Siem Reap Temples and Nature (Beyond Angkor Wat)

Beyond Angkor Wat:

Angkor Wat is only the first stop near Siem Reap in Cambodia for temple and nature lovers. Beyond Angkor is a range of other temples, all a tuk-tuk ride away from each other (some are a few kilometers apart while others are virtually next to each other). One could easily spend a week visiting these temples at a leisurely pace, or one could take 2 to 3 days at a minimum to see the most important ones. I had only 2 full days (and a couple of half-days) during my visit towards the end of October (2024). I’m very happy with what I managed to see within my limited time and it was a good introduction to the area.

The pictures in this post are just a small selection containing some of my personal favorites in terms of nature and temple shots (I appreciated the nature views as much as the temples, if not more …). As can be seen I was very lucky to have had great weather during my stay with almost perfect days (except for the early mornings which were overcast) which was ideal for taking photos. October is shoulder-season so typically there would be showers in the afternoons and evenings, but it’s a recommended time period because there’s fewer tourists and it’s at the end of the rainy season, so everything’s really green.

For mobility I didn’t want to lug around heavy camera equipment, therefore all these shots were taken with a lightweight Panasonic Lumix FZ100 bridge camera (2015 model). It has proven to take sufficiently sharp pictures in most cases with picture quality and resolution being sufficient for blogging purposes. Moreover this little bridge camera seems to perform especially well when taking nature shots, but I think my DSLR might have captured more detail in the temples’ reliefs and architecture.

As I was on a D.I.Y.-style budget trip I bought a very informative guide-book at one of the temple stops and my helpful tuk-tuk driver provided some general information. My main objective was to soak up the atmosphere and enjoy the serenity of the temples as much as possible while trying to get some good pictures too. I would catch up on the deeper aspects of each site later from the guide-book and online research once back home.

Each of the temples have important symbolism pertaining to a spiritual journey related to rising up through lower levels of a pyramid to the highest levels at the top layers and the mythology in the reliefs are equally important, but takes longer to study, so reading about it later makes more sense. Hiring a professional guide for in-depth explanations (if one has the extra time at each site), would make a lot of sense if the objective is to learn as much as possible directly from the sites while being there. 

My time in Siem Reap exceeded my expectations as I had underestimated the variety of sites accessible beyond Angkor Wat and especially the stunning nature in the area. Visiting some of these places was truly a mesmerizing experience. Had I planned for a longer stay in Siem Reap I would have ventured further afield on day-trips to other recommended temple-sites (about 50-70 kms away), but before arriving in Siem Reap I had already visited some temples in the Battambang region (some were truly mystical), and just prior to that I was in Java (Indonesia) also visiting a number of temples. 

These days in Siem Reap rounded off my DIY temple-tours before heading back to Malaysia for a couple of days before departing back to Mauritius. A good motto to always have as a traveller is to leave some places unexplored so that one has a reason to return one day, which is exactly what I hope to do with regards to Siem Reap. I might publish another post about Cambodia, time permitting in a week or three… In the meantime I hope you enjoyed this virtual tour!

I would like to wishing everybody a wonderful Festive Season, wherever you are.

Yours in Travel,
Jean-Jacques

A few notes on browsing the galleries: Some of the images may take some seconds to load as I uploaded relatively large files to preserve the picture quality – navigating in full-screen recommended. The names of the temples are noted at the bottom of the pictures (please let me know if you have questions!) 

DAY 1

[Temples Visited: Angkor Thom; Bayon Temple; Prasat Baphuon; Prasat Ta Prohm]

DAY 2

[Temples Visited: Banteay Srei, Prasat Ta Som, Prasat Neak Poan, Prasat Preah Kahn]

“Thanks for visiting!” 🙂 

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