12-Day Cultural Cambodia in Depth
Cambodia from north to south — the temples, the colonial towns, the pepper farms and the river
From
£3,195pp
About this tour
Twelve days is enough time to travel the full length of Cambodia — from the temple complex of Angkor in the north, through the French colonial river town of Battambang, south to the riverside capital of Phnom Penh, and finally to Kampot on the south coast: a small town of crumbling French colonial shophouses and the world's finest pepper farms, overlooking the Gulf of Thailand. Cambodia is a country of extraordinary contrasts. The scale and ambition of Angkor Wat — the largest religious monument ever built — exists alongside one of the world's great humanitarian tragedies: the Khmer Rouge period of 1975–79. The people who rebuilt the country from almost nothing are among the warmest, most resilient and most generous individuals you will encounter anywhere in Asia. Oliver leads this tour with twelve years of Cambodia in his bones — the temples, the countryside, the history and the contemporary reality. This is the tour he designed himself, from north to south, to give visitors the complete picture.
Oliver Reed
Cambodia Specialist, 8 years based in Siem Reap
Why this works for travellers over 50
- Oliver's twelve-day narrative arc creates a coherent story of Cambodia rather than a list of sights
- Kampot is one of Southeast Asia's most undiscovered gems — flat, beautiful and almost tourist-free
- Pepper farm visit in Kampot — the world's most celebrated peppercorns grown at your feet
- Private tour means the pace adjusts to you, not to a group timetable
- Two nights in Kampot allow genuine relaxation before departure
- Single supplement waived on October and February departures
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Price per person — based on two travelling together.
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Your journey
Day-by-day itinerary
1Arrive Siem Reap — Welcome Dinner
Siem Reap
restShinta Mani Angkor
Arrive Siem Reap — Welcome Dinner
Siem Reap
Arrive Siem Reap, transfer to hotel. Welcome dinner with Oliver in the old market quarter.
2Angkor Wat — Sunrise & Inner Temple
Siem Reap
moderateShinta Mani Angkor
Angkor Wat — Sunrise & Inner Temple
Siem Reap
Pre-dawn departure for the Angkor Wat sunrise. Full morning inside the temple — bas-relief galleries, inner sanctuary and upper terraces. Afternoon at the hotel. Late afternoon return for the western light.
3Angkor Thom, Ta Prohm & Jungle Temples
Siem Reap
moderateShinta Mani Angkor
Angkor Thom, Ta Prohm & Jungle Temples
Siem Reap
Angkor Thom's Bayon faces, the Elephant Terrace and Baphuon in the morning. Ta Prohm jungle temple in the late afternoon.
4Outer Temples & Tonle Sap Boat
Siem Reap
lightShinta Mani Angkor
Outer Temples & Tonle Sap Boat
Siem Reap
Morning at Banteay Srei and Neak Pean. Afternoon boat trip on the Tonle Sap — floating villages and lake ecology.
5Drive to Battambang — Bamboo Train
Battambang
lightBattambang Resort
Drive to Battambang — Bamboo Train
Battambang
Scenic drive west to Battambang. The bamboo train in the afternoon — 8km of improbable countryside railway. Evening walk along the Sangker riverside promenade.
6Battambang — Colonial Quarter & Phare Circus
Battambang
lightBattambang Resort
Battambang — Colonial Quarter & Phare Circus
Battambang
Morning walk through the French colonial quarter with Oliver — extraordinary architecture almost entirely unvisited by tourists. Afternoon free. Evening Phare Circus — Oliver's essential recommendation.
7Drive to Phnom Penh — Royal Palace
Phnom Penh
lightRaffles Hotel Le Royal Phnom Penh
Drive to Phnom Penh — Royal Palace
Phnom Penh
Drive south to Phnom Penh. Afternoon: Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda with Oliver. Evening by the riverside.
8Phnom Penh — Tuol Sleng & National Museum
Phnom Penh
lightRaffles Hotel Le Royal Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh — Tuol Sleng & National Museum
Phnom Penh
Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum in the morning with Oliver's careful contextualisation. National Museum of Cambodia in the afternoon — superb Khmer sculpture collection. Free evening.
9Phnom Penh — Free Morning & Drive to Kampot
Kampot
restKnai Bang Chatt
Phnom Penh — Free Morning & Drive to Kampot
Kampot
Free morning in Phnom Penh — Central Market, Russian Market or the riverfront. Afternoon 2.5-hour drive south to Kampot on the Gulf coast.
