It is built for backpackers who want the big sights and then a proper island ending. Every night is at a Mad Monkey hostel, so there is always a pool or a beach bar, and somebody to share a tuk tuk with.
Most travellers rush Cambodia. Across the 35,899 Cambodia trips planned with Stippl, a typical stop gets just two nights, so this route gives Angkor and the islands three.
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It does the history first and the beaches last, which is the right order for Cambodia: Tuol Sleng and the Killing Fields are hard days, and you will want the islands after them. Kampot breaks up the drive to the coast, and Koh Sdach is the island almost nobody reaches, which is exactly why it ends the trip.
The route at a glance
5 stops, 13 nights, one Mad Monkey at every stop.
| Stop | Nights | Sleep | How you get there |
|---|---|---|---|
| Siem Reap | 3 | Mad Monkey Siem Reap | Your arrival flight |
| Phnom Penh | 2 | Mad Monkey Phnom Penh | Bus, about 6 hours |
| Kampot | 2 | Mad Monkey Kampot | Minivan, about 3 hours |
| Koh Rong | 3 | Mad Monkey Koh Rong | Minivan to Sihanoukville, then a speedboat |
| Koh Sdach | 3 | Mad Monkey Koh Sdach | Island boat via Sihanoukville, ask the hostel desk |
Best time: November to February, the cool dry season, when the temples are easier in the heat and the sea is calm.
Siem Reap
Siem Reap exists because of Angkor, and three days is the least you want for it. Buy a multi day temple pass so you can split the temples over several early mornings.
Day 1Arrive and visit the museum
Arrive, check in and spend the afternoon at the Angkor National Museum: air conditioned Khmer history that makes the temples make sense, best done before them rather than after.
Day 2Angkor Wat at sunrise
Be at Angkor Wat for sunrise, the largest religious monument on earth. Then carry on to the Bayon at the centre of Angkor Thom, with its 216 stone faces, and Ta Prohm, the temple half swallowed by strangler figs.
Day 3Banteay Srei or the lake
Go further out to Banteay Srei, the finest carving in the whole park, or head to Kampong Phluk, a village of stilt houses on the edge of a lake that quadruples in size every monsoon.
Sleep: Mad Monkey Siem Reap has two pools, something on every night and Pub Street within walking distance. Book a bed at Mad Monkey Siem Reap.
Read more: things to do in Siem Reap
Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh is the capital, and the place where you learn the history that shapes the whole country. Give it at least two nights, and give yourself time after the hardest day.
Getting there: Bus, about 6 hours.
Day 4Royal Palace and the riverside
Visit the Royal Palace, still the King's residence, and the Silver Pagoda, whose floor is five thousand silver tiles. End the day on Sisowath Riverside at the meeting of four rivers, the city's best hour.
Day 5Tuol Sleng and the Killing Fields
This is the hard day. Tuol Sleng is the school the Khmer Rouge turned into a prison, left largely as it was found, and Choeung Ek, the Killing Fields, is fifteen kilometres south. Take the audio guide at both, and keep the evening quiet.
Sleep: Mad Monkey Phnom Penh has a pool and a rooftop bar, and it is the hostel everyone ends up in. Book a bed at Mad Monkey Phnom Penh.
See our Phnom Penh guide for more on what to do there.
Kampot
Kampot is a riverside town for slowing down between the capital and the islands: pepper farms, a river at sunset and Bokor Mountain above it all.
Getting there: Minivan, about 3 hours.
Day 6Down to the river
Arrive from Phnom Penh and spend the evening by the river, which is what Kampot is for.
Day 7Pepper farms and Bokor Mountain
Spend the day on a pepper farm, where Kampot's famous pepper grows, or ride up Bokor Mountain for the view back over the coast.
Sleep: Mad Monkey Kampot is a brand new riverside hostel, opening on 1 November 2026. Book a bed at Mad Monkey Kampot.
Read more: things to do in Kampot
Koh Rong
Koh Rong is where the trail slows to a stop: white sand, warm water and nothing to do but pick a beach.
Getting there: Minivan to Sihanoukville, then a speedboat.
Day 8Speedboat to the island
Take the speedboat from Sihanoukville to Koh Rong. The ferry lands at Kaoh Touch, where the bars are and where the island happens, and Long Set Beach is a twenty minute walk away from the noise.
Day 9Long Set Beach
Spend a full day on Long Set, four kilometres of white sand right outside the hostel. This is the day to do nothing at all.
Day 10Sok San and the west coast
Head down the west coast to Sok San, the longest beach on the island, for a day that feels a long way from anywhere.
Sleep: Mad Monkey Koh Rong is right on Long Set Beach, with its own beach bar. Book a bed at Mad Monkey Koh Rong.
See our Koh Rong guide for more on what to do there.
Koh Sdach
Koh Sdach is the island almost nobody gets to: a small fishing island in a quiet archipelago, and the perfect last stop before you fly home.
Getting there: Island boat via Sihanoukville, ask the hostel desk.
Day 11Boat to Koh Sdach
Getting here takes some planning, so ask the hostel desk on Koh Rong about the boat via Sihanoukville.
Day 12Beach, boat and bar
Spend the day in the water and on the sand, and join whatever is on at the hostel in the evening.
Day 13One more lazy day
Keep the last day completely free. Koh Sdach is the place to forget what day it is.
Sleep: Mad Monkey Koh Sdach is the island's beach hostel, and the evenings happen at its bar. Book a bed at Mad Monkey Koh Sdach.
Getting between stops
| From | To | How |
|---|---|---|
| Siem Reap | Phnom Penh | Bus, about 6 hours |
| Phnom Penh | Kampot | Minivan, about 3 hours |
| Kampot | Koh Rong | Minivan to Sihanoukville, then a speedboat |
| Koh Rong | Koh Sdach | Island boat via Sihanoukville, ask the hostel desk |
Times are a guide. Check the day before you travel, because boat and minivan times change with the season and the weather.
Turn these stops into a route
Pick your favourites and Stippl orders them, adds travel times and builds the day-by-day.
Frequently asked questions about Cambodia
Two weeks is enough for Angkor, Phnom Penh, the south coast and two islands at an easy pace. Give Angkor at least three nights.
Yes. Buy a multi day pass so you can spread the temples over several early mornings instead of one long, hot day.
Koh Sdach takes some planning. Ask the hostel desk on Koh Rong about the boat via Sihanoukville before you go.
Yes. The Royal Palace, Tuol Sleng and the Killing Fields need a full day between them, and the second day lets you see the markets and the riverside at a gentler pace.
Want this route with the nights already filled in? Open it in Stippl, change the nights, add a stop or swap the order, and keep the whole trip in one place. Or build your own Mad Monkey route on our Mad Monkey page.
