Siem Reap and Angkor: Three Days Among the Temples and Where to Stay
Planning three days among the Angkor temples, with the four hotels that define Siem Reap.
Angkor is a site to be paced. This guide combines a temple plan with the right base.
The temples
Between the ninth and fifteenth centuries the Khmer kings built temples, reservoirs and city centres outside the modern town of Siem Reap, now the largest group of religious monuments in the world and a World Heritage site since 1992. Angkor Wat was built by Suryavarman II between about 1113 and 1150. Our itinerary Angkor Wat and Beyond: Planning Three Days Among the Temples sets out the order, and See sunrise at Angkor Wat describes the classic first morning.
Where to stay
Our comparison Siem Reap’s Grand Hotels: Raffles, Park Hyatt and Shinta Mani covers the main choices. Raffles Grand Hotel d’Angkor was designed by Ernest Hébrard in 1929 and opened in 1931-32, with 119 rooms (its 2019 refit). Park Hyatt Siem Reap is in the former Hôtel de la Paix near the Old Market (story). Shinta Mani Siem Reap is a 10-room hotel shaped by Bill Bensley (story), and Amansara is a 24-room Aman in a former royal guest residence near Angkor Wat.
By river
Angkor can also be reached by water: Aqua Mekong: A River Journey Between Saigon and Angkor and Cruise the Mekong aboard Aqua Mekong. Ticketing rules for Angkor change; check the official site.
Stay
Hotels in this guide
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