**********
Angkor Wat (Siem Reap, Cambodia) is the largest religious monument in the world and an unmissable part of a visit to the beautiful country of Cambodia.
It was first constructed as a Hindu Temple before becoming a Buddhist Temple at the end of the 12th Century. The sheer scale and historical significance is second to none and it immediately became one of the most magnificent and breathtaking places that I’ve ever been fortunate enough to visit.
To put the size into perspective: when you google how many temples there actually are at Angkor Wat, no definitive answer seems to exist. I’ll say this though, it’s that epically proportioned that some people go on a weeks holiday just to explore the site every day.
If you’re not a complete temple geek though, then 1-2 days is recommended to see some of the most signifiant, most impressive, and best preserved of the vast selection.
The best way to explore the site is by tuktuk, of which there is no shortage in Siem Reap. You can hire a tour guide speaking almost any language you desire, or you can take the cheaper option of hiring a local tuktuk driver and exploring each temple yourself – under the drivers guidance and direction.
Literally every hotel in Siem Reap will have some sort of regular tuktuk driver to take you on the tours and booking in advance isn’t necessary at all. We decided to go on a sunrise tour at 3am the next morning and told our hotel at 11pm the night before and this wasn’t an issue. On that note – nothing is an issue for the Cambodians, they are the friendliest and most upbeat people I have ever come across, which is another of many many many more reasons to visit.
As the archeological site is so intense and the majority of travellers will never manage to get round all of it in the time they have, your hotel and your tuktuk driver will be able to guide you in the direction of the best selection for your specified time frame.
Something that I absolutely loved is that although all tourists pay a fee of $37 (US dollars as that’s the main currency they use) for a one day pass (a very fair price in light of Cambodia’s history and how incredible the site is), Cambodian nationals can enter completely free of charge. This means that all of the local tuktuk drivers have literally grown up on the site. They all have their own favourite temples and their own tips on the best order to do things in which makes them invaluable to tourists.
We chose to do a sunrise tour with a tuktuk driver which cost us $20 from our hotel pickup at 3am to a ‘half day’ tour of all the main temples. (Note: by tour, I mean that the driver dropped us from one temple to another and waited outside while we were free to explore each one for as long as we wished).
Sunrise over Angkor Wat itself (the most spiritually significant and impressive temple remaining) was something that Nathan and I had dreamed about for a long time so even with the 2am wake up call it was a no-brainer. I was SO happy that we went with our hearts because the sight of that sunrise was one of the happiest and most special moments of my life.
When we arrived we sought out a ledge on a smaller temple facing Angkor Wat, looking over the water, and within half an hour the sky was starting to brighten up.
Obviously, I took about 8,692 photos of the sunrise so here’s a lovely little montage from start to finish…
It was one of those sights that photos could never do justice and you can’t even really explain. Please just do a sunrise tour if you ever visit – you will never regret it.
By the time the sun came up at around 630am, it was already well into the 30s and the heat was absolutely stifling. Although by the end of the day of exploring I was more sweaty and exhausted than you can imagine, this was another huge benefit of doing a sunrise tour. The heat was scorching enough when we left around 230pm- I dread to think how bad it would feel if you had only arrived at midday.
I believe we explored 12 different temples in this time and I can’t remember exactly which they all were – I’m going to blame heat exhaustion at the time, but I actually just have a really terrible memory.
Angkor Wat was of course the main one and definitely the best-preserved. It’s huge, commands your attention, and blows you away with its intricate design details.
If Angkor Wat was my second favourite, then Bayon is my ultimate favourite. It is dubbed as the temple with all the faces as, in the words of Lonely Planet:
” Its 54 Gothic towers are decorated with 216 gargantuan smiling faces of Avalokiteshvara, and it is adorned with 1.2km of extraordinary bas-reliefs incorporating more than 11,000 figures.”
Which results in the coolest building I’ve ever been in. The King that built this one must have been eclectic, eccentric, and uber sassy, and I just absolutely love that.
My other favourite that I just have to mention is Ta Prohm, which is very popular with a lot of tourists as it is where Tomb Raider was filmed.
Although the film reference didn’t hugely excite me as I haven’t actually watched it, this temple felt quite different from the others. It’s very sprawling with tonnes of almost hidden doors and different chambers with something exciting around every corner.
