Cambodia holidays

Cambodia is South-East Asia's most-archaeologically-rewarding country — Angkor Wat (the largest religious monument in the world, built in the 12th century by the Khmer Empire, UNESCO-listed and the country's defining experience), Angkor Thom and the Bayon's smiling-stone-face temples, Ta Prohm's jungle-strangled temple ruins (famously used in Tomb Raider), and the wider Angkor Archaeological Park (400 sq km, takes 3-5 days to do justice with a 7-day pass). Add the harrowing Khmer Rouge history at the Tuol Sleng (S-21) prison and the Choeung Ek Killing Fields in Phnom Penh, the floating villages on Tonle Sap Lake (the world's largest freshwater fish-supply lake, with stilt-and-houseboat communities), the colonial-era riverfront of Battambang with bamboo train rides, and the small but emerging beach scene at Koh Rong, Koh Rong Sanloem, and Kep on the Gulf of Thailand.

A 10-14 day Cambodia trip: Phnom Penh arrival (2-3 nights — the Royal Palace, Silver Pagoda, Tuol Sleng prison and Killing Fields, the National Museum, the riverside, the Russian Market for souvenirs) → fly to Siem Reap (4-5 nights — Angkor Wat sunrise, Angkor Thom and Bayon, Ta Prohm jungle temple, the outer-circuit temples by tuk-tuk: Banteay Srei, Preah Khan, Neak Pean, the floating village day-trip on Tonle Sap, the night markets and Pub Street nightlife) → optional Battambang (2 nights — bamboo train, colonial-era buildings, the Phare Ponleu Selpak circus school) → Cambodian coast: Sihanoukville is the main entry but Koh Rong and Koh Rong Sanloem are the headline beach islands (3-4 nights of basic-to-mid-range beach time) → optional Kampot and Kep (1-2 nights — French-colonial riverside Kampot, the Kep crab market, salt fields and pepper plantations).