Discover the Best of Siem Reap: 5 Must-Do Cultural Activities

This is a free guide to fun and unique activities which will give you insight into Khmer life and culture in Siem Reap. The best part? You’ll love the unique activities provided by these social enterprises, and they’re helping improve peoples’ lives throughout Cambodia.

Step into Siem Reap, Cambodia, a city that will captivate you with its rich culture, ancient history, and vibrant community. While a visit to the awe-inspiring Angkor Wat and other historic sites in Angkor Park is a must, Siem Reap offers much more beyond its world-renowned temples.

As I travelled through Southeast Asia with my parents, Siem Reap stood out as a top highlight. The city's charming small-town feel, friendly locals, fun nightlife, and picturesque accommodations make it an unforgettable destination.

But what truly sets Siem Reap apart is its people who are dedicated to improving their community and country through various business and non-profit initiatives. By engaging in activities that support their endeavours, you can have a fun and meaningful travel experience while also making a positive impact.

In this article, I'll introduce you to five feel-good activities including wildlife, art, and food, that not only offer memorable adventures but also benefit the local community. Let’s uncover some of the city's hidden gems and celebrate its spirit of resilience and generosity!

1. Kulen Elephant Forest

Animal lovers, get ready for an unforgettable experience with retired elephants in the Kulen Elephant Forest. These majestic creatures were once used to carry tourists at Angkor Wat, but since elephant rides are no longer allowed there, they are living their best lives in this sanctuary.

At Kulen Elephant Forest, retired elephants are living their best lives and you can join them for a walk in the woods!

When you book a morning or afternoon at Kulen Elephant Forest, you get the opportunity to spend a few hours in the company of friendly adult female elephants. During your visit, you'll prepare a snack for them, feed them, and take a leisurely walk with them through the forest. As the elephants cool off in a nearby lake, you can enjoy a refreshing snack or lunch of your own before helping to hose down the elephants.

Compared to other "elephant sanctuaries" that exploit these magnificent animals for profit, I felt comfortable with the ethical treatment of the elephants at Kulen Forest. The sanctuary not only takes great care of its elephants but also uses its profits to support elephant conservation, local primary schools, and road maintenance.

On your way to and from the sanctuary, you'll have the opportunity to take in beautiful countryside landscapes with traditional stilt houses, farms, and children biking or walking to and from school. This excursion promises to be a memorable and heartwarming experience for all animal lovers.

COST: $80 USD / $110 CAD per person

LOGISTICS:

• Book your ticket in advance from their website.

• You can choose a morning (8 AM - 2 PM) or afternoon (12 PM - 6 PM) session. The morning session includes lunch while the afternoon session includes a snack.

• They provide comfortable van transportation to the forest nearly one hour's drive from their office in central Siem Reap.

2. Artisans Angkor

Here’s a stop for anyone who appreciates handiwork or art. The craftsmanship you’ll see at Artisans Angkor is truly wonderful! A free guide will walk you through several workshops where you’ll learn about traditional weaving, carving and painting while watching artists at work.

All of the artisans you see working and learning here are receiving free or subsidized training, allowing them to develop their potential and earn a good income to support their families and communities. Their specialties include fine silks, soapstone carving and lacquer artwork. They do a lot of commissioned work for hotels, for example, and some of their carvings can be found at the Siem Reap Airport.

An artisan carves a Budhha statue out of stone at Angkor Artisans, a social enterprise offering training in carving, weaving, painting and more in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

21.4% of revenues at Artisans Angkor contribute to the Cambodian economy (including taxes) while 42.1% go towards social contributions, like fair wages and benefits, education and costs of community-based workshops in rural areas. Meanwhile, 36.5% go towards operational expenses, including, raw materials and running shops. They have a shop in both Siem Reap and Phnom Penh, as well as in the respective airport of each city.

Excursions and workshops

If you fancy an excursion with them, you can register for a free visit to Angkor Silk Farms. Their shuttles leave daily at 9:30 AM and 1:30 PM and you get about two hours at the silk farm.

If you want to get hands-on, you can book a “Craft-It-Yourself” workshop with them for $50 USD. Choose from carving sandstone, soapstone or wood, making jewelry, painting silks, or even weaving a scarf on a traditional wooden loom.

Of course, there’s a shop at the end where you can buy their handmade goods, including fine silk clothing, accessories, artwork and more. The quality of the items here is undisputed, so if you’re looking to purchase high-quality gifts or souvenirs, this is the place to do it.

