Siem Reap: Temple tips

I researched our trip somewhat obsessively, so I thought I'd share what we did. Travelfish and Lonely Planet both do a good job of helping avoid the crowds, in terms of timings and alternative locations. I tried to strike a balance between the 'wow' temples and some less crowded spots. Ed and I were both a bit under the weather, so it was slightly pared down, but we all felt like it was plenty.

Day 1 - Bayon. We grabbed a tuktuk at about 3pm and went to buy tickets, then headed straight to Bayon. It was already pretty quiet, but just became quieter. The outer area in particular - I have lots of photos that are blissfully tourist-free! Bayon closes at 5.30pm. We negotiated $16 for the tuk tuk.

Day 2 - Ta Prohm, Banteay Kdei, Pre Rup. Our tuktuk picked us up at 8am and we headed straight to Ta Prohm. I was concerned that this might be too late, but it was actually fine. There are a few pinch points inside the temple, but it wasn't too bad at all. We even have some photos of the famous trees with no tourists in sight! We then headed to Banteay Kdei, which is far less visited. It's lovely though. I was concerned that it might be similar to Ta Prohm, but not really. There were a few people milling about but it was very peaceful and atmospheric. It's easy to walk over the road and have a look at Sra Srang while you're there. We then popped to Pre Rup, which we'd also recommend. It's totally different, and great to be able to climb up for views of the forest. We were back in Siem Reap at about 1pm, feeling like we'd seen plenty! The tuktuk cost $20.

Day 3 - Angkor Wat and Preah Khan. Our tuktuk picked us up at 8am once again, so we must have been at Angkor Wat at around 8.30. There appeared to be an awful lot of people walking across the temporary bridge, and then again towards to main temple, but actually they dispersed fairly well. We started queuing to climb the steps to the upper level by the '30mins' marker, but it was more like 15 mins. It was then pretty quiet on the upper level. Angkor Wat was great to see, but we didn't feel the same impact - probably because it's so hyped! We then drove to Preah Khan, which involves driving through Angkor Thom, meaning great views of the Terrace of the Elephants and Terrace of the Leper King. This area didn't look busy at all - we didn't stop, but it would be a good addition. Preah Khan is very different again - I think we were reaching saturation / hunger by this point, but we did really enjoy it.

We were also going to go to Phnom Bakheng on the way back, but we ended up skipping it due to hunger and me still feeling under the weather. I think this would be a good addition, if you still have the appetite.

Overall, we very much enjoyed our visit and wouldn't have missed it, BUT we didn't find it quite as awe-inspiring as other reports. Probably due to the hype, and also to our preference for mountains etc! We were surprised that it really didn't feel anywhere near as busy as we'd expected, despite being here at peak time. Maybe my planning missed the worst of it.....hard to know!

If we hadn't been sick, we were also planning to head out to Banteay Srei. We were also considering doing one day by bike, although I am not sure our friends (new to SE Asia) would have enjoyed the Siem Reap traffic!