Visiting Angkor Wat in 3 Days

Why a traveler would visit Cambodia and not see Siem Reap is beyond me; this small town is amazing for two words, Angkor Wat. This historical temple complex and largest religious monument in the world was probably one of the most fascinating places I’ve ever seen. Although there is debate as to which is better, Angkor Wat or Myanmar’s Bagan temples, I believe Angkor Wat is simply in a class of its own.

Angkor Wat offers 1, 3, or 7 day passes, 1 day is simply not enough so you’ll need a 3 or 7 day pass. I opted for 3 days, which in all reality was probably a bit long for me as I’m a pretty fast traveler.

Day 1

I didn’t really know which route to take or where to start, but I hired a driver for 3 days who was pretty knowledgable about the sites. For the first day, he charged me $15 for half a day. I made some friends along the way, which was nice seeing how I was traveling alone.

Angkor Thom, the last capital of the Khmer Empire was our second stop for the day. I was amazed at how well-preserved these faces were. To think they survived all these years is special. There weren’t too many tourists in sight here, probably because it was the rainy season in the middle of September. I had the entire site to myself.

After Angkor Thom, I didn’t see too many places on the first day, but I did end up seeing the actual Angkor Wat temple, which is the temple you see in most photos.

The weather gods were on my side the 1st day because almost immediately after I took this photo it began pouring. Not just regular rain, but the type that soaks all your clothing within 3 seconds of exposure. Luckily, I was able to escape in my tuk-tuk!

After getting back to my hotel, I took a quick nap, and went out for dinner where I eventually ended up meeting some friends I met from Japan.

Day 2

The second day was a lot more action packed than the first day. It rained a bit in the morning giving the ruins an incredible “glow” (if that makes any sense).

Visiting Siem Reap during the rainy season has 1 perk. 0 crowds. I’ve seen photos of Angkor Wat filled with large waiting lines, but I can honestly say, I don’t remember seeing many. It was quite peaceful actually.

My favorite thing about Angkor Wat is the freedom you’re given to explore the ruins. There are few rules here; you can pretty much roam as you wish and climb what you want. Having this freedom allows you to access incredible views.

Aside from the temples, I enjoyed sitting in the back of the tuk tuk in between transit admiring the Cambodian countryside. Life is simple here; I saw many people riding their bicycles, fishing, playing in the water, etc.

Before my next stop at the Cambodia Landmark Museum, I stopped at a temple nearby and stumbled across these two brilliant little girls. Children in Cambodia often ask tourists for money, so to avoid saying no I just pretended to not know English. I told them I didn’t have any money in Japanese and they understood me! Then, I said the same thing in Korean and they responded! The same with Chinese! After 3 failed attempts, I had no choice but to give in and give them money for that performance. They hustled me, but they earned it.

We made a quick stop at the landmine museum next. Long story short, there are still thousands of landmines remaining in Cambodia from the war in the past. Aki Ra, a former Khmer Rouge child soldier, has dedicated his life to removing these mines across the country. According to many, he has removed over 50,000 bombs since 1992! Truly a remarkable feat!  I spent about an hour here before moving on.

Later I was taken to Siem Reap’s killing fields. It was hard to stomach seeing all these skulls, but it was a necessary evil. It really put the atrocities of the Pol Pot regime before my eyes. And to think, these killing fields pale in comparison to the one in Phnom Penh.

Day 3

By this day, I had grown a bit tired of seeing temples. After two days straight of seeing ruins, there wasn’t much more I could see to impress me, but for some reason, I felt forced to see more because I had a 3 day pass. It was pouring hard this day and I had no umbrella. Luckily, I only had one site to see this day and according to my driver, this would be the final site that was truly worth seeing.

I ran into my Japanese friends here and together we climbed to the highest point of the temple. It doesn’t look too high, but it took a great deal of effort getting up there in the pouring rain.

This temple concluded my 3 days in Angkor and for the remainder of the trip, I spent my time in the countryside.

Overall, Angkor exceeded my expectations. Seeing the ruins and being able to climb them made me feel like a kid again. I don’t know many destinations that allow you just roam free without having “Do not touch” signs everywhere. You’d be crazy to visit Cambodia and not spend a few days visiting here. Siem Reap is one of my favorite tourist spots ever.