COST: Free entry. Opportunity to buy high-quality handmade items from their shop.

LOGISTICS:

• It’s open daily from 8 AM - 5 PM.

• You can get to Artisans Angkor easily from central Siem Reap, approximately 5 minutes by tuk-tuk or 15-20 minutes walking.

3. Phare Circus

Phare Circus is a highly recommended circus show with high-flying acrobatics and live music. It’s rated 4.8 stars on Google reviews! As they say themselves: “Phare is more than just a circus”. That’s because they are using performing arts to change the lives of young Cambodians for the better.

The performers and artists you’ll see at Phare Circus are from Phare Ponleu Selpark’s vocational training centre in Battambang, Cambodia. They have a heartwarming backstory:

“The association was formed in 1994 by 9 young men coming home from a refugee camp after the Khmer Rouge regime. They were greatly helped during that time by an art teacher using drawing classes as therapy and wanted to share this new skill among the poor, socially deprived and troubled youngsters in Battambang.

They founded an art school and public school followed to offer free education. A music school and theatre school were next and finally, for the kids who wanted more, the circus school. Today more than 1,200 pupils attend the public school daily and 500 attend the alternative schools.”

- Phare Circus website

The young performers you’ll see at Phare Circus are earning decent wages while building self-assurance and wonderful skill sets that allow them to break the cycle of poverty.

You can book your open-seat ticket ($18 USD) for Phare Circus here:

COST: Tickets range from $18-63 USD / $25-88 CAD each

LOGISTICS:

• Show time is 8-9 PM every night, with pre-show entertainment, street food, drinks and shopping from as early as 5:30 PM outside the centrally located venue.

• You can book your open-seat ticket ($18 USD) in advance via GetYourGuide.

• Premium tickets or package tickets can only be booked on the Phare Circus website.

• Stay after the show to take photos and chat with performers.

4. APOPO

When visiting Cambodia, you are confronted with the realities of war, genocide and destruction that this country has endured in very recent history. At the same time, you are confronted with some of the most kindness, warmth and resilience you can imagine. This brings me to the heroic rats at APOPO…

Sophea, a star rat at APOPO, demonstrates how she can safely detect landmines, helping protect kids, farmers and everyone in Cambodia. This is a unique experience to check out!

Cambodia is one of the countries most impacted by landmines and the consequences of this are devastating, particularly with regard to landmine accidents today. In fact, “with over 40,000 amputees, Cambodia has the highest ratio of mine amputees per capita in the world” (APOPO / Landmine Monitor).

As you can imagine, clearing mines is challenging and dangerous work. APOPO has found a way to make it more efficient and safe, using the incredible sense of smell of clever African-born rats (called HeroRATS) to scan for mines. The rats are too light to trigger the landmines, meaning it’s safe for them. Rest assured that they take very good care of all their animals.

During a guided tour of APOPO, you’ll learn about the history and conflict leading to the landmine problem today in Cambodia, different types of landmines still found across the country, and the impressive training they do with rats and dogs to become HeroRATS and HeroDOGS who save lives through mine clearing.

Of course, you’ll also have the chance to see a HeroRAT in action during a demonstration. If you’re up for it, you can pet or hold one of their huge African rats! Don’t worry, they are super clean, cute and well-behaved. After your tour, you can check out their gift shop, which has some very cool made-in-Cambodia merchandise!

Prepare for a unique experience when visiting APOPO. This organization is doing important work around the world, including in Cambodia, where they are clearing landmines with the help of rats!

COST: $5 USD / $7 CAD per person

LOGISTICS:

• Tours are offered daily from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM.

• APOPO’s headquarters is located near Angkor Wat, so you can consider scheduling a visit after sunrise at Angkor Wat.

• APOPO suggests booking in advance by emailing or calling them.

P.S. In addition to APOPO, you can learn more about landmines and mine clearing at the Cambodia Landmine Museum, which helps educate people across Cambodia to prevent landmine accidents.

5. Cafes

Siem Reap has many cute cafes, so it’s a bonus when you find cafes that have a great ambiance and are socially responsible. We visited two great socially-minded cafes: The Little Red Fox Espresso & Sister Srey Cafe.

Breakfast at The Little Red Fox Espresso Cafe is so delicious! We love that the restaurant is committed to improving their community, starting with fair benefits and wages for their staff.

The Little Red Fox had