In addition to the temples of Angkor, there are many activities to enjoy in Siem Reap town.
Culture and History
Open daily from 8:00 AM until 5:00 PM, the Angkor Silk Farm is located in one of the most beautiful and charming locations in the Cambodian countryside. Les Chantiers Écoles maintains the Angkor Silk Farm, which produces some of the best work in the country, including clothing, interior-design products and accessories. All stages of the production process can be seen here, from the cultivation of mulberry trees to the nurturing of silkworms to the dyeing and weaving of silk. Free tours are available daily. A free shuttle bus departs from Les Chantiers Écoles in Siem Reap at 9.30am and 1.30pm.
The farm is about 16km west of Siem Reap, just off the road to Sisophon in the village of Puok.
It has been a tradition since the earliest days of tourism in the 19th century to treat visitors to Siem Reap with an ‘Apsara dance performance’ – a taste of classical Khmer culture. No visit to Cambodia is complete without attending at least one performance. Dinner performances are now the most popular venue – most places offering buffet or set menus combined with a one-hour dance performance.
At their main boutique and workshops in Siem Reap, discover the traditional Khmer techniques used for stone and wood carving, lacquering and gilding, as explained by their experienced guides. Complete tours of the workshops take you from raw materials to splendid craft-wares. Tours are available in Khmer, English, French, German, Japanese, Chinese, and Thai daily from 7.30am to 5.30pm for the tour of the workshop, and to 6.30pm for the boutique.
Angkor Café, opposite Angkor Wat, displays items from its own collection as well as tableware products and Khmer scents and flavours selected by Cambodian artisans. Open daily from 8.30am-5.30pm.
The Landmine Museum was founded by ex-child soldier Aki Ra as a way to tell the world about the horrors landmines had infilcted on his native Cambodia. He used the proceed to clear landmines wherever he could find them. In the process of clearing small, remote villages, he began bringing home wounded and orphaned children that he and his wife raised as their own, along side their own children. Today the Museum not only tells Aki Ra’s unique history and the history of landmines in Cambodia, but it is also home to over two dozen abandoned, orphaned or destitute children. All are cared for, housed, fed, educated and given a future they would otherwise never have had.
The Fou-Nan restaurant over the road from the main house is widely popular with outside guests and offers a fantastic range of Asian fusion and Khmer dishes. It also hosts regular traditional Apsara shows. There is a cosy seating and dining area as you walk into the main building, near the pool, where guests can enjoy a variety of dishes and snacks. Breakfast can be served anywhere.
The Angkor National Museum curates a small but comprehensive collection of relics from the ancient Angkor Empire – over 6,000 lintels, assorted statues of Hindu gods and Buddhist bodhisattvas (not to mention a massive collection of Buddha images collected from all over Cambodia), and sandstone reliefs – all put together in a series of collections intended to create a coherent narrative of the Angkor Empire’s genesis and eventual downfall.
Experience the arts culture of Cambodia at Siem Reap’s 1-hour Phare Circus Show and see the famous artists of Phare Ponleu Selpak Artistic and Social Center from Battambang perform a blend of modern theater, music, dance, acrobatics, and more.
Cooking classes and street food tours.
Wat Bo Pagoda is one of the oldest pagodas in Siem Reap, Cambodia and has a number of well-preserved wall paintings from the 19th century. Although it is a Buddhist temple some of the wall paintings describe the famous ancient love story of Rama and Shita, the strongest man and the most beautiful women of all times. Still today the royal families of the Southeast Asian countries claim to be descendants of Rama. Anyhow, these wall paintings describe a Hindu story that is most remarkable in a Buddhist temple. Wat Bo temple also contains a large collection of Buddha statues that you will find behind the main Buddha.
Wat Damnak was a royal palace during the reign of King Sisowath, which explains the name, as “dam nak” is Khmer for palace. Today it is a functioning pagoda, and home to a school, two charities and a sewing school for young women. Pagodas are the center of the primary education system in Cambodia and it is appropriate therefore that both of the NGOs located here are concerned with education.
