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One of my biggest dreams was to visit Angkor Wat. The entire architecture and atmosphere always seemed very mysterious to me. I grew up with movies like Indiana Jones and Lara Croft, and visiting such a place seemed very adventurous and exciting. 
I don’t even know how to describe the experience and all the emotion I felt when visiting Angkor Wat. Such a longed-for journey and such fear of being disappointed. Sometimes, when we’ve imagined a certain trip and place to visit for so long and dreamed about it, the risk of it not meeting our expectations is huge. But this place is magnificent. One of the most beautiful I’ve been to and it will remain in my consciousness. This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience and a place that must be visited. It cannot be described, it’s hard to recreate in words the grandeur it represents.
You Can Watch the Video from the Angkor Wat Adventure Here
Man and Nature
It’s such a strange feeling to walk through temples built centuries ago by man and see how nature has swallowed them. Somehow you start thinking about what we leave behind and how temporary is everything that we do. All the greenery surrounding the stones, the tree roots that find their way through these large structures, it leaves you speechless. You just stand, contemplate and reflect. The transience of man, the infinity and power of nature.
Angkor Wat – History
This is the largest religious temple in the world, which perfectly combines symmetry and symbolism. It is located on 400 acres and is truly a huge complex. It was built in the 12th century by Suryavarman VII. It was intended as a tomb where his remains would be placed after his death. But he was never buried there because he died in battle while trying to conquer Vietnam. There’s no exact information, but it’s believed that its construction lasted about 30 years. Symbolism is everywhere here. The central tower of the temple symbolizes Mount Meru, and the smaller towers represent the peaks of the mountain. According to Hindus, this is where the gods live. About 300,000 people and 6,000 elephants were needed to build the temple. 
Where to Stay?
To visit Angkor Wat, you need to stay in the city of Siem Reap. There’s truly a huge selection of hotels there. I recommend the Leader Angkor Boutique hotel. We stayed there for 4 days and were satisfied. 
How to get to Angkor Wat?
There are several ways to get from Siem Reap to Angkor Wat. The most popular is tuk-tuk. They’re everywhere and you can arrange with any random one or order from your hotel. I had searched through forums and websites and was very pleased with our guide. I don’t know his name, but he was very kind. The first day he couldn’t take us because he had a commitment, but his brother came and we were extremely pleased with him too. If you need it, I can give you his number. 
There were also quite a few people with bicycles, but the distances aren’t small. If you’re enthusiastic about exploring the temples this way, it’s also an option. Keep in mind that the heat is killer and you need to stock up on water. There are places where you can buy water and food, as well as souvenirs.
How much Time is Needed to Explore the Complex?
As I mentioned, the complex is huge and has hundreds of temples. There are different passes. You can buy for 1 day, 3 days, or 1 week. The optimal option in my opinion is to set aside two days for exploration, but again you need to buy a three-day pass. Even I, who had dreamed of visiting the place, by the end of the second day was getting a bit tired of temple viewing. They’re beautiful, the atmosphere is wonderful, you immerse yourself in the history and culture of the Khmer, but all the information and things you see at some point oversaturate your consciousness. 
Where to Buy Tickets?
The best way is to buy them online. And this is the official website to do it from.
The prices are as follows:
- 1 day – $37
- 3 days – $62
- 7 days – $72
Even if you visit the temples for just 1 day, you’ll see enough and be satisfied. It’s worth it and you’ll see the main sites.
The Routes
The most popular routes are the small circuit and the grand circuit. You can choose to visit the small circuit and catch the sunrise and the grand circuit and catch the sunset. We visited Cambodia in early April and it was 40 degrees, even more. We thought about doing the grand circuit with sunset, but we would have had to explore the temples in the biggest heat of the afternoon and ultimately changed the plan to small circuit and sunrise and the grand circuit again in the morning, without sunset. 
To catch the sunrise, the guide came to pick us up from the hotel at 4:50 AM. The small circuit tour finished around 1 PM. Generally, you determine how much time to spend at the temples and walking around. The driver drops you off in front of the temple, tells you where he’ll wait for you and lets you explore as much as you want. This was very good because we weren’t pressed for time.
The price the tuk-tuk charged us for two days for two people was $40. This price included cold water, which they constantly gave us, because otherwise we wouldn’t survive.
Trick to Avoid Large Crowds
The tuk-tuk we chose offered to do the route in reverse – this way we avoided the crowds of tourists and at the first temples we were literally alone, which was great. There are thousands of tourists here daily. One of the most crowded temples is naturally the one where Tomb Raider was filmed.
The Temples
Each of the temples has its own specificity and interesting details.
At one we saw a carved animal that closely resembles a dinosaur. It’s not known where this image comes from and why they made it. Whether in the 12th century there wasn’t a remaining animal that originated from dinosaurs, to this day they cannot figure out. 
Some of the temples are very destroyed, almost leveled with the ground. A few years ago India began restoration of the temples, together with Cambodian foundations. Many of them are now restored and their former grandeur has been returned.
A trip to Cambodia combines perfectly with Vietnam. And what to visit, see here.
