8:00 AM, Hotel Pickup and Angkor Pass Purchase Your guide and driver collect you from the hotel lobby in a private air conditioned car. The first stop is the official Angkor Pass ticket office at the entrance to the Angkor Archaeological Park, where each traveler purchases the required 3-day Angkor Pass (current official price US$62 per foreign visitor, payable in cash or credit card). A photo is taken for the system at the desk.

9:00 AM to 11:30 AM, Angkor Thom Enter the fortified royal city through the South Gate of Angkor Thom, the 9-meter-high causeway lined with devas and asuras churning the ocean. At the south gate pillars, look up at the four-faced Avalokiteshvara relief carved in stone, a frequent backdrop for postcards. Inside the walls, the route continues to:

• Bayon Temple: a late 12th century Buddhist temple built by King Jayavarman VII at the exact center of Angkor Thom. Around 200 stone faces look out from the upper terraces, each said to combine the king's features with those of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara.
• Terrace of Elephants: a 350-meter-long royal viewing platform used by King Jayavarman VII for public ceremonies. The east face carries a famous parade of elephants and the three-headed elephant Airavata.
• Phimeanakas: the former Royal Palace used by Jayavarman VII as a private residence. The central sanctuary sits on a tall pyramid; climb to the upper terrace for views across the palace compound.
• Terrace of the Leper King: a smaller terrace whose surface is covered in well-preserved carvings. The original outer wall is kept in place behind a shelter for protection.
• Baphuon: the largest Hindu temple inside Angkor Thom city, a single tall pyramid dedicated to Shiva and built in the mid 11th century by King Udayadityavarman II. The temple connects to Angkor Thom by a long raised causeway.

11:30 AM to 12:30 PM, Ta Prohm Temple Drive a short distance to Ta Prohm, the temple left largely unrestored by the French conservators of EFEO in the early 20th century. Huge silk-cotton and strangler fig trees grow over the roofless galleries, their roots wrapping the original stone blocks. The temple is best known as a filming location for the 2001 movie Lara Croft: Tomb Raider starring Angelina Jolie. Highlights include the doorframes with hanging roots, the crumbling galleries of the third enclosure, and the tree growing through the central sanctuary.

12:30 PM to 1:30 PM, Lunch at a Local Restaurant The guide drops you at a small Khmer-owned restaurant near the park for lunch (pay direct). Frequently ordered dishes include amok (fish curry steamed in banana leaf), lok lak (stir-fried beef in a Kampot pepper sauce), and fresh fruit shakes made with local mango or passion fruit.

1:30 PM to 4:30 PM, Angkor Wat Enter Angkor Wat, the largest religious monument in the world and the Cambodian flag's central emblem. Built in the early 12th century by King Suryavarman II and dedicated to Vishnu, the temple covers around 400 acres. The route covers:

• The 350-meter stone causeway across the moat.
• The outer gallery of the first level, famous for the Churning of the Ocean of Milk relief carved along the south wall.
• The hidden gallery of a thousand Buddhas on the first floor (added later when the temple was converted to Buddhist use).
• The inner courtyard with the central five-tower quincunx.
• The upper terraces (Bakan tower climb) for views toward Phnom Kulen on clear mornings.

4:30 PM to 7:00 PM, Phnom Bakheng Sunset Drive to the base of Phnom Bakheng hill, the first temple-mountain built at Angkor by King Yasovarman I in the late 9th century. A 400-meter climb up the forested slope brings you to the summit. From the top terraces, Angkor Wat sits directly to the south and the silhouette of Kulen Mountain rises to the northeast. Only a limited number of visitors are admitted to the summit at one time, so the guide usually arrives 60 to 90 minutes before sunset to secure a spot.

7:00 PM onward, Transfer Back to Hotel Descend Phnom Bakheng at dusk and transfer back to your hotel in Siem Reap.

8:00 AM, Hotel Pickup and Drive to Phnom Kulen Your driver and guide collect you from the hotel lobby and head northeast toward Phnom Kulen National Park. The drive covers roughly 48 km and takes about 1.5 hours. The road passes through rural Cambodian villages with stilted wooden houses, paddy fields, mango orchards, and small wooden pagodas. Stop briefly along the way to photograph the countryside.

10:00 AM to 12:30 PM, Phnom Kulen National Park Pay the park entry fee at the gate (US$20 per foreign visitor, cash only; bring small USD bills because change is sometimes limited). The local guide then leads you through the summit's three main attractions:

• Phnom Kulen Waterfall: the largest natural waterfall in the wider Angkor region, with a two-tier cascade falling roughly 15 meters into a natural swimming pool. Many travelers wade into the cool water (wear shoes with grip because the moss-covered volcanic rocks are slippery).
• Preah Ang Thom Reclining Buddha: an 8-meter reclining Buddha carved into the top of a sandstone boulder at the very summit. The pagoda around the statue was rebuilt during the 1980s and is still in active use.
• River of a Thousand Linga (Kbal Spean): a short forest walk leads to a sandstone riverbed where, in 802 AD, King Jayavarman II had more than 1,000 lingams (symbols of Shiva) and figures of Hindu deities carved into the rock under shallow water. The carvings are at their most visible during the cooler dry months.

