Cambodia

Tourism website: Tourism Cambodia

Time Zone: UTC +07:00

Currency: KHR – Cambodian Riel (US Dollar widely accepted)

Official language: Khmer

While the magnificent Angkor Wat may draw visitors for a day or two, we spent one week in Siem Reap and were rewarded with a far more enriching experience.

There are so many things to know and learn about Cambodia; its culture, food, and history are both unique and memorable.

In Cambodia, you can don an apron in Siem Reap and learn to prepare Khmer food at a cooking school, or visit a farm that grows the world’s most aromatic black pepper in Kampot province.

You can also ride the bamboo train in Battambang, boat to floating villages on Tonle Sap lake, soak up the sun on the glorious south coast beaches, and meet survivors of the Killing Fields in Phnom Penh.

Wherever you are, we recommend a quad bike ride into the Cambodian countryside, as it will reveal daily life: Children fish by hand in the rice paddies. Cows return home at sunset without a guide. Barefoot farmers water their plots from a nearby ditch. Long-abandoned temples, disappearing into the jungle, invite you to be their only visitor.