain an education and vocation giving them a brighter future.
Day 8 : Koh Kong
Travel out of the city into the countryside heading for the Cardamom Mountains. The last bit of your journey to the 4 Rivers Floating Lodge is by boat. Enjoy the tranquil surrounding and hidden location of this serene lodge.
Day 9 : Koh Kong
Nothing has been planned for you today so you can choose whether you wish to venture out on an excursion into the mangroves or just relax on the terrace of your tented villa.
Day 10 : Koh Kong
A day at leisure which you are free to enjoy as you choose.
Day 11 : Kampot
Head for Kampot today, this sleepy town is best known for its black pepper as well as whiling hours away by the river.
Day 12 : Kep
The music school is your first port of call today. This school is dedicated to the preservation of Khmer traditional arts and dance as well as helping orphaned and disabled children. Continue onto Kep where you have a few days by the sea.
Day 13 : Kep
Nothing is planned today so you are free to explore on your own or perhaps just enjoy being at the hotel with its wonderful sea views.
Day 14 : Kep
The day is free to relax and unwind by the pool.
Day 15 : International return flight
Return to Phnom Penh today in plenty of time for your onward flight.
Day 16 : International return flight
Arrive home today to complete your journey.