12:30 PM to 1:30 PM, Lunch at Phnom Kulen Stop at a family-run restaurant near the summit for lunch. Menu relies on produce from the mountain villages: chicken with lemongrass, stir-fried morning glory, white rice, fresh tropical fruit, and iced tea.

1:30 PM to 3:15 PM, Banteay Srei Temple Drive roughly 22 km south to Banteay Srei, "the citadel of women," a small 10th century temple built by the royal guru Yajnavaraha and dedicated to Shiva. Although small in scale, every surface carries some of the most detailed relief carvings in all of Cambodia, executed in pink sandstone that gives the temple a warmer hue than any other Angkorian monument. The visit includes the three central sanctuaries, the two library buildings, and the outer enclosure wall.

3:15 PM to 4:00 PM, Transfer to Kampong Phluk Drive back through Siem Reap and 21 km southeast along NH6 to the boat station at the edge of Tonle Sap Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia and a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve since 1997.

4:00 PM to 6:30 PM, Kampong Phluk Floating Village Board the private motorized boat at the ferry port and cruise into Kampong Phluk, a flooded and fishing community inside the Prek Toal Core Area of the Tonle Sap Biosphere Reserve. The boat route shows:

• Stilt houses built 6 to 10 meters above the dry-season water level, designed to ride out the lake's dramatic seasonal swing between the wet season (water can rise up to 4 meters) and the dry season (November to May).
• Mangrove forests on the outer edge of the village, fish nurseries and a known roost for spot-billed pelicans and other waterbirds in the dry season.
• Floating houses further out on the lake proper that rise and fall with the water level year-round.
• Crocodile farms and small fish-smoking yards lining the canal. Return to the boat station and drive back to your hotel.

7:00 PM onward, Hotel Drop Off

4:40 AM, Pre-Dawn Hotel Pickup The driver collects you before sunrise. (Exact pickup time shifts with the season; the guide confirms the precise time the day before based on sunrise forecasts.) A small snack and a thermos of hot coffee can be arranged in advance if requested the previous evening.

5:15 AM to 6:30 AM, Angkor Wat at Sunrise Arrive at the western reflecting pool of Angkor Wat before first light. From late November to early March, the sun rises directly behind the central towers. The guide positions the group on the quieter northern side of the pool, away from the main camera-bus crowd, for unobstructed photographs.

6:30 AM to 7:30 AM, Breakfast at a Local Family Restaurant Drive to a small Khmer family-run eatery in Siem Reap town for the included breakfast. The meal usually consists of either kuy teav (rice-noodle soup with pork and bean sprouts) or bobor (rice porridge with chicken or fish), fresh fruit, and tea or coffee.

7:30 AM to 9:00 AM, Preah Dak Village Travel north into Preah Dak village on the road between Angkor and Banteay Srei. The village is famous for num pang, a sticky-rice and palm-sugar cake wrapped in banana leaves and grilled over charcoal. Try a fresh piece straight off the grill and watch the local women prepare the batch on small street-side stalls.

9:00 AM to 10:30 AM, Preah Khan Temple Drive back into the park to Preah Khan ("the holy sword"), the largest temple at Angkor after Angkor Wat. Built by King Jayavarman VII in the late 12th century in honor of his father, the temple originally functioned as a Buddhist monastery and university housing more than 1,000 monks and 300,000 supporting laypeople, according to the foundation stele. Highlights include the long processional causeway, the four-faced entry pavilions (matching Bayon's face towers), the Hall of Dancers, and the cruciform central sanctuary.

10:30 AM to 11:15 AM, Neak Pean Temple Drive east to Neak Pean, an artificial island temple at the center of four connected pools. Also built by King Jayavarman VII in the late 12th century, it represents the mythical Himalayan lake Anavatapta. The central sanctuary sits on a circular platform reached by a small wooden footbridge. The pool is most photogenic when water lilies bloom (September through November).

11:15 AM to 12:15 PM, Ta Som Temple Continue east to Ta Som, a small late 12th century temple built by Jayavarman VII and dedicated to his father. It is best known for the giant silk-cotton tree growing over its eastern gopura (gateway), echoing (on a smaller scale) the famous roots at Ta Prohm.

12:15 PM to 1:30 PM, East Mebon Temple Drive south to East Mebon, a five-tiered temple-mountain built in the 10th century by King Rajendravarman II and dedicated to Shiva. When built, it stood on a natural island in the middle of the Eastern Baray, a vast rectangular reservoir of more than 7 km by 1.8 km. The baray is now dry, so the temple stands on flat ground. Walk the three upper levels and look for the brick statues of elephants and lions at the corners of the second tier.

1:30 PM to 2:30 PM, Pre Rup Temple Drive a short distance south to Pre Rup, another 10th century temple-mountain built by King Rajendravarman II, also dedicated to Shiva. Climb to the top tier for views across the surrounding forest and toward the distant silhouette of Kulen Mountain on the northern horizon. The brick and laterite construction glows warm red after midday, giving the temple its name ("turning body," a reference to traditional Khmer cremation rites).

2:30 PM to 3:30 PM, Return to Siem Reap Drive back through the Angkor park ticket checkpoint, exit the park, and return directly to your hotel. Tour officially ends here.