For your safety, avoid clicking on links in suspicious emails claiming to be from us or our travel partners. If in doubt, contact us directly. More information.

ALL CURRENCY

  • BRLBrazilian Real
  • BWPBotswanan Pula
  • CADCanadian Dollar
  • DKKDanish Krone
  • HKDHong Kong Dollar
  • IDRIndonesian Rupiah
  • ILSIsraeli Shekel
  • INRIndian Rupee
  • KHRCambodian Riel
  • KRWKorean Won
  • KWDKuwaiti Dinar
  • LAKLao Kip
  • LKRSri Lankan Rupee
  • LSLLesotho Loti
  • MURMauritian Rupee
  • MXNMexican Peso
  • MYRMalaysian Ringgit
  • MZNMozambican Metical
  • NADNamibian Dollar
  • NZDNew Zealand Dollar
  • OMROmani Rial
  • PHPPhilippine Peso
  • QARQatari Rial
  • SARSaudi Riyal
  • SCRSeychellois Rupee
  • SGDSingapore Dollar
  • SZLSwazi Lilangeni
  • TNDTunisian Dinar
  • TWDNew Taiwan Dollar
  • VNDVietnamese Dong
  • ZARSouth African Rand
  • ZMWZambian Kwacha
Close the pop-up×
Best Rate Guarantee

Found a better rate elsewhere? If so, we are more than happy to match it. And if you find a lower rate within 24 hours of making a booking, we will match that and give you an additional 10% off.

*Terms and conditions apply

See Details
Primary content

Avani Travel Diary – Siem Reap, Cambodia

WANDERLUST

Most travellers to Siem Reap are here for the temples of Angkor. But the town of Siem Reap itself has so much to offer if you know where to look. Start with a visit to the Kandal Village on Central Market Street — a contemporary art gallery, coffee shop, and cocktail bar all rolled into one.

Angkor Wat Temple Sunrise Angkor Wat

History buffs will love dinner at The Mansion restaurant located at FCC Angkor by Avani. Housed in the former French colonial governor's mansion, which later welcomed foreign correspondents and journalists from around the globe, it's steeped in history. It serves authentic Khmer cuisine such as the seabass steamed with watercress, basil, and water lily leaves, and river fish marinated in coconut milk and curry paste.

The Mansion Restaurant Beef Lok Lak Cambodian Food

After dinner, take the stairs down to Scribe Bar, a sophisticated bar draped in greenery where you can mingle with locals over kaffir lime gimlets and other zero-waste cocktails that reuse, recycle, and upcycle the ingredients to minimise waste. Order the Colonial Fare with locally sourced pineapple as the main ingredient to see how it's done. The fruit is juiced for the cocktail, while the pulp is dried to reappear later as garnish or an ingredient in another cocktail. Brilliant!

Siem Reap Temple with Monkey Siem Reap Temple

If you like photography, plan your Siem Reap visit around the annual Angkor Photo Festival and remember to book a sunrise photography tour of Angkor Wat and other Khmer temples with a professional photographer, who will share tips and tricks for getting the best shots.

Angkor Thom Cambodia Ta Prohm Temple Siem Reap

 

Pre-Travel Guide for Siem Reap, Cambodia

Currency

  • Cambodian Riel (U.S. Dollar is also widely accepted in Siem Reap.)

Best Time to Visit Siem Reap

  • Many photography-minded travellers prefer the green season between May and October when the rice paddies are green and lush, the moats near the temples are complete, and the countryside is verdant. This is an off-peak season, so Angkor is considerably quieter.

How to Get to Siem Reap

  • Flight: Cambodia has international airports at Phnom Penh (IATA: PNH) and Siem Reap (IATA: REP). Travellers specifically going to visit the Angkor temple ruins usually prefer to use Siem Reap as it's close to all the main sites.

How to Get Around Siem Reap?

  • All the main attractions in the historical part of Siem Reap are easily reached on foot. Motorised transport options include tuk-tuks, motorbike taxis, and (unmetered) taxis.
  • FCC Angkor by Avani provides complimentary bicycles for in-house guests.

Helpful Local Words

  • Chum reap suor – Hello (formal)
  • Sousdey – Hello (informal)
  • Soksabay – How are you/I am fine
  • Chum reap lear – Goodbye (formal)
  • Lear hery – Goodbye (informal)

Discover Siem Reap in Style

The Best Hotel to Stay in Siem Reap

Stay on the river in the Old French Quarter with FCC Angkor by Avani hotel (Angkor Wat is just a 15-minute drive away). As one of the most illustrious hotels in Siem Reap that is located next to the Royal Palace, its 80 colonial-style rooms and suites look out onto a central courtyard, where a saltwater swimming pool is shaded by centuries-old banyan trees. The décor pays tribute to foreign correspondents, archaeologists, celebrities, and other distinguished guests who stayed here in the past.

Check the best hotel deals in Siem Reap.