ITINERARY:
Day 1: Phnom Penh – Arrival (L,D)
Transfer from Phnom Penh International Airport to the hotel (rooms
may not be ready until the afternoon).
Afternoon, Phnom Penh city tour: Visit the Victory Monument and the
National Museum, also called Musee des Beaux-Arts. A French
archaeologist and painter, Georges Groslier, designed it in Khmer
style in 1917. The museum contains a collection of Khmer art -
notably sculptures – from throughout the ages. Visit the Royal
Palace, built by King Norodom in 1866 on the site of the old town,
and the Silver Pagoda. Located within the Royal Palace, the Silver
Pagoda is so named because of its floor, which is made up of 5000
silver tiles. The treasures found inside include a solid gold Buddha
encrusted and weighing 90 kilograms, and a small 17th century
emerald and baccarat crystal Buddha. End your afternoon with the
visit to Wat Phnom Temple, Phnom Penh’s namesake. Dinner at local
restaurant and accommodation at hotel.
Day 2: Phnom Penh (B,L,D)
Breakfast at hotel.
Depart Phnom Penh for Udong. Visit the various temples and the three
large stupas where the ashes of three former kings are preserved.
Next, visit the most impressive structure of the site, the "Vihara
of the 18-Cubit Buddha".
Picnic lunch will be served. En route back to Phnom Penh, stop to
visit the silversmith village of Kampong Luong. Sunset cruise on the
Tonle Sap and Mekong rivers. Dinner at local restaurant and
accommodation at hotel.
Day 3: Phnom Penh – Kompong Cham – Kratie (B,L,D)
Breakfast at hotel.
Depart to Kompong Cham. On arrival, short tour of Kompong Cham to
view examples of colonial architecture. Visit Wat Nokhor with its
ancient temple (12th C.) and modern style pagoda.
Lunch at local restaurant.
Afternoon, drive to Chhup, the biggest rubber plantation in country,
established during the French colonial time by the French tire maker
Michelin. On the way to Kratie stop at Chhlong, a small and peaceful
village on the Mekong River Bank with both Khmer and Colonial
architecture. Arrive in Kratie and continue to the site of the rare
river dolphins to observe them. Dinner at local restaurant and
accommodation at Udom Sambath hotel (2-star, best available).
Day 4: Kratie - Stung Treng (B,L,D)
Breakfast at a local restaurant.
North of Kratie, visit Wat Phnom Sambok to see the Buddhist
monasteries and to enjoy the magnificent views of the surrounding
countryside from the hilltop. Continue to Sambor district (45 km
from Kratie) to visit the “Hundred Pillar” pagoda of Wat Trasor Muoy
Roy and visit also Wat Vihear Kork.
Lunch at local restaurant in Stung Treng.
Stung Treng is located 50 km south of Laos, on the banks of the San
River, just off the Mekong. It is a very quiet provincial
city, showing the authentic and remote “face” of Cambodia. Visit the
small village of Thala Barivat on the other Mekong River side,
crossing the river by speedboat. Dinner at local restaurant and
accommodation at Sok Sambath Hotel (2-star, best available).
Day 5: Stung Treng-Ratanakiri (Banlung) (B,L,D)
Breakfast at the hotel.
Departure by road to Banlung, capital of Ratanikiri nicknamed “The
Red City” because of the omnipresent laterite.
On arrival in Banlung, lunch at Terres Rouges Lodge (superb house
made of precious wood located by a lake and in the middle of one
acre of garden), to have lunch. Then we leave in a jeep on a bumpy
road to discover the surrounding waterfalls. Teuk Cha Ong is the
most impressive of them. Next is the waterfall of Okatchagn. Dinner
and accommodation at Terres Rouges Lodge (14 rooms only).
Day 6: Banlung
(B,L,D)
Breakfast at the lodge.
Direction northwest today, we cross bamboo forests before reaching
the village of Voeune Saï located on the left bank of the Sé San
river; the view on the Chinese village on the other side of the
river is quite pretty. Besides, this place is nearly a Chinese
enclave in Cambodian territory, most villagers, who are there the
thirties, don’t even speak Khmer. Upstream of the Se San are a
certain number of Tampoun villages that practice funeral statuary;
if it is possible, we will rent a boat to go to the village of Ka
Choan that has superb totems, if not we will reach it by jeep.
Dinner and accommodation at Terres Rouges Lodge.
Day 7: Banlung
(B,L,D)
Breakfast at the lodge.
Full North today, in direction of Laos and the village of Taveng. We
first cross the curious extent of volcanic rocks of Veyrum Plâng: a
lava field in the forest with a small waterfall nearby (only in the
wet season though) and what locals call tiger caves. As we go north
to Taveng, we cross different types of landscapes: primary forest,
clear forest, bamboo forest and “african” bush. We stop at a few
nice Kroeung villages located quite far away in the forest. The
Kroeung people have the particularity of erecting bachelor houses
standing on very long bamboo poles, these houses will remain so till
the young man finds a wife, then, they are destroyed. The right time
to see them is usually from February to august. We have lunch at
small waterfall lost in the forest and we go on to visiting
villages. Dinner and accommodation at Terres Rouges Lodge.
