Tour Name: Angkor Wat Preah Khan Kampong Svay Tour 3d
Tour Code: A3F
Tour Duration: 3 days
Tour Operates: all year round / on demand
Number of Pax: available upon request
Tour Price: available upon request
Pick-up and drop-off location
Can be anywhere upon request
Hotel in Siem Reap
Upon arrival in Siem Reap airport
Upon arrival in Siem Reap bus station
Upon arrival in boat pier in Chong Kneah floating village
Any AirBnB and residences in Siem Reap.
Day I - Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, Bayon, Ta Prohm, small circuit and Watching sunset at Phnom Bakheng hill or at Pre Rup temple
Angkor Thom city complex – you will be met and welcomed by our English speaking guide at your pick-up location in Siem Reap and then transfer onward to visit the Great City of Angkor Thom, the last capital of the Great Khmer Empire under the reign of Jayavarman VII. This city is surrounded by an 8m high wall; each side of the city is 3 kilometers long. It draws a perfect square you access this town through 5 gates, 4 of them represent the cardinal points and the 5th one the Victory Gate was the one leading directly to the Royal Palace area.
You will arrive via the South Gate, an impressive stone gate carved with Elephants and 4 giant faces. On each side is a row of 54 gods or demons holding the sacred Naga snake.
After passing through the South Gate, you will go down along this shady road to the Bayon temple. This temple lies exactly in the center of the city. The particularity of this monument is the 54 towers representing the 54 provinces of the then Great Khmer Empire. Each tower has 4 faces. This is the only temple in Cambodia depicting scenes of the everyday life at the time of the empire.
From the Bayon continue by walk to the Baphoun recently re-opened to the public. There you will pass by the Phimeanakas the location of the Royal Palace. The only remaining are a pond and a temple. The palace was made of wood and did not survive the time and the wars.
Then continue to the Terrace of the Elephants. This Terrace was the place where the parade was done for the king. Next is the Terrace of the Leper King, depicting the water world.
Ta Prohm overgrown temple – continues transfer to Ta Prohm - one of the most popular temples of the Angkor Complex. This temple was built in the memory of the King Jayavarman VII’s mother. When found by the French conservators at the end of the 19th century, they deliberately left this temple in the same condition as it was discovered, overgrown by strangler fig and silk-cotton trees, giving the temple a mystical and romantic appeal.
Your visit will include Banteay Kdei, a Buddhist monastery from the late 12th century, Srah Srang, also known as the “pool of ablutions”, the identical twin temples of Tommanon, Chaosay Tevoda, Ta Keo and Krovan temple.
Lunch at local restaurant (at your own costs)
Angkor Wat – continue visit the magnificent temple of Angkor Wat, built by Suryavarman II in early 12th century. Angkor Wat is constructed following the model of the temple mountain symbolizing the mount Merou, home of the gods, considered as the masterpiece of the Khmer architecture. This Vishnuite temple is the King’s funerary temple that is why the temple is oriented to the west. Inside the temple the walls are covered by carvings and bas-reliefs depicting the Hindu mythology and the wars Suryavarman II made during his reign. As well Angkor Wat is well known for the 1800 Apsara dancers decorating the all temple. But like most say, it takes a life time to discover all the wonders of this temple.
Return to Siem Reap after watching sunset at Phnom Bakheng Hill. Dominating the flat landscape, this 10th Century mountain temple is the most popular spot in the area to watch a classic sunset over Angkor Wat and the surrounding forest or
Watching sunset at Pre Rup temple, a Hindu temple, built as the state temple of king Rajendravarman and dedicated in 961. It is a temple mountain of combined brick, laterite and sandstone construction. The temple’s name is a comparatively modern one meaning "turn the body". This reflects the common belief among Cambodians that funerals were conducted at the temple, with the ashes of the body being ritually rotated in different directions as the service progressed.
Overnight at your hotel in Siem Reap.
Day II - Banteay Srei, Banteay Same and Chong Kneah floating village
Angkor Wat sunrise is optional (pick up at 5am for viewing the picturesque sunrise at Angkor Wat and then return to hotel for breakfast).
Banteay Srei - in the morning, after breakfast at your hotel, depart for an excursion to visit Banteay Srei, made of pink sandstone and is one of the smallest temple you can visit but one of the most beautiful as well. Built in 967 AD by a guru to Jayavarman V, it showcases the most exquisite, deep and complex carvings in all Khmer architectures. As well the carvings and bas-relief are in a perfect condition although being here for more than millenary.
On the way back to Siem Reap, visit an isolated temple of Banteay Samre. Situated on the eastern edge of the Angkor complex, this temple is very similar to Angkor Wat. The structure with its typical lotus flowers shaped tower but has very compact proportions. This temple was built during the best period of the Khmer architecture and its condition is almost perfect.