10Kampot — Pepper Farm & River
Kampot
lightKnai Bang Chatt
Kampot — Pepper Farm & River
Kampot
Morning visit to a Kampot pepper farm — the world's most celebrated black pepper, grown on riverside farms where the vines twist up bamboo poles for five metres. A fascinating tour with tasting. Afternoon on the Kampot River by private boat — passing through mangroves and under the old French bridge. Free evening in the colonial town.
11Kampot — Bokor Hill Station & Free Afternoon
Kampot
lightKnai Bang Chatt
Kampot — Bokor Hill Station & Free Afternoon
Kampot
Morning drive up the Bokor National Park road to the abandoned French hill station — a ghost town of art deco casino and church on a plateau above the clouds, with views across the Gulf of Thailand. Return for a free afternoon — the hotel pool, a massage, or simply sitting on the riverside terrace with a Kampot pepper gin.
12Depart — Drive to Phnom Penh Airport
Phnom Penh
rest
Depart — Drive to Phnom Penh Airport
Phnom Penh
A morning drive back to Phnom Penh for afternoon homeward flight. Twelve days across the full length of Cambodia.
Like what you see?
Our specialists can tailor every day to your preferences.
Fitness & mobility
Pacing & accessibility
Moderate — active temple mornings balanced by gentler afternoons and a relaxed final section in Kampot. The overall pace is comfortable for most over-60s travellers.
Walking
Transport
Altitude
Heat / Climate
Accommodation
Your hotels
Shinta Mani Angkor
★★★★★Siem Reap · 4 nights
Outstanding boutique hotel with strong social ethics — a proportion of revenue funds rural Cambodian communities. The pool and restaurant are among the finest in Siem Reap.
- Social impact mission
- Outstanding pool
- Finest restaurant in Siem Reap
- Walking distance to old market
Battambang Resort
★★★★Battambang · 2 nights
Riverside bungalows in a garden setting on the Sangker River — the most pleasant accommodation in Battambang.
- Riverside garden
- Wooden bungalows
- Pool
- Near colonial quarter
Raffles Hotel Le Royal Phnom Penh
★★★★★Central Phnom Penh · 3 nights
A 1929 colonial landmark of great historical significance — the finest hotel in Phnom Penh.
- 1929 historic hotel
- Garden pool
- Central location
- Femme Fatale bar
Knai Bang Chatt
★★★★★Kampot Riverside · 3 nights
A beautifully converted cluster of 1920s Art Deco villas on the Kampot River — the finest accommodation in southern Cambodia and one of the most beautiful small hotels in the country. Bougainvillea-draped terraces over the water, a pool, kayaks and an extraordinary bar.
- 1920s Art Deco villas on the river
- Private pool
- Kayaks available
- The finest sundowner terrace in Cambodia
Enhance your trip
Kep seafood crab market morning (near Kampot)
+£From £35 pp
Cambodian cooking class, Siem Reap
+£From £45 pp
Mekong sunset cruise, Phnom Penh
+£From £35 pp
Pricing
Holiday pricing
All prices are per person, based on two people sharing. We arrange departures throughout the year to suit your preferred dates.
Starting from
£3,195
per person · 2 sharing
Solo traveller supplement: +£695 pp
Travelling solo?
Single supplement: +£695 pp · Single supplement waived on October and February departures.
Full details
What’s included & not included
Included in your price
- International flights from the UK (return)
- All private road transfers throughout Cambodia
- 11 nights accommodation in selected hotels
- Oliver Reed as dedicated specialist guide throughout
- All meals as specified (11 breakfasts, 6 lunches, 2 dinners)
- Three Angkor temple complex mornings
- Bamboo train, Battambang
- Phare Circus performance, Battambang
- Royal Palace, Tuol Sleng and National Museum, Phnom Penh
- Kampot pepper farm tour
- Kampot River mangrove boat trip
- Bokor Hill Station visit
- Tonle Sap floating village boat trip
- All entrance fees
- ATOL protection on all monies paid
- 24/7 emergency support line
Not included
- Travel insurance (required)
- Cambodia e-visa (approx. £30)
- Personal spending, souvenirs and gratuities
- Alcoholic drinks unless specified
Your specialist
Who will plan your holiday
Oliver Reed
Oliver designed this 12-day tour with a specific intention: to show Cambodia as a complete country rather than a single landmark. The addition of Kampot — which he describes as "the most beautiful town in Cambodia that nobody has heard of" — was his insistence. His knowledge of the Kampot pepper industry, the Bokor Hill Station history and the Kampot River ecology is as deep as his knowledge of Angkor, which is saying a great deal.
Tailor-made
Like this tour but want it adapted?
Extra nights, alternative hotels, private transfers — our specialists will build your perfect itinerary from scratch.
