Monuments and Memorials in Siem Reap & Angkor Wat
A visual guide from the Siem Reap and Angkor Wat travel guide — see all posters in Visual Guides.
Siem Reap's great monuments are the temples of Angkor, and the most famous of them is on the national flag. But the town has its own landmarks too: royal gardens, a 1930s grand hotel and two good museums that explain what you see in the park. Start with the big names at dawn, then spend the hot middle of the day in town.
The big four in the park
Angkor Wat, built in the early twelfth century, is the largest religious monument in the world and the one to see at sunrise from the west causeway. The South Gate of Angkor Thom has a bridge lined with stone figures pulling a giant naga, and a tower carved with four huge faces. Inside the walls, the Bayon has more than 200 smiling stone faces, and its outer galleries show scenes of daily life: markets, cooking, fishing and cockfights. Just north, the Terrace of the Elephants runs for more than 300 metres, with life-size elephants carved along its wall.
Landmarks in town
The Royal Independence Gardens on Pokambor Avenue are the green heart of town, with old rain trees, a small shrine that locals visit in the evening, and a noisy colony of fruit bats that fly out at dusk. Across the road stands the Raffles Grand Hotel d'Angkor, opened in 1932 and still the town's most elegant building. The Angkor National Museum on Charles de Gaulle Road is the best introduction to the temples, and the Preah Norodom Sihanouk-Angkor Museum near the park gate shows statues found at Banteay Kdei in 2001.
Tips for your visit
Buy your Angkor Pass at the official ticket centre on Road 60; one-day, three-day and seven-day passes are sold, and you need it for every temple in the park. Cover shoulders and knees at the temples. Go early: by 9:00 the light is harsh and the tour buses arrive. The museums in town are air-conditioned, so they are the best plan for the hottest hours, and the gardens are best after 17:00 when the bats come out.