Lunch at local restaurant (at your own costs)
Kampong Pluk Fishing Village – you will be met and welcomed by our English speaking guide, picked up and transferred to Kampong Pluk, a cluster of three villages of stilted houses built within the floodplain about 16 km southeast of Siem Reap. The villages are primarily Khmer and have about 3000 inhabitants between them. Flooded mangrove forest surrounds the area and is home to a variety of wildlife including crab-eating macaques. During the dry season when the lake is low, the buildings in the villages seem to soar atop their 6-meter stilts exposed by the lack of water. At this time of year many of the villagers move out onto the lake and build temporary houses. In the wet season when water level rises, the villagers move back to their permanent houses on the floodplain, the stilts now hidden under the water. Kampong Pluk's economy is, as one might expect, based in fishing, primary in shrimp harvesting.
Artisans d'Angkor is a Cambodian social business creating job opportunities for young people in rural areas, while reviving traditional Khmer craftsmanship (stone and wood carving, painting on statues and on silk, lacquering, and silver plating).
The organization, founded in 1992, is located on Stung Thmey Street, 2 minutes walk from the Old Market in Siem Reap centre, Cambodia.
Overnight at your hotel in Siem Reap.
Day III - Preah Khan Kampong Svay excursion
Preah Khan Kampong Svay - in the morning, after breakfast at the hotel, pick up and transfer onward to Preah Khan Kampong Svay temple. The archeological complex of Preah Khan (of) Kampong Svay or Prasat Bakan (according to local pronunciation) or Bakan Svay Rolay is located 100 km east of Angkor, in Preah Vihear province, Cambodia. It stands as the largest single religious complex ever built during Angkorian Era, as its exterior enclosure is about 5 km square, even if the isolated location makes it one of less visited Angkorian sites.
History
There are few historical data about Preah Khan Kompong Svay. French scholars argued it had been founded in the 11th century, probably by Suryavarman I. It was a royal residence during the kingdom of Suryavarman II and even Jayavarman VII lived here, before recapturing the capital city of Yasodharapura from invading Chams in 1181, and improved the complex
The discovery of the complex
After some French missions at the turn of the 19th century, Victor Goloubew in 1937 engaged in aerial surveys which revealed the real extension of the complex.
Many famous Khmer sculptures come from here, such as the putative head of Jayavarman VII which is exposed at the National Museum of Phnom Penh. The sculptures and carvings of Preah Khan of Kompong Svay are among the peaks of Khmer art and the temples have been widely sacked in the past by official expeditions, like Louis Delaporte's one, whereas thieves have largely damaged many structures while looting sculptures and carvings from the second half of the 1990s.
The site
Preah Khan Kompong Svay covers an area about 5 kilometers square, is oriented to north-east and has four concentric enclosures. It was provided with water by a large baray (2.8 km by 750 m but almost completely dried at present), which crosses the eastern side. On an artificial island (mebon) in the middle of the baray there is Preah Thkol, a cruciform temple in sandstone with a standing central tower. In the southeastern corner stands the remains of the 15 metres high pyramid of Preah Damrei, with laterite enclosure and two stone elephants (Damrei means elephant) at its upper corners. The other two elephants are exhibited at the National Museum of Phnom Penh and Guimet Museum in Paris.
Inside the exterior enclosure, in the middle of the western side of baray, there is Prasat Preah Stung with a peculiar four-faced central tower in Bayon style, which is preceded by a landing-stage with n?ga balaustrades. A laterite causeway leads from here to a centric enclosure, 701 m by 1097 m, surrounded by a moat and endowed with four gopuras similar to Angkor Thom. Near the eastern gopura there is a dharmasala.
The inner laterite enclosure contains the central sanctuary, that stands on a two-tier platform. The central tower collapsed because of a looting attempt in 2003. It has entrances in all cardinal directions and is rounded by a windowed gallery.
World heritage status
This site was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List on September 1, 1992 in the Cultural category.
Lunch at local restaurant (at your own costs)
Return to Siem Reap.
Tour Ends
Included
- Full tours and transfers by private luxury A/C vehicle
- English speaking guide
- All entrance fees for mentioned visit.
Excluded
- Meals not mentioned
- Accommodation
- Visa fees $30 (visa on arrival, please bring 1 of your recent passport-size photo to visit your Cambodia visa). Southeast Asian passport holders do not require a Cambodian visa
- Drinks, laundry, telephone calls, tips and expenditure of a personal nature
- Personal travel insurance
- Any services not mentioned in itinerary.
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