Tips For Visiting The Temples of Angkor | Guide on how to explore the temples of Angkor, Cambodia

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• published: 10 Apr 2013
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We recently completed a three day tour of the Temples of Angkor and along the way we learned some valuable things that we're sharing in the form of advice, tips and a guide for visiting the temples along with our personal favorite experiences. Tip number one is to get a three day pass as opposed to just a a one day pass. There are a lot of fascinating temples to explore aside from just Angkor Wat and trying to cram that all into one chaotic day is a bad idea. Instead go for a three day pass and take your time to experience the temples at a more leisurely pace. GEAR WE USE Olympus OM-D E-M5 II: http://amzn.to/1OchS7t Canon G7X: http://amzn.to/1YdjsYX Olympus 14-150mm II Lens: http://amzn.to/1Y79zeM Rode Video Mic GO: http://amzn.to/1WDKtVM Joby Gorilla Pod: http://amzn.to/1PgoY5F SanDisk 16GB Extreme Pro: http://amzn.to/25KEErs SOCIAL MEDIA & TRAVEL BLOGS AUDREY: blog: http://thatbackpacker.com/ instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thatbackpacker/ facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thatbackpacker twitter: https://twitter.com/ThatBackpacker SAMUEL: blog: http://nomadicsamuel.com/ facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nomadicsamuel twitter: https://twitter.com/NomadicSamuel instragram: https://www.instagram.com/nomadicsamuel/ Tip number two is to get up as early as possible. The package tourists crowds start arriving at around 7 to 8 am and if you can get to the temples before that time you may be the first on site. We were fortunate enough to have that experience at Banteay Srei where we were welcomed as the very first tourists of the day. Tip number three is to take a tuk-tuk instead of a bike. Although it may seem like a good idea to take a bicycle, it's certainly not in our opinion. We noticed many people on bikes looking exhausted, burnt and dehydrated. The temples themselves are quite massive (some kilometers in length) and when you couple that with the heat and humidity it's best to conserve your energy by hiring an autorickshaw for the day. Audrey's favorite experience was waking up early to visit Angkor Wat for sunrise. She found it special to share the moment with others and she also met a Uruguayan couple that she started speaking to in Spanish. Samuel, on the other hand, was in awe over the fact of being the first people to arrive at Banteay Srei. In the past, he had arrived at this temple when it was overcrowded with tourists and this time around it felt much more intimate with a special VIP tour. Today we are making a video where we will be sharing some of our tips for visiting the temples of Angkor in Siem Reap, Cambodia. We just finished a three day tour there. It was an excellent trip all in all but we did learn a few things along the way that we'd like to share with you. Okay, point number 1. We would suggest you go for three days instead of one. There are just so many temples to choose from. There is no way you would be able to fit in all of them main ones into one day. There is an option for a seven day pass but we both think it is way too much. You would be templed out by the end of that. You really would be. In just one day if you try to cover all of the main temples, all of the temples you'd like to visit, it just wouldn't be any fun. You would be going from maybe six or seven in the morning right up until five at night. Given the heat and humidity here that is just totally unpleasant. Not pleasant at all. Tip number two is get up early to visit the temples. You're gong to have to get up a lot earlier than you might think. On our first day here we got up at seven in the morning. We thought that would be early enough but by eight o'clock it was already scorching. We actually learned our lesson by visiting Bayon first in Angkor Thom. It was overrun by package tourists at the time. We probably go there around eight o'clock. We had to buy our passes and whatnot but every day after - the two other days - we got up at five and it was a much better experience. Sometimes we even had the temple all to ourselves, so set your alarm for four thirty in the morning and you can be there by five and it'll be a completely different experience. A perfect example of that was at Banteay Srei. We were the first people there and we got a VIP tour, so even if you're not a morning person, get up early and you'll be rewarded for it. This is part of our Travel in Cambodia series. We're making a series of videos showcasing Khmer / Cambodian culture, arts, food, religion and people. Proudly presented by: http://nomadicsamuel.com , http://smilingfacestravelphotos.com , http://thatbackpacker.com & http://backpacking-travel-blog.com All photos and video taken by Samuel Jeffery (Nomadic Samuel) and Audrey Bergner (That Backpacker).