Our favorite Cambodia tours and excursions

Get an insider’s perspective on daily life in Cambodia with our hand-picked, hands-on experiences, each one designed to get you beneath the surface of the local culture. 

Elephants in Mondulkiri

Walking with elephants in Mondulkiri

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.

Looking out over the Kampot Pepper Farm

La Plantation pepper farm

Whether you’re a seasoned connoisseur or simply spice curious, you can’t possibly leave Cambodia without a taste of Kampot pepper. 

Practically revered in the culinary world, this musky, eucalyptus-noted peppercorn is widely considered the best of the best – and La Plantation is our favorite place to try it. First, tour the farm, smell and taste the different varieties, and learn to cook some Khmer dishes where pepper is the star of the show. Then check out the shop – stuffed with everything from black to pink and salted pepper, and even (wildly popular) pepper-infused rum. Be warned: you may need another suitcase.

Aerial view of kayakers in Botum Sakor National Park

Wildlife hikes & kayaking in Botum Sakor National Park

Cardamom Camp isn’t just an extraordinary glamping experience in the heart of an incredibly beautiful jungle. Channeling all their profits into protecting their little slice of rainforest from illegal logging and poaching, this is one of the most determined and impressive conservation efforts we've seen anywhere. 

Join the rangers to check camera traps, catalog flora, and seek out and record animal trails – then take it all in from a different perspective as you kayak on the river between rolling banks of jungle as far as the eye can see. With a plush double bed and a hot shower waiting for you in your luxurious safari tent, Cardamom Camp is something else.

Floating villages of Tonle Sap

Kayaking on Tonlé Sap Lake

If exploring Tonlé Sap’s sunken fields and stilt villages by longtail boat is like taking a bus, we like to think of kayaking as the waterborne equivalent of a leisurely stroll.

Under your own steam – and without the annoying buzz of an outboard motor – you’re free to slow it down, explore, and perhaps spot things you’d never have noticed otherwise. We also find it’s the best way to interact with locals, as you can stop to chat at your leisure or hop off for lunch at a floating café. For us there’s no question: this is the best way to see Tonlé Sap.

Dinner cruise on the Mekong

Cruising on the Lower Mekong

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 traveling 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.

Phnom Penh City Courthouse

The backstreets of Phnom Penh

It's easy to beeline from landmark to landmark, but the tours we really love dove 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.