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Private tour:
Daily departure from Veun Khan (Laos-Cambodia border)
ITINERARY:
Day 1: Veun Khan - Stung Treng - Ratanakiri (L,D)
Customs and immigration formalities at Veun Khan (Laos-Cambodia border).
Welcome by your guide at Cambodian side and departure by boat to Stung
Treng (1½ hours navigation by speed boat).
Note: Currently it is not possible to obtain Cambodian visa upon arrival
at this border! Guests arriving at Veun Khan border must apply for
Cambodian visa at an Embassy or Consulate abroad prior to arrival!
Arrive in Stung Treng and lunch at local restaurant.
Then, departure by road to Banlung, capital of Ratanakiri, nicknamed
“The Red City” because of the omnipresent laterite (4 hours drive).
Check-in at Terres Rouges Lodge. Dinner and accommodation at Terres
Rouges Lodge (14 rooms only).
Day 2: Ratanakiri (B,L,D)
Breakfast at the Lodge.
We head north today, in the direction of Laos and the village of Taveng.
We first cross the curious extent of volcanic rocks of Veyrum Plang: a
lava field in the forest with a small waterfall nearby (only in the wet
season though) and what locals call tiger caves. As we go north to
Taveng, we cross a variety of landscapes: primary forest, clear forest,
bamboo forest and “African” bush. We stop at a few nice Kroeung villages
located quite far away in the forest. The Kroeung people have the
peculiar custom of erecting bachelor houses standing on very long bamboo
poles. These houses will remain so till the young man finds a wife, then
they are destroyed. The right time to see them is usually from February
to August. We have lunch at a small waterfall lost in the forest and we
go on to visiting villages. Dinner and accommodation at Terres Rouges
Lodge.
Day 3: Ratanakiri (B,L,D)
Breakfast at the Lodge.
We go in a northwest direction today, crossing bamboo forests before
reaching the village of Voeune Sai located on the left bank of the Se
San River. The view of the Chinese village on the other side of the
river is quite pretty. Besides, this place is nearly a Chinese enclave
in Cambodian territory. Most villagers don’t even speak Khmer. Upstream
of the Se San are a certain number of Tampoun villages that practice
funeral statuary; if it is possible, we will rent a boat to go to the
village of Ka Chaoan that has superb totems, if not we will reach it by
jeep. Dinner and accommodation at Terres Rouges Lodge.
Day 4: Ratanakiri - Stung Treng – Kratie (B,L,D)
Breakfast at the Lodge.
Early morning, departure by road to Stung Treng.
Lunch at local restaurant.
Then, continuation by road to Kratie. Stop in Sambo to observe the river
dolphins until sunset. Then, continue to Kratie, a small colonial-style
town. Dinner at local restaurant. Accommodation at Oudom Sambath Hotel
(2-star, best available).
Day 5: Kratie - Kompong Cham (B,L,D)
Breakfast at local restaurant.
Departure by car to Kompong Cham. On the way to Kompong Cham stop at
Chhlong, a small and peaceful village on the Mekong River Bank with both
Khmer and Colonial architecture. Continue to Chhup, a rubber plantation
first established in the region by the French tire maker Michelin.
Lunch at local restaurant in Kompong Cham.
Tour of Kompong Cham to view examples of colonial architecture and check
in at Mekong Hotel. Visit the silk-weaving village of Prek Chang Krane.
Visit Wat Nokor with its ancient temple and modern style pagoda (12th
century). Dinner at local restaurant. Accommodation at Mekong Hotel
(2-star, best available).
Day 6: Kompong Cham - Phnom Penh (B,L,D)
Breakfast at hotel.
Depart by car to Phnom Penh via Preak Kdam. Take the ferry across the
Tonle Sap river. Then, stop at Prek Kdam to visit Kôh Chen, a small
silver handicraft village
Drive to Udong where a picnic lunch will be served.
Visit the various temples and the three large stupas where the ashes of
three former kings are preserved. Continue to Phnom Penh and transfer to
the hotel. Dinner and accommodation at hotel.
Day 7: Phnom Penh (B,L,D)
Breakfast at hotel.
Morning, visit the Victory Monument, and the National Museum, also
called Musee des Beaux-Arts. A French archaeologist and painter, Georges
Groslier, designed it in Khmer style in 1917. The museum contains a
collection of Khmer art - notably sculptures – from throughout the ages.
Visit the Royal Palace, built by King Norodom 1866 on the site of the
old town, and the Silver Pagoda. Located within the Royal Palace, the
Silver Pagoda is so named because of its floor, which is made up of 5000
silver tiles. The treasures found include a solid gold Buddha encrusted
and weighing 90kilogramss and a small 17th century emerald and baccarat
crystal Buddha.
Lunch at hotel.Visit the Notorious Tuol Sleng Museum. In 1975 Tuol Svay
Prey High School was taken over by Pol Pot’s security forces and turned
into a prison known as Security Prison 21 (S-21). It soon became the
largest such center of detention and torture in the country. More than
17.000 people held at S-21 were taken to the extermination camp at
Choeung Ek to be executed; detainees who died during torture were buried
in mass graves in the prison ground. The museum displays include room
after room of these photographs of men, women and children covering the
walls from floor to ceiling; virtually all the people pictured were
later killed.
Visit the Russian Market (Psah Tuol Thom Pong), a lively outdoor market
where you will find antiquities, silver and gold jewelry, gems, silk,
kramas, stone and wood carvings, as well as T-Shirts, CDs and other
souvenirs.
End your afternoon with the visit of the Wat Phnom Temple, Phnom Penh’s
namesake. Dinner at local restaurant and accommodation at hotel.
Day 8: Phnom Penh -
Siem Reap (B,L,D)
Breakfast at hotel.
