Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia

In late June 2025, I visited five countries in Southeast Asia: Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore. The first two days, I traveled to Vietnam. And then, I flew to Siem Reap in Cambodia on the third day.

Angkor Wat is in Siem Reap, which is located in the west of Cambodia, surrounded by vast natural landscapes. And, there are extensive ruins scattered across a wide area within the vast expanse of nature. The entire Angkor Archaeological ruins span a vast area of approximately 400 square kilometers, scattered with over 600 ruins of varying size.

It is not a big problem, but one thing you should be careful of, I think, is how to get to Angkor Wat from the Siem Reap Angkor International Airport. There are buses that run regularly to Angkor Wat, but it is not useful depending on the arrival time, because there are only nine buses per day. Therefore, it’s best to take a taxi using Grab. In the Grab, which is a taxi-hiring app, you can choose between a regular car or a tuk-tuk, but it’s worse to use a tuk-tuk, because the distance from the airport to Angkor Wat is approximately 50 km, and it probably takes about an hour by car. However, if you take a tuk-tuk, it will take over one and a half hours, because tuk-tuk can not go very fast. The fastest speed was probably around 60 km /h. Moreover, depending on the driver, the driver drives quite fast, so you may arrive early. Thu, it’s better to choose a regular car instead of a tuk-tuk.

Also, you must buy a ticket to enter Angkor Archaeological Park at Angkor Enterprise, and it is a bit of a hassle since it’s a little far from Angkor Archaeological Park. However, you can buy the ticket online too.

The great thing is that you can ride a motorcycle of up to 125cc without a license if you are over 15 years old. In the first place, I have a motorcycle license in Japan, so I rented a motorcycle without hesitation and went sightseeing. There are also some rental shops with cycles, but I can’t believe that cycling through such a vast complex of ruins. It is so fun to drive a motorcycle through the vast Archaeological Park that I recommend renting a motorcycle.

Places I visited in Cambodia

There are over 600 ruins around there, so it is impossible to visit all the ruins in a day. I didn’t have enough time to go sightseeing, but I visited ruins as much as time allowed. Below is a Google Maps link to the places I visited in Cambodia.

Angkor Wat was apparently started to be built by Suryavarman II, who was the King of the Angkor Dynasty, in the early 12th century. Initially, it was constructed for a Hindu temple, but in the 16th century, it was converted into a Buddhist temple. Also, Angkor Wat is well-known, but it is merely one of the many temples within the Angkor Archaeological Park, so there are a large number of other temples worth visiting.

It felt like going on an adventure and was really fun. However, sightseeing there was really tough, so you need stamina. Parking lots are scattered here and there, where you can buy drinks and food, and you can also take a break there..

It was fairly clear until around 16 p.m., but at the end of the journey, the weather turned into a downpour. However, it is also one of the unforgettable memories. While taking shelter from the rain under a small, roofed rest area, a kind woman invited me to take shelter at her restaurant and let me stay out of the rain. I’m very grateful, and if I ever go back to Angkor Archaeological Park, I’d like to visit her restaurant and eat some food.