What our guests say
Guest reviews
Kampot was the discovery of our travelling lives
“We chose the 12-day tour specifically to see Kampot, which we had read about in an obscure travel magazine. Knai Bang Chatt is the most beautiful small hotel we have ever stayed in — sitting on its terrace over the river with a gin and tonic made with Kampot pepper is a memory that will last for the rest of our lives. Oliver's knowledge of Cambodia, from Angkor to the Bokor ghost town to the pepper farm, is extraordinary. Unreservedly recommended.”
Nicholas & Claire Fairbanks
Gloucestershire · 2025-02-03
Cambodia from top to bottom — complete and magnificent
“The twelve-day tour gives Cambodia the space it deserves. Oliver is not a guide who rushes — he adds the context that transforms sightseeing into understanding. The Tuol Sleng visit was the most emotionally demanding thing I have done on a holiday and also the most important. The final three days in Kampot were pure joy. I cannot recommend this tour highly enough.”
Barbara Morrison
London · 2025-01-10
The complete Cambodia experience
“We had done the 8-day Angkor tour two years ago and came back for more. This tour added everything we had missed — Battambang's extraordinary bamboo train, the Kampot pepper farms and that magical hotel on the river. Oliver remembered us from our first tour and tailored the Angkor section to cover temples we had not previously visited. This is a company and a guide who genuinely care about their guests.”
James & Susan Porter
Edinburgh · 2024-11-24
Before you go
Practical information
Visa requirements
Currency
US Dollars throughout. ATMs in Siem Reap, Phnom Penh and Kampot town.
Tipping
Electricity
Health & vaccinations
Good hospitals in Siem Reap and Phnom Penh. Kampot has limited facilities — medical evacuation to Phnom Penh. Insurance essential.
Flights
Local transport
Travel with like-minded people
Join a Small Group Departure
Prefer to travel with a small group of fellow over-50s rather than as a couple or solo? Our fixed-departure group tours put you alongside eight to twelve like-minded travellers with a dedicated tour manager for the entire journey.
- Maximum 12 travellers — intimate by design
- Dedicated tour manager throughout
- Social dinners and shared discoveries
- Single supplement waived on selected departures
- Like-minded over-50s travellers
- No single friends needed — just arrive and enjoy
Register Your Interest
Tell us your preferred dates and travel companions — we’ll match you with the right departure and send full details.
Our team will respond within 1 working day.
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Common questions
Frequently asked questions
What makes Kampot different from the rest of Cambodia?
Kampot is a riverside colonial town on the Gulf of Thailand coast — largely undiscovered by international tourism and utterly charming. The French shophouses are in various states of beautiful decay. The riverside promenade has excellent cafes and restaurants. The surrounding area produces the world's most celebrated black pepper. And the Bokor Hill Station above the town — an abandoned 1920s French resort on a mountain plateau — is one of Cambodia's most atmospheric places. Oliver describes it as his favourite place in the country.
What does the Kampot pepper farm visit involve?
You visit a working pepper farm on the banks of the Kampot River — the specific terroir that makes Kampot pepper distinctive is the combination of silty riverbank soil and the Gulf of Thailand microclimate. The farm guide explains the growing cycle, you see vines at various stages of maturity and the drying process, and you taste red, black, white and green peppercorns at different stages of processing. Oliver says the red peppercorns — picked ripe and dried — are the most complex taste experience he has had.
Is the Bokor Hill Station accessible for limited mobility?
The road to Bokor is paved all the way to the summit. The buildings are accessed by short walking across flat ground. The hill station itself requires no significant physical exertion. The mist can make it cold and atmospheric in equal measure.
How do we get from Phnom Penh to Kampot?
A 2.5-hour drive on the modern national highway — one of Cambodia's better roads. The drive passes through rice paddies and palm groves and Oliver narrates the rural landscape along the way. The route passes through Takeo province, an ancient Funan civilisation site that Oliver explains en route.
Is Knai Bang Chatt suitable for guests with mobility limitations?
The hotel is spread across several 1920s villas connected by garden paths — there are a few steps between levels, but all main facilities (pool, restaurant, river terrace, rooms) are accessible with minimal steps. The river terrace itself is flat and accessible. Oliver requests ground-floor accommodation for guests with mobility needs.
Is there a kep add-on from Kampot?
Yes — Kep is a small seaside town 25km from Kampot, famous for its crab market where vendors sell freshly cooked Kampot pepper crab from wooden shacks over the water. We can add a morning visit to Kep on Day 10 or 11 — a short drive and an excellent seafood lunch. Very popular with our guests. Please request at booking.
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