Visiting Siem Reap

Siem Reap is a fast-developing town just north of the western extent of the Tonle Sap (Great Lake). Should you visit Siem Reap you will find a slow paced town, which has recently developed luxuries for the international visitor. Changes for the better have been dramatic: The quaint bridges and riverside walkways make for a perfect evening stroll while enjoying the many attractions of this gentle town, with architecture which hints at tits colonial past. There are no more land mines around Angkor and you can take as many photos as you please. Tourists did not feel in any grater danger or risk than in any other Asian country.

Many new hotels have already opened up and others are under construction in Siem Reap, the city that serves as a base to visit the great temples of Angkor, is experiencing a building boom of its own, according to a master-plan which should see a great number of new developments and improvements in the tourism sector in the near future.

Siem Reap has become something of a center in the drive to revitalize Khmer cultural skills, which were dealt such a harsh blow by the Khmer Rouge and the years of instability that followed its rule. Often forgotten by the temple visitor is the opportunity to experience traditional Cambodian cultural practices: dance, crafts and village life are vibrant and available to the visitor in a variety of forms. Traditional performance and craft shops, road tours through the rice-paddy countryside, Tonle Sap boat trip to fishing villages and the bird sanctuary all await the visitor willing to take to time to explore. Siem Reap is obviously destined for the big things, and major changes can be expected over the next few years. Several up-market hotels have been constructed, so sleepy Siem Reap is able to accommodate the needs of all travelers.