Cambodia isn’t just a destination you tick off: it’s a country you move through, slowly shifting from ancient temples to buzzing cities, heavy history, and finally, palm-fringed islands for a little rest and relaxation.
Travelling Cambodia is less about checking off the bucket list, and more about cruising backroads, pulling up plastic stools in family-run kitchens, catching ancient temples in their quiet, sunrise moments, learning the ancient history of the land and floating in the aquamarine waters of the island beaches.
If you still need some convincing Cambodia should be high on your travel list, let us elaborate further…
12 of the best things to do on your first trip to Cambodia
1. Explore the temples of Angkor Wat
You can’t go to Cambodia without witnessing the country’s crown jewel. Angkor Wat isn’t just a temple: it’s a sunrise experience, a living masterpiece, and one of the most awe-inspiring ancient sites on Earth. It’s also the world’s largest largest religious structure, covering 400 acres.
Expect vast stone corridors, intricate carvings, and that unforgettable moment when the first light hits the towers.
2. Watch the sunset at Phnom Bakheng
After a day among ancient ruins, climb Phnom Bakheng for a golden-hour payoff. The site offers a panoramic view over the Cambodian jungle and temples, and it’s only a 20-minute hike up to the summit.
As the sun dips behind the jungle canopy and Angkor Wat glows in the distance, you’ll understand why travellers call this one of Southeast Asia’s most iconic sunsets.
Hot tip: Arrive by 3:30-4:30 if possible, as the summit has a 300-person limit.
3. Wander Siem Reap’s night markets
When the temples quiet down, Siem Reap comes to life! Wander through the buzzing night markets filled with food, handmade crafts, and local energy. It’s the perfect place to snack, shop, and soak up the city’s laid-back rhythm.
Expect happy hour bars, lots of local eateries, shopping stalls with all sorts of clothes and souvenirs ranging from traditional Cambodian art to silk scarves, billowy pants… and why not get a relaxing foot massage after a day on your feet?
Image source: Photo by Theang Rathana on Unsplash
4. Stroll down Pub Street
If you have energy to burn, enjoy a pub crawl down the aptly titled Pub Street, Siem Reap’s vibrant nightlife hub. Famous for its high-energy atmosphere, cheap drinks, neon lights and loud music, it could just be the best people-watching you do the entire trip.
5. Take a boat ride through Tonlé Sap Lake villages
Dive into a fascination cultural experience by taking a boat ride through the Tonlé Sap Lake villages, where several communities reside. There are four main villages that are accessible from Siem Reap: Chong Kneas, Mechrey, Kampong Phluk and Kampong Khleang.
Step into a completely different world, while drifting past stilt houses and fishing communities that live in sync with the water. The villages include floating schools, markets, police stations, temples, and churches and the tour will make for an unforgettable experience.
6. Visit Phnom Penh Royal Palace
In the capital, the Royal Palace shines with golden rooftops and intricate Khmer architecture. It’s a glimpse into Cambodia’s royal heritage and a striking contrast to the city’s modern buzz.
Still the official residence of the King of Cambodia, the Royal Palace is a striking symbol of the nation’s heritage and grandeur. Within its ornate grounds lies the Silver Pagoda, one of its most dazzling treasures, named for its remarkable floor made up of 5,329 solid silver tiles – each individually crafted and weighing around 1.125 kilograms – creating a shimmering foundation that reflects both artistry and reverence.
Image source: Pexels: So Phors
7. Learn Cambodia’s history at the Killing Fields (Choeung Ek Genocidal Centre)
For a sobering, but essential stop, The Killing Fields offer a powerful experience, offering a deeply moving insight into Cambodia’s tragic past under the Khmer Rouge.
Walking through the memorial site, past mass graves and the central stupa filled with human remains, expect to feel confronted with the scale of loss while also witnessing a powerful act of remembrance.
It’s a place that honours the lives lost, preserves their stories, and helps shed light on a dark chapter of history. Ultimately, the experience offers a profound understanding of the resilience, strength, and enduring spirit of the Cambodian people.
8. Visit Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum
Once a high school, later transformed into Security Prison 21 (S-21) under the Khmer Rouge, Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum stands today as a haunting reminder of Cambodia’s darkest era.
Walking through its corridors, visitors are met with stark classrooms turned prison cells, rusted bed frames, and walls still bearing fragments of its past. Rows of black-and-white photographs of prisoners, alongside personal stories and archival records, bring individual lives into focus, transforming statistics into human experience.
A tour here is confronting, emotional, and often difficult, but remains an essential place of remembrance, ensuring that the lessons of history will not be forgotten.
9. Take in a magical sunset at Bokor Mountain
Move south into nature and atmosphere at Bokor National Park, a natural reset after Phnom Penh’s intensity.
Moving south into the cool, mist-laced heights of Bokor, Cambodia’s pace will soften as you take in the atmospheric escape into rolling highlands, dense jungle, and sweeping coastal views that seem to stretch endlessly toward the horizon.
Athe summit, time-worn remnants of French colonial buildings sit half-swallowed by fog, adding an almost cinematic quality to the landscape. As the sun begins to dip, the sky shifts through layers of gold, pink, and deep orange, casting a warm glow over the mountains and distant Gulf of Thailand.
10. Beach-hop across Sihanoukville Province
Trade the buzz of city streets for Cambodia’s sun-drenched coastline, where Sihanoukville Province opens up into a string of tropical islands and laid-back beach towns. While Sihanoukville itself has grown into a busy port city, its real magic lies just offshore, where ferries and boats carry you to quieter stretches of paradise.
Think powdery white sand, warm turquoise water, and palm trees swaying: a total mental reset. Each island has its own rhythm: some with chilled beach bars and hammocks strung between trees, others feeling completely untouched.
Enjoy a dip, snorkel, and much-needed Vitamin D and Vitamin Sea, because what’s a holiday without these precious things!
11. Relax on Koh Rong’s beaches
Koh Rong is the definition of barefoot paradise! Just offshore from Sihanoukville, this island is all soft white sand, glistening turquoise water, and a laid-back rhythm that encourages you to slow down and switch off completely.
As night falls, Koh Rong reveals one of its most magical secrets: bioluminescent plankton that light up the water with every movement, turning the sea into a field of glowing stars.
12. And ride a motorbike through the countryside
Image source: Contiki
Wanna explore the backstreets and get acquainted with the locals? Boy, does Contiki have a trip for you.
Our Ride Cambodia trip is all about logging off from the norm, forgetting the bucket list, and instead chasing sunrises, floating villages and local life, all from the back of a tuk tuk. Over eight days you’ll travel entirely by tuk-tuk, taking you through a lot of the highlights aboe: from Angkor sunrises to Tonlé Sap homestays, hidden temples, silk weaving, and the streets of Phnom Penh.
What are you waiting for?
Ready to explore Cambodia and get the full authentic experience? Check out our Ride Cambodia trip right here.
