Verborgene Dynastien

[die Tourbeschreibung ist momentan nur auf Englisch verfügbar]

Day 1:
Phnom Penh. Our first day is a get together day, designed for you to meet all the other tour guests who will have come from different destinations around the world. Phnom Penh is Cambodia’s capital city with a population of just over half a million people and your tour leader will take this opportunity to describe your stay in Cambodia.

The pre departure meeting will be held at 6pm in the Joining Hotel - please meet at reception.

After the meeting you are free at leisure. You may like to go to the ‘Correspondents’ Club at Sisiwath Quay, where you can choose to dine on the third floor with views of the Tonle Sap River.

Day 2:
Phnom Penh. The morning is reserved for a visit to the Tuol Sleng Museum followed by the Choeung Ek - known throughout the world as the Killing Fields. Most people have some idea of Cambodia’s unhappy history but this is where it really hits home. The museum used to be the Tuol Svay Prey High School but under the dictator Pol Pot it was turned into a hideous place of detention and torture. It is now a silent testament to the horrors that Cambodians suffered not so long ago. From the museum we go the Choeung Ek where 17,000 people were taken from the detention centre and slain. The mass graves were opened in 1980 and 8,000 skulls are now arranged and visible behind glass in the Memorial Stupa. Some graves have been left opened.

We return to Phnom Penh for a tour starting with the Royal Palace. This was built in 1813. You will see the breathtaking Silver Pagoda, which has a floor, covered with 5,000 silver tiles and is approached up an Italian marble staircase. Inside the pagoda is the Emerald Buddha and a Buddha made of gold covered in thousands of diamonds. Then it’s on to the Independence Monument, which was put, up in 1958 and now also serves as a war memorial. We finish our sightseeing at the Wat Phom a temple on top of a tree-covered 27metre high knoll. (B)

Day 3:
Siem Reap (Angkor Wat). Today is an early start, as we take a Private Vehicle from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap. After checking in to our hotel we set off for our first sight of the Temples of Angkor. The highlight of this initial visit is to climb the temple of Phnom Bakeng and watch the sun set.

Then it’s back to Siem Reap - a lively city with plenty of restaurants to choose from and afterwards you can try out the nightlife in the bars and clubs. (B)

Days 4-5:
Angkor Wat Complex. The following day we get up to see the spectacular sunrise. There is transport laid on for you before breakfast. Then the rest of today is temple day. After breakfast a local guide gives us a tour of the temples. Known as the Eighth Wonder of the World, the temples of Angkor was the imperial centre of Cambodia from the 9th to the 14th centuries at the high point of the ancient Khmer empire. The buildings are set in acres of jungle land and, after Phnom Penh became Cambodia’s capital, sank into oblivion for a number of centuries. Other sights you will see include Angkor Thom, a fortified city, the Bayon, a mysterious place decorated with 200 smiling faces and other astonishing buildings and ceremonial terraces. With 100 temples and buildings to see at Angkor you have today for a return trip to this magical place. Things to look out for are Bakong, which has an active Buddhist monastery, and the Terrace of the Elephants.

Generally the Temple visit will finish by lunchtime on Day 5, and the remainder of the day is free for you to explore further at your lesiure, or maybe for some shopping. (2B)

Day 6:
Siem Reap. This tour will finish after breakfast. (B)