Self-Launched Premium Cambodia: Phnom Penh to Siem Reap

Land at Phnom Penh International Airport and take a metered tuk-tuk or the official airport taxi rank into the city (~£5–7, 30–45 min; avoid unmarked drivers inside the terminal). Check into a guesthouse or budget hotel around Street 240 / the riverside. Spend the late afternoon walking the French colonial quarter – the Post Office, Raffles Le Royal and Wat Phnom (entry ~£1.60). Book your dinner at Malis Restaurant (Norodom Blvd branch) a day ahead – it's the same welcome-dinner venue as the tour, serving refined Khmer cuisine; a main plus rice and a beer comes to roughly £12–15 solo. Optional: a cocktail at Le Moon rooftop at sunset for river views.

🚌Airport tuk-tuk ~£5–7; everything else walkable

🛏Guesthouse or budget hotel, riverside/Street 240 (private room ~£15–20)

• →Riverside & French colonial architecture walk
• →Wat Phnom (optional, ~£1.60)
• →Dinner at Malis Restaurant (self-booked)

Start early at Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (S-21) when it opens at 8am – entry is ~£4 and the audio guide (~£2.40) is genuinely worth it. Hire a tuk-tuk for the day (~£12–15) to run you out to the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek, 17km south (~£2.40 entry, also with audio guide). Return to the city for a late lunch at Friends the Restaurant (social enterprise training street youth – mains ~£4–6). In the afternoon visit the Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda (~£8, closes 5pm, shoulders and knees covered) and, if time allows, the National Museum (~£8). Evening free – Street 308 and Bassac Lane are good for cheap eats and craft beer.

🚌Full-day tuk-tuk hire ~£12–15

🛏Guesthouse or budget hotel, Phnom Penh (private room ~£15–20)

• →Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (~£4 + audio)
• →Choeung Ek Killing Fields (~£2.40 + audio)
• →Royal Palace & Silver Pagoda (~£8)
• →Friends the Restaurant lunch

Book a Giant Ibis (or Vireak Buntham) express bus from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap – ~£12–14, roughly 6 hours with a stop. To recreate the tour's village stops, ask your guesthouse to arrange a driver for the first leg to Skun (the 'spider market', 75km north on National Route 6, ~£20 for the car) where you can try the fried tarantulas and see the market. From Skun, continue by shared taxi or local bus to Kampong Cham (~£3–4), and detour by moto-taxi (~£2 each way) to Santuk Silk Farm near Santuk district – entry is by donation/tour fee of ~£2–3 and the weavers serve a simple rustic lunch for ~£3. Continue by local bus or shared taxi from Kampong Cham to Siem Reap (~£6–8, 3.5–4 hrs). Check in near Wat Bo or the Old Market. In the evening, book tickets for the Angkor Village Apsara Theatre Khmer dance dinner show (~£20–25 direct) — the same venue as the tour.

🚌Private car to Skun ~£20; shared taxi/bus Kampong Cham ~£3–4; local bus to Siem Reap ~£6–8

🛏Guesthouse or budget hotel, Siem Reap Old Market/Wat Bo area (private room ~£12–18)

• →Skun village market stop
• →Santuk Silk Farm weaving tour & lunch
• →Khmer traditional dance dinner at Angkor Village Apsara Theatre

Buy the 3-day Angkor pass (~£48/$62) at the Angkor Enterprise ticket office the evening before (after 5pm you can buy for the next day and get a free sunset entry). Hire a tuk-tuk driver for the day (~£15–18) and start at 5am if you want sunrise over Angkor Wat – it's crowded but worth doing once. Spend the morning inside Angkor Wat with a licensed guide; a shared or private guide booked through GetYourGuide or on arrival at the site runs ~£20–30 for a half-day (you can share the cost with other travellers at your guesthouse). Continue to Angkor Thom: Bayon's face towers, the Terrace of the Elephants and Baphuon. Lunch at Sala Bai Hotel School restaurant (~£5–6 set menu) – the hospitality training school the tour uses. In the afternoon, visit a working monastery such as Wat Athvea for a monk chat and the sacred water blessing with red wristband (free, small donation ~£2 appreciated).

🚌Full-day tuk-tuk ~£15–18

🛏Guesthouse or budget hotel, Siem Reap (private room ~£12–18)

• →Sunrise at Angkor Wat
• →Angkor Wat with local guide
• →Angkor Thom & Bayon
• →Lunch at Sala Bai Hotel School
• →Monk blessing ceremony at a working wat

Use the Angkor pass again and head out early to Ta Prohm (the 'Tomb Raider' temple swallowed by tree roots) before the coach groups arrive, then continue 25km northeast to Banteay Srei, the pink sandstone temple with the finest carvings in Angkor – a tuk-tuk for this loop costs ~£20–25 for the day. On the way back, stop at Banteay Samré or the small landmine museum (~£4). Skip the tour's private rice-field dinner and instead book a Khmer cooking class with a village family (Cambodian Village Cooking Class or similar, ~£18–22 including market tour and dinner you cook yourself), or arrange a home-cooked meal at a community restaurant near Chong Kneas. Evening free for the Night Market and a £1.50 draft beer on Pub Street.

🚌Tuk-tuk day hire to Banteay Srei ~£20–25

🛏Guesthouse or budget hotel, Siem Reap (private room ~£12–18)

• →Ta Prohm temple
• →Banteay Srei temple
• →Landmine Museum (optional, ~£4)
• →Village cooking class / countryside dinner (~£18–22)

Last chance to use your Angkor pass – either head back for sunrise at Srah Srang or spend a relaxed morning at the Old Market, the Artisans Angkor workshop (free entry, silk and stone carving) and a coffee on Wat Bo Road. Check out by midday. Tuk-tuk to Siem Reap International Airport ~£5–7 (20 min), or book a bus onward to Battambang (~£4, 3 hrs) or Bangkok (~£25 overnight) if you're extending the trip. If you're flying home from Phnom Penh instead, a Giant Ibis bus back is ~£12–14 and takes about 6 hours.

🚌Tuk-tuk to airport ~£5–7

🛏None (departure day)

• →Sunrise at Srah Srang (pass included)
• →Artisans Angkor workshop (free)
• →Old Market shopping