Day 8:Banlung - Phnom Penh (B,L,D)
Breakfast at the lodge.
Early shopping in Banlung market, then a little trip to the volcanic
lake of giant Loam, superb place surrounded by pristine
rainforest. Swim or take a walk around the lake before leaving for
the airport. Flight from Banlung to Phnom Penh. Arrive in Phnom Penh
and transfer to hotel.
Time at leisure with car and guide at Russian Market (Psah Tuol Thom
Pong), a lively outdoor market where you will find antiques, silver
and gold jewelry, gems, silk, karmas, stone and wood carvings, as
well as T-shirts, CDs and other souvenir and visit the Central
Market, another landmark in the city of Phnom Penh. Dinner at local
restaurant and accommodation at hotel.
Day 9: Phnom Penh - Siem Reap(B,L,D)
Breakfast at hotel.
Transfer to Phnom Penh’s International Airport and departure by Siem
Reap Airways International or similar to Siem Reap. Arrive at Siem
Reap International Airport, welcome by your local guide and direct
transfer to Angkor Complex. Visit the Roluos Group. The monuments of
Roluos, which served as the capital of Indravarman I (reigned
877-89), are among the earliest large, permanent temples built by
the Khmers and mark the beginning of Khmer classical art. Preah Ko
erected by Indravarman I in the late 9th century dedicated by the
King to his ancestors in 880. Bakong the largest and most
interesting of the Roluos group temples, with his active Buddhist
monastery just to the north of the east entrance. Lolei built on an
islet in the center of a large reservoir (now rice fields) by
Yasovarman I, the founder to the first city at Angkor.
In the afternoon, continue your temple tour. See the unique interior
brick sculptures Prasat Kravan, the Srah Srang reservoir (known as
"The Royal Baths" and used for ritual bathing), Banteay Kdei
(surrounded by 4 concentric walls), Eastern Mebon (guarded at its
corner by stone figures of harnessed elephants, some of which are
still in a reasonable state of preservation) and the mountain-temple
of Pre Rup until sunset. Dinner at local restaurant and
accommodation at hotel.
Day 10: Siem Reap (B,L,D)
Breakfast at hotel.
In the morning, visit the most famous of all the temples on the
plain of Angkor: Angkor Wat. The temple complex covers 81 hectares
and is comparable in size to the Imperial Palace in Beijing. Its
distinctive five towers are emblazoned on the Cambodian flag and the
12th century masterpiece is considered by art historians to be the
prime example of classical Khmer art and architecture. Angkor Wat’s
five towers symbolize Meru’s five peaks - the enclosed wall
represents the mountains at the edge of the world and the
surrounding moat, the ocean beyond.
Visit the South Gate (with its huge statues depicting the churning
of the ocean of milk), the ancient capital of Angkor Thom (12th
century), Bayon Temple (unique for its 54 towers decorated with over
200 smiling faces of Avolokitesvara), the Royal Enclosure,
Phimeanakas, the Elephants Terrace and the Terrace of the Leper
King. Sunset at Angkor Wat. Dinner at local restaurant and
accommodation at hotel.
Day 11: Siem Reap (B,L,D)
Breakfast at the hotel
Transfer to Banteay Srei temple (10th c), regarded as the jewel in
the crown of Classical Khmer Art. Continue to Ta Prohm, one of the
area’s most beautiful temples. Ta Prohm has been relatively
untouched since it was discovered and retains much of its mystery.
In the afternoon, you continue your temple visits to Preah Khan.
Built by the King Jayavarman VII, Preah Khan is, like Ta Prohm, a
place of towered enclosures and shoulder hugging corridors. Unlike
Ta Prohm, however, the temple of Prea Khan is in a reasonable state
of preservation and ongoing restoration efforts should maintain and
even improve this situation. Neak Pean, a fountain built in the
middle of a pool (representing the paradisiacal Himalayan
mountain-lake), Ta Som and Banteay Samre, built in the third quarter
of the 12th century. It consists of a central temple with four wings
preceded by a hall and accompanied by two libraries, the southern
example remarkably well preserved. Two concentric walls enclose the
ensemble. Dinner at local restaurant and accommodation at hotel.
Day 12: Siem Reap – Departure (B,L)
Breakfast at hotel.
Visit the floating village of Chong Khneas, located 10 kilometers
south of Siem Reap. Visit the village and take an excursion in
a traditional wooden boat on the Tonle Sap Lake, the “Great Lake” of
Cambodia, one of the wonders of Asia.
After lunch, visit to “Les Artisans d’Angkor - Chantiers Ecoles” and
time at leisure at a local market (if time permits). Transfer to
Siem Reap International Airport for departure flight to the next
destination.
