Things to Do in Cambodia

About Cambodia

The first thing that hits you is the sound: cicadas drilling the dawn air as you cycle through the black stone gates of Angkor Wat, nothing but torch-beam and the smell of frangipani burning in the incense bowls. By 8 AM the sun’s already punishing, reflecting off the moat like a mirror, and you’re sweating through your shirt in the shade of Banteay Srei’s pink sandstone carvings. Cambodia doesn’t ease you in. In Phnom Penh’s Russian Market, the morning starts with pork-and-rice breakfasts for 8,000 riel ($2) eaten knee-to-knee with locals who’ll mime how to hit the tiny chilies without crying. The riverside promenade outside still carries the echo of Khmer pop from cafés where draft Angkor beer costs 3,000 riel (75¢) and the ice comes in slabs chipped with a machete. Then there’s Koh Rong Samloem, where the sand squeaks like Styrofoam and the only after-dark soundtrack is plankton lighting up your footprints. The trade-off? Dust that clogs your camera lens, roads that swallow whole buses, and a rainy season that turns Siem Reap’s Pub Street into a shin-deep river of beer runoff. But if you can handle the heat, Cambodia repays you with moments that feel stolen from a documentary: monks in saffron robes FaceTiming on the back of motorbike taxis, grandmothers selling lotus seeds outside Angkor Thom who’ll quote Indiana Jones lines back at you, and the sudden realization that the best meal of your trip cost less than your morning coffee back home. It’s the kind of place that makes other Southeast Asian capitals feel curated.

Travel Tips

Transportation: Tuk-tuks in Siem Reap start at $2 for short hops but negotiate the Angkor day-pass loop for $15-18 before 5 AM to beat the tour buses. The Phnom Penh-Siem Reap ‘hotel bus’ with flat beds runs $12-15 via Mekong Express and lets you sleep past 5 AM. Download the PassApp taxi app in both cities—motor rides cost 3,000-4,000 riel (75¢-$1) and avoid the ‘foreigner price’ dance. Avoid the overnight train to Sihanoukville; it’s still 2019 rolling stock without AC and takes 12 hours instead of the promised 8.

Money: Cambodia runs on US dollars for anything over $5; withdrawals spit out crisp $100 bills you’ll struggle to break outside Phnom Penh. Keep a stash of small riel—1,000-5,000 notes—for street food and temple donations; vendors give change in mixed currency that’ll confuse you for days. ATMs charge $4-5 per withdrawal; ANZ Royal tends to have the lowest fees. Most guesthouses still prefer cash, though upscale spots in Siem Reap take cards with a 3% surcharge.

Cultural Respect: At temples, cover shoulders and knees—scarves don’t count anymore, and the guards at Angkor Wat will turn you away. When greeting monks, at Battambang’s hilltop pagodas, place your hands palms-together at chest height and tilt your head slightly; don’t initiate handshakes. The landmine kids selling postcards around Pub Street aren’t a scam, but the bigger ones likely have handlers—buy a book for $5 instead; profits go to school fees. Learn two Khmer words: ‘arkoun’ (thank you) and ‘som dtoh’ (excuse me); you’ll get smiles even when your pronunciation is butchered.

Food Safety: Eat where the pots are steaming and the line is locals—beef lok lak at Psar Chaa market stall #14 costs 12,000 riel ($3) and hasn’t poisoned anyone since 2003. Peel your own fruit; the sliced mango in plastic bags looks tempting but sits in melted ice all day. Street-side sugar-cane juice is safe if you watch them clean the press; skip it otherwise. Tap water is a gamble even in hotels—2-liter bottles cost 2,000 riel (50¢) at roadside stalls, 4,000 riel ($1) at mini-marts inside tourist areas.

When to Visit

November through February is Cambodia’s golden window: temperatures hover at 26-28°C (79-82°F), the post-monsoon landscape glows emerald around Angkor, and you’ll only need a light jacket for 6 AM temple runs. This perfection comes with crowds—Siem Reap hotel prices spike 60-70% from December 20 to January 10, and you’ll queue twenty deep at Ta Prohm by 9 AM. March and April turn brutal at 34-36°C (93-97°F) with humidity that feels like breathing through wet wool; this is when you head to Koh Rong’s white-sand beaches where sea breezes knock the edge off. The first rains in May drop temperatures to 30°C (86°F) and wash the dust off temple carvings, but afternoon downpours can drown a motorbike—prices fall 30-40% and you’ll have Angkor almost to yourself if you don’t mind getting soaked. June to September is monsoon proper: 250-300 mm of rain monthly, roads that dissolve into mud, and the kind of humidity that rusts zippers. The upside? Battambang’s countryside turns hallucinatory green, Angkor moats reflect perfect mirror images, and you’ll score guesthouses for $8-12 a night. October is the sleeper month—rain eases to 150 mm, crowds haven’t returned yet, and the rice paddies around Kampot glow like they’re lit from within. Festival-wise, Khmer New Year (April 13-15) shuts the country down for three days of water fights and family gatherings—book transport six weeks ahead. Pchum Ben in late September/early October sees locals in silk bringing sticky-rice offerings to pagodas; it’s beautiful but guesthouses in small towns fill up with returning families. Budget travelers should shoot for May or October; luxury seekers will find the best villa rates in June. Solo travelers might prefer rainy season—you’ll meet more locals willing to share shelter and stories over rice wine in places like Kampot’s riverside shacks that serve the stuff in reused plastic water bottles for 2,000 riel a shot.