Cambodia & Thailand Overland - Absolute Asia Tours

On arrival in Cambodia, you'll be met by your private guide, who will accompany you to your hotel.

Begin your exploration of Angkor Wat, and the complex of ruined temples and palaces around it. You’ll be driven between them, so you can fit quite a few in (if you want to), and our guides know when to see the ruins at uncrowded times. If you wish, start the day with the magical (but popular!) sunrise over Angkor Wat, and let your guide know what kind of pace you prefer, whether you want to fill your day with archaeology, or spend some of it on Tonlé Sap lake, or even back at your hotel pool.

Morning transfer to the Tonle Sap Lake where you board a private boat, visiting a floating fishing village and a flooded forest. If water levels are high enough you can kayak amongst the branches and paddle out over the lake to enjoy the scenery, keeping an eye open for its diverse birdlife. Much of Cambodian rural life takes place on rivers and lakes, and you can only truly comprehend what this lifestyle is like by taking to the water yourself. Back on dry land, transfer back to Siem Reap where the remainder of your day is at leisure.

Explore rural villages, and learn about the daily lives of the local people. You'll be a world away from Siem Reap - it's a perfect opportunity to get ‘off the beaten track’ and gain a better understanding of Cambodian rural life, along with insight into traditional Khmer culture; something few visitors are lucky enough to experience. You'll explore a local market and purchase supplies for your lunch, and travel by an (almost!) pollution-free ox and cart. Still widely used throughout Cambodia, the cart allows you to travel gently along the narrow sandy village roads. Spend time at the home of a local family, where there will be plenty of time to relax and chat (with your guide acting as interpreter) as they prepare lunch using your market produce. You can help if you wish; this is a fantastic opportunity to further your understanding of typical Khmer cuisine. You meal is likely to be very different from those offered in Siem Reap's more westerner-oriented restaurants! Having enjoyed your lunch, there is time to explore the village before returning to Siem Reap.

Depart by car for Phnom Penh, with stops to stretch your legs and enjoy a coffee in Kampong Thom and at Skun Village, famous for its deep-fried tarantulas! At 5pm, climb aboard a tuk-tuk for a food-focused tour of the city. Stop for a cocktail at a lively bar on Sisowath Quay and watch the sun set over the river, before heading down to the river, where roadside stalls sell a variety of edible bugs. Your guide will be on hand to decipher the surprisingly tasty offerings! Continue by tuk-tuk to the Russian Market, which draws local diners with typical Khmer food such as banh cheo, chicken rice porridge and beef skewers. Choose what you fancy, pull up a plastic stool alongside the locals, and soak up the atmosphere. Your final food stop for the evening will be freshly BBQ’d seafood, before you return to your hotel, again by tuk-tuk, and probably ready to loosen your waistband...

Your guide will escort you around the Royal Palace complex, with its lavish ceremonial buildings. You’ll also have the option to visit the National Museum, which is full of intriguing artefacts from several millennia of Cambodian culture. Lunch will be at ‘Friends’, a restaurant which trains ex-street children and other vulnerable groups in the hospitality trade. The food also happens to be excellent! The afternoon will be a far more sombre experience: Tuol Sleng Museum of Genocidal Crimes and the Cheung Ek ‘killing fields’ will open your eyes to the true brutality of the Pol Pot regime. There’s no sugar-coating this deeply disturbing insight into human capacity for cruelty - but it’s essential to understanding Cambodia and its people today. Your guide will have almost certainly lost loved ones to the regime, and will answer your questions as you try to comprehend what you’ve learnt.

Journey by car and boat to your Tatai River resort, arriving in time for a sunset drink!

Explore your scenic surrounds by boat or on foot, or simply kick back and relax.

Morning transfer by boat to Tatai Bridge and continue by road to the Thai border at Cham Yeam. Having cleared border formalities and entered Thailand, continue by car to Trat where you will board the ferry to Koh Chang. On arrival, transfer to your hotel and the remainder of your day will be at leisure to kick back and relax.

Your days will be at leisure to relax and dig your toes in the sand.

Take the ferry back to Trat and continue directly to Bangkok. Your day will be at leisure until late afternoon, when your guide will meet you with a tuk-tuk for a tour of the city’s finest streetfood. Zigzag through the city, stopping off to savour local dishes from different parts of Thailand, fresh from Bangkok’s street stalls. Sput-sput past the Grand Palace Temples and stop to admire Wat Pho, all beautifully lit up at night, while your snacks go down before a drink at one of our favourite hidden bars, before more food, finishing by gorging on one of the best Pad Thais you’ll ever eat! With your appetite fully satisfied (and waistbands at bursting point!), you’ll be returned to your hotel.

It's time to plunge into Bangkok's bustle - the city is kept in perpetual motion by a buzzing public network whose modes of transport span from ancient to ultramodern. You'll step straight into the flow today on a tour of highlights, some well known, others further off the track. Begin your journey in one of the city's famous tuk-tuks, before switching to a public ‘bus boat’ through the city’s canals. Disembark to explore the historic house of Jim Thompson, a mysterious American silk merchant, before catching the ‘sky train’ (or jumping in a taxi) to your hotel, where the rest of your day will be at leisure.

Transfer to the airport in time for your onward flight.