Morning, transfer to Phnom Penh International Airport and flight to
Siem Reap. Arrive in Siem Reap and transfer to the hotel (rooms may
not be available until the afternoon). In the morning, visit the
most famous of all the temples on the plain of Angkor until the
sunset: Angkor Wat. The temple complex covers 81 hectares and is
comparable in size to the Imperial Palace in Beijing. Its
distinctive five towers are emblazoned on the Cambodian flag and the
12th century masterpiece is considered by art historians to be the
prime example of classical Khmer art and architecture. Angkor Wat’s
five towers symbolize Meru’s five peaks - the enclosed wall
represents the mountains at the edge of the world and the
surrounding moat, the ocean beyond.
Visit the antique capital of Angkor Thom (12th century): the South
Gate with its huge statues depicting the churning of the ocean of
milk, the Bayon Temple, unique for its 54 towers decorated with over
200 smiling faces of Avolokitesvara, the Royal Enclosure, the
Phimeanakas, the Elephants Terrace and the Terrace of the Leper King
and Bayon Temple (unique for its 54 towers decorated with over 200
smiling faces of Avolokitesvara), until sunset. Dinner at local
restaurant and accommodation at hotel.
Day 9: Siem Reap
(B,L,D)
Breakfast at hotel.
Morning, drive to the remote Beng Mealea temple through the typical
Khmer countryside (60Kms from Siem Reap). There is a lot to see in
the approximately 2½ hours drive as it takes you through many lively
villages and along kilometers of rice paddies. Explore the long
abandoned temple (11th C), strangled by the jungle. Lunch box will
be provided at the site.
Proceed to the Banteay Srei temple (10th century) regarded as the
jewel in the crown of classical Khmer art. Then visit Banteay Samre,
one of the most complete complexes at Angkor due to restoration
using the method of “anastylosis”. The name Samre refers to an
ethnic group of mountain people, who inhabited the region at the
base of Phnom Kulen and were probably related to the Khmers. No
inscriptions have been found for this temple, but the style of most
of the architecture is of the classic art of the middle period
similar to Angkor Wat. The proportions of Banteay Samre are
splendid. A unique feature is an interior moat with laterite paving,
which when filled with water must have given an ethereal atmosphere
to the temple. Drive back to Siem Reap. Dinner at local restaurant
and accommodation at hotel.
Day 11: Siem Reap
(B,L,D)
Breakfast at the hotel.
In the morning, visit Prasat Kravan, with unique interior brick
sculptures and the mountain-temple of Pre Rup. Continue your temple
tour with visits to Mebon Oriental, Ta Som, Neak Pean, a fountain
built in the middle of a pool and representing the paradisiacal
Himalayan mountain-lake. Finally, visit Preah Khan, built by
the King Jayavarman VII and, like Ta Prohm, a place of towered
enclosures and shoulder-hugging corridors. Unlike Ta Prohm, however,
the temple of Preah Khan is in a reasonable state of preservation
and ongoing restoration efforts should maintain and even improve
this situation.
In the afternoon, transfer to the archaeological site and continue
the temples tour with Srah Srang ("The Pool of Ablutions"),
undoubtedly used in the past for ritual bathing, Takeo, Thommanon,
Chau Say Tevoda and Ta Prohm, one of the most beautiful temples in
the area, as it has been relatively untouched since it was
discovered and retains much of its mystery. Its appeal lies in the
fact that, unlike the other monuments of Angkor, it was abandoned
and swallowed by the jungle, looking very much the ways most of the
Angkor temples appeared when European explorers first stumbled upon
them. Dinner at local restaurant and accommodation at hotel.
Dat 12: Siem Reap –
Departure (B,L)
Breakfast at hotel.
Visit the floating village of Chong Khneas, located 10 kilometers
south of Siem Reap. Visit the village and take an excursion in a
traditional wooden boat on the Tonle Sap Lake, the “Great Lake” of
Cambodia and the largest in Asia.
Note: From Feb-July, the visit to the Tonle Sap lake is not
recommended because of the low water level. The below visits will be
provided instead:
Visit the Roluos Group. The monuments of Roluos, which served as the
capital of Indravarman I (reigned 877-89), are among the earliest
large, permanent temples built by the Khmers and mark the beginning
of Khmer classical art. Preah Ko erected by Indravarman I in the
late 9th century dedicated by the King to his ancestors in 880.
Bakong the largest and most interesting of the Roluos group temples,
with his active Buddhist monastery just to the north of the east
entrance. Lolei built on an islet in the center of a large reservoir
(now rice fields) by Yasovarman I, the founder to the first city at
Angkor.
Afternoon, visit “Les Chantiers-Ecole, les Artisans d’Angkor” of
Siem Reap or the Silk Farm of Puok. Then, transfer to Siem Reap
International Airport for departure flight to the next destination.
Trip includes:
Transfers and tours with local English speaking guides, boat fees 1 FOC
based on 15 paying pax minimum. Accommodation in shared twin rooms at
indicated hotels or similar, meals as specified in the program
(B=Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner), entrance fees, service charges, room
tax and baggage handling.
Trip
excludes:
Pre-post arrangement; travel insurance, visa, other meals, personal
expenses.Christmas and New Year's Eve Dinners.
HOTEL DETAILS
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Terres Rouges Lodge |
Boeung Kansaign, Banlung, Ratanakiri
Tel: (855-75) 974 051 |
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Oudom Sambath Hotel |
House No. 439,
Riverside Street, Kratie
Tel: (855 72) 971
502, (855 12) 965 944, (855 11) 703 905 |
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Mekong Hotel |
69, Prehbat Sihanouk. Phom II, Kompong Cham Province
Tel: (855 42) 941 536, 012 953 521
Fax:(855 42) 941
465 |
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