Best places to visit in Cambodia: top cities, regions and sights

Cambodia's sights cluster into four groups: the Angkor temple city around Siem Reap, the capital and its memorials, the quiet northwest and Mekong towns, and the southern coast with its islands. Most first trips take two of those groups; a two-week trip can take all four.

Use the table to pick your stops, then check the month you are travelling before you lock the order.

Angkor is the reason most people come, and Siem Reap is the town built around it: hotels, restaurants, a night market and every major temple within about an hour by road. Give it 3–4 nights so you can do one long sunrise day, one shorter day and one day out to Banteay Srei or the landmine museum.

The pass is sold at the official ticket office in Siem Reap, not at the temples, and it comes in 1-day, 3-day and 7-day versions (2026 estimate, check the current price and photo rules). Start Angkor Wat before sunrise, move to Bayon and Angkor Thom before 09:00 while it is still cool, and save Ta Prohm for late afternoon when the coach groups have gone.

Two long day trips are worth the drive if you have a spare day: Koh Ker and Beng Mealea to the northeast, and Banteay Chhmar far to the northwest if you want a temple with almost no one else there.

The capital sits on the Mekong and holds the country's royal, colonial and recent-history sights in a compact centre. Two to three nights covers the Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda, the National Museum, the riverside and the two memorials: Tuol Sleng (S-21) and the Choeung Ek killing fields south of the city.

Do both memorials in one morning and leave the afternoon free; they are heavy and most travellers want a quiet few hours afterwards. Phnom Penh is also the main transport hub, with flights and buses to Siem Reap and road links south to Kampot and the coast.

Battambang, 3 hours by road from Siem Reap, is a colonial riverside town with a circus school, rice-country temples and the bamboo train. Two nights is enough, and the boat link from Siem Reap runs only in high water.

Further out, the northwest and Mekong towns reward slower travel: Kampong Cham for river life and cycling, Kratie for Irrawaddy dolphins and Mekong islands by bike, Stung Treng as a gateway north, and Banlung and Senmonorom in the far east for hills, waterfalls and ethical elephant projects. These need 1–3 nights each and are better on a second trip than a first one.

Anlong Veng and Poipet are border and history stops rather than destinations; treat them as transit unless you have a specific reason.

The south is the counterweight to the temples. Kampot is a slow river town for pepper farms and Bokor mountain, Kep is 30 minutes away with a crab market and quiet seaside, and together they make an easy 3-night stop on the way to the coast.

Koh Rong and Koh Rong Sanloem are the beach option, reached by ferry from Sihanoukville. Go in the dry season (Dec–Apr) and expect basic comforts on the smaller island. Sihanoukville itself is a port and casino city under heavy construction; use it to catch the boat, not as a place to stay.

From the coast you can exit to Vietnam at Prek Chak for Phu Quoc, or return to Phnom Penh for a flight.

Seven days is the practical minimum: 4 nights in Siem Reap for Angkor and 3 in Phnom Penh. Ten days adds Battambang and Kampot without rushing. Fourteen days lets you add the islands and still keep a spare day for delays.

Distances look short on the map but roads are slow. Siem Reap to Phnom Penh is a 5–6 h day bus or a short flight; Siem Reap to Battambang is about 3 h by road. Build in one spare day per week rather than trying to fill every slot.

Check your own government's travel advice and the current Thai land-border status before you plan an overland leg; that route has been unreliable. Most nationalities can get a visa on arrival or an e-visa, but rules and fees change, so confirm before you fly.

Angkor is a working religious site: cover shoulders and knees, and do not touch carvings. Carry small US dollar notes and riel for temples, markets and tuk-tuks, and expect higher prices around the main sights in high season. Travel insurance that covers medical evacuation is worth having for the islands and the far northeast, where the nearest good hospital can be hours away.