They have let the surrounding trees grow right into and through this temple over hundreds of years so the walls are now half tree-half brick which looks unbelievably cool.
By the time we visited this temple, the heat was getting unbearable and we had been on our feet in it constantly for 6 hours so when we spotted a few rocks in the shade of a big tree we were very happy to take a rest. But, I’ve never seen Nathan jump up so fast in his life! The tree was covered in thousands of tiny thorns that had gone straight through our thin elephant pants and were now embedded into our skin!
We hid in the corner for ages trying to pick the thorns out of each other, much to the bewilderment of the security guards who kept checking on us. We were finally getting somewhere when the Thai ladies who we had previously made friends with on the coach from Thailand to Siem Reap appeared around the corner- literally the best timing ever for this encounter.
These incredibly sweet women were so happy to see us and they had made friends with some monks as well. As we gritted our teeth through the pain and chatted to them, the ladies suggested that we get a picture with the monks – RIGHT UNDER THE TREE AND ON THE HORRIBLE STABBY THORN ROCK! And being the awkward British people that we are, we didn’t know how to explain to the monks that it wasn’t safe to sit there… so we just let them go ahead… We are definitely going to hell.
It made for a great grumpy faced monk picture though.
Although I apologise for the Thai lady’s shaky photography skills and I can’t explain to you why the monk has taken his shoes off for the picture…
Besides the heat, the stabby thorn rock, and the unfortunate encounter with the monks, this was one of the most memorable and special days of our whole trip and of my entire life in all honesty. It is a magical, enthralling place which epitomises the term ‘wanderlust’ for me and is everything that any travel-lover could ever dream of. Active, enticing and so totally different to anything in the Western world, it’s a place that would fulfil even the most adventurous explorers.
But I did learn a couple of things through hindsight which are worth noting.
So, here are my top 6 tips for visiting Angkor Wat:
- Check that there are no thorns before sitting down anywhere- this is 100% NOT something that you want to learn the hard way
- The Sunrise trip is a must!
- A full 2 litre bottle of water each isn’t even nearly enough for a day here – bring gallons and gallons of the stuff
- As a sign of respect rather than anything else, wear longish pants and cover your shoulders
- Bring a hair bobble- this country is NOT made for girls with long hair
- Make sure you have enough storage for 70,000 pictures
And most importantly, DO NOT bring a bag of banana chips because there are monkeys and they will rob you of them…
**********
I absolutely love this post, Cambodia and the Angkor Wat has been on my bucket list for some time and your pictures really bring it to life for me. I love the sound of the sunrise tour and it’s great that the tuk tuk driver waits for you. It certainly seems worth getting up early doors going by your stunning pictures!
Thanks for sharing,
Jaz xoxo
http://www.thelifeofasocialbutterfly.co.uk
LikeLike
Ooh I really hope you get to go one day, it’s such a special place! Definitely worth getting up for! Thank you for your lovely comment Jaz!xxx
LikeLike
Ah this looks like a truly magical experience. Well worth the early morning start! x
Kate Louise Blogs
LikeLike
Yep it was definitely worth it!xx
LikeLike
These sights are heavenly! Loved all the historic information. You look lovely 🙂
http://www.whatisrawrote.com
LikeLike
Thank you so much Isra!xxx
LikeLike
This post just made me extra excited to visit Cambodia, I’m going there on my 25th birthday 🙂
xx Alyssa // STYLE VANITY
LikeLike
Oh wow that’s amazing, you’re so lucky! Hope you have a brilliant birthday there!xxx
LikeLike
wow you guys saw a lot! =o) Looks beautiful, you really captured the atmosphere nicely =o)
https://dreamofadventures.com/
LikeLike
Oh thank you so much for your lovely comment!xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is so beautiful!!! Love the blue pants you’re wearing as well!
xx Sofia | SOFIAADOT
LikeLike
Thank you Sofia, I bought them for a few pounds in Thailand and they were so comfy too!xxx
LikeLike
Cambodia looks just so stunning! Loving the outfit you styled to explore the city.
xoxo
Rina Samantha
http://www.andshedressed.com
LikeLike
Thank you so much Rina!xxx
LikeLike
Oh gosh those thorns sound painful lol! These places look absolutely incredible! x
LuxeStyle
LikeLike
They really were! Glad you think so!xx
LikeLike
These temples look beyond incredible (definitely getting tombraider temple vibes right now, haha) and seriously, you are SO beautiful! Gorgeous long hair and your outfit is so perfect. Such cute culottes!
aglassofice.com
x
LikeLike
It’s so tombraider! Oh you are so so lovely for saying that, thank you for such a kind comment!xxx
LikeLike
Your trip looks and sounds amazing! Love all the photos! The temples look gorgeous and I really want to visit now!