The Center for Khmer Studies (CKS) has spent ten years here working to reinforce our understanding of Cambodia, and to support the Cambodian higher education system. As you follow the road through the wat, you’ll notice on your right a pinky-burgundy building with white columns, which is home to the CKS reading room, and directly behind that you’ll find the new library which has been specially designed to store and protect a wealth of knowledge. The groups of young Cambodians earnestly pouring over their books in the outdoor corrals will be a pretty good sign that you’ve arrived in the right place.
Massage and Spas
It is a Body care Space. this salon have a professional therapist. The therapist understand whole body system. Any customer can come here and get massage, relaxation, stretching etc.
Take a refreshing voyage into a Mudita mind-state. Cultivate a boundless heart. And open yourself to a wider sense of serenity – a true calmness of mind… The Mudita Spa is ideally located in the heart of Siem Reap where harmony and serenity blend together to form a perfect base for exploring the ultimate relaxation.
Fresh air, Organic food. Sunrise Yoga, Sunset Spa, Starlit sky Cafe. And of course japanese quality massage. Free pick up service from town & hotel.
Seeing Hands trains blind people in the art of massage. Watch out for copycats, as some of these are just exploiting the blind for profit.
Nature
Bikes can be rented for $2/day, with proceeds donated to charity, from Rosy Guesthouse and Soria Moria Hotel, among other establishments.
Cambodia Quad Bike is located in Siem Reap, not far from the Old Market. We offer unforgettable quad biking experience in Cambodian countryside. Come and explore off road tracks, rice fields, forgotten temples and life in local communities with our team of professional guides and mechanics. Cambodia Quad Bike caters for individuals, families, small groups and corporate events. All our bikes are fully automatic making them easy to ride and use.
A playground for locals, Phnom Kulen (literally Mountain of the Lychees) is a gorgeous day out. The main attraction is the waterfalls at the top of Kulen Mountain and it’s also a great picnic spot; well set up in Cambodian style with hammocks and shelters to keep you shaded from the sun.
Sam Veasna Center, in the Wat Bo area of Siem Reap, is the authority on birdwatching in Cambodia, with professionally trained English-speaking guides, powerful spotting scopes and a network of camps and bird hides scattered throughout north Cambodia. It uses ecotourism to provide an income for local communities in return for a ban on hunting and cutting down the forest.
Shopping
Come discover the techniques of lacquer, gilding, paintings and statuary wood carved hand. Seven young women artisans, framed and trained, practice their art on wooden statuary, panels and canvases as well as decorative objects. Stunning, high quality artwork; custom designs available.
Join a hat making workshop or create your own pottery at Angkor Handicraft Association (AHA) and support local artisans in Cambodia preserve their traditional handicraft skills. Family friendly, the association offers other learning experiences as well as a shop where you can buy handcrafted items, each of distinctive quality and handmade by local artisans.
Siem Reap’s original night market near Sivatha St has sprung countless copycats, but it remains the best and is well worth a browse. It’s packed with stalls selling a variety of handicrafts, souvenirs and silks. In ‘Night Market A’ (to the south), you can catch live music at Island Bar, while adjacent ‘Night Market B’ has the Brick House bar. You can also indulge in a Dr Fish massage or watch a 3D event movie (US$3) about the Khmer Rouge or the scourge of landmines.
Located on the road to the temples, this ceramics centre is dedicated to reviving the Khmer tradition of pottery, which was an intricate art during the time of Angkor. It’s possible to visit and try your hand at the potter’s wheel, and courses in traditional techniques, including pottery and ceramic painting, are available. Free tours are available, including information on Angkorian techniques and a visit to the kiln museum. There is also a walk-in shop in Alley West.
Mekong Quilts specialises in high quality, hand made quilts and accessories. There are a variety of quilts to choose from featuring different colours and themes, ranging from contemporary to Asian-Inspired design.
The Old Market is the oldest Khmer market in Siem Reap, where locals shop for fresh produce and household items in the early morning. Also known as Phsar Chas, travellers can also find vendors selling inexpensive souvenirs such as clothes, jewellery, and shoes, most of which are located nearby the market entrance.
Senteurs d’Angkor prides itself on sourcing all of its products in Cambodia, from raw ingredients to packaging materials, which is not easy task. In line with their philosophy of ‘home-sourcing’, most of their packaging comes from the sugar palm tree, an abundant, natural and recyclable resource in Cambodia.