Our favourite Cambodia tours and excursions

“You start with crickets and a beer.” That’s Angelina Jolie’s advice on Cambodian street food — but don’t worry, it’s not all about deep-fried tarantulas. 

Travel by tuk-tuk on a night-time tour of Phnom Penh and you’ll soon find out: Khmer cuisine all about rich, coconutty amoks, fish so fresh it’s almost flapping, pungent fermented sauces, fragrant cardamom and — of course — the spicy, eucalyptus zing of Kampot pepper. Accompanying your culinary introduction to the capital will be a range of freshly prepared exotic cocktails, and plenty of photo opportunities at some of the city’s most impressive landmarks lit up against the night sky.

It's easy to beeline from landmark to landmark, but the tours we really love dive into the life that goes on in between. 

That’s why, on this tour, you're as likely to find yourself glimpsing into local shops and businesses as hearing about the days of colonialism at the Royal Palace — and you’ll spend more time mingling with the locals at riverside parks or back-alley temples than admiring monuments. Phnom Penh’s authenticity and simple, unguarded friendliness make it one of the most rewarding places in Southeast Asia to tap into the rhythms of city life, and this tour is a brilliant way to start your trip.

It’s often bemoaned that Phnom Penh is no longer the “pearl” it was in the 1920s — but since when did beautiful equate to interesting anyway? 

Whether it’s 1950s buildings that blend traditional construction with modern materials or colonial-era buildings repurposed by the Khmer Rouge, the messy, unpredictable (and yes, sometimes ugly) architecture of modern Phnom Penh has some fascinating stories to tell. After lunch in the 19th-century headquarters of Messageries Fluviales de Cochinchine (a colonial shipping company), trishaw your way through the French Quarter to conclude with a cruise on the Mekong, where traditional pagodas jostle with contemporary architecture along the riverside.

Gargantuan and yet surprisingly sensitive, an elephant can crack a peanut shell without breaking the seed and react to the touch of a feather on their leathery hides. 

The Mondulkiri Project rescues these highly intelligent animals from exploitation in logging and tourism,and provides them with a safe and happy retirement while educating the local community on elephant welfare. One thing you definitely won’t be doing is riding them – which is good. You can appreciate something without trying to ride it. You will be able to walk with them through the forest: a profoundly humbling experience.

From its source in the Tibetan Plateau to its delta in Vietnam, the Mekong has many different personalities.

In Cambodia, its wide, deep and slow waters make for the perfect cruising conditions, and it’s a fantastic way to see the palm-fringed paddy fields of the countryside if you’re not into trekking or cycling. By boat, you can visit little villages, remote temples, community farms and local workshops that are difficult to access by road — all while travelling in comfort and style. The Mekong also winds through Phnom Penh, which makes a great stop of modern history buffs, and in high water seasons you can make a side trip to the stilt villages of Tonlé Sap Lake.