Heather xx
https://www.hefafa.me.uk
LikeLike
It is all so gorgeous, it’s hard to take a bad picture there really haha, hope you do get to visit one day I’m sure you’d love it!xx
LikeLike
HAHAHA I literally laughed out loud when I read the monk part. You guys, you just made my day hahah. And Shakira, I really love your outfit!
yanrula x
Let’s connect: Bloglovin’
LikeLike
Thank you for such a lovely and engaging comment, Yanrula! So happy you enjoyed the post! You’re so sweet!xxx
LikeLike
Such beautiful photos! Looks amazing!
~Samantha
http://goldcoastgirlblog.com
LikeLike
Thank you Samantha, it’s an incredible place!x
LikeLike
Wow I love exploring places like this – so much history and culture. And so much beauty to see.
xx Yasmin
http://banglesandbungalows.com
LikeLike
I agree Yasmin, it’s such a special thing to be able to do!xx
LikeLike
Looks amazing!
Amy Ann
Straight A Style
LikeLike
Thanks Amy!x
LikeLike
Wow, that place looks incredible.
Her Hive
LikeLike
It really is!x
LikeLike
Great post!! All the temples look stunning!!! And the sunrise!! I can feel your happiness from reading your post 🙂
Andrea.
Seize your Style
LikeLike
Aw that’s such a lovely comment Andrea, thank you!xx
LikeLike
Nice photos!! There must be a beautiful place!!
LikeLike
Thank you so much Annie!x
LikeLike
Everything seems so beautiful! I would love to visit the Sunrise tour, it sounds so romantic!
Heidi 🍓 | Heidi’s Planner | Instagram
LikeLike
It was really romantic! I hope you get to go someday too!xx
LikeLike
Angkor Wat looks like a unbelievably breathtaking cultural experience!
Bernice | New Post: https://www.bunnybernice.com/single-post/2017/07/07/What-Facebook-Thinks-You-Want-To-See-Online-And-How-To-Change-It
LikeLike
I totally agree, it really is!x
LikeLike
Beautiful photos! the shots with the sun setting are breathtaking!
Vivian | LIVE . IN . LOVE
IG | @viviyunn_
~
LikeLike
Thanks so much Vivian, those are my favourites too!x
LikeLike
I really wanna visit Cambodia! It’s not very far from where I live (Manila) but I never got around to visiting. Putting it on my must-visit list now!
Sheena
http://www.sheenalovessunsets.com
LikeLike
Oh wow I would love to visit Manila too, you’re so lucky to be from somewhere so beautiful! Yes, you must try visit!xxx
LikeLike
What an amazing place!
Beauty & Colour | Vegan Lifestyle Blog
LikeLike
I know!xxx
LikeLike
What a beautiful breath-taking place! It looks like you had an amazing time.
xo | Cindy Elena
http://www.boringclothes.com
LikeLike
Thanks Cindy, I really did have one of the best days ever!xx
LikeLike
WOW, these photos look stunning!
Have an awesome day!
xx, Kris
https://dreamingofpink.wordpress.com
LikeLike
Thank you Kris! Hope you have a great day too!xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m so scared of thorns, so that’s a good thing to know! This looked like a fun place to explore 🙂
http://www.myclusterofthoughts.com/
LikeLike
Haha I am now after that traumatic experience! It was so much fun!x
LikeLike
Wow what an amazing part of history! Thanks for sharing all the pictures!
Kim
Simply Lovebirds
LikeLike
It is, isn’t it! Thanks for your lovely comment, Kim!x
LikeLike
Love the pictures, they look amazing!
Vanessa x | http://www.springlilies.com
LikeLike
Thank you so much, Vanessa!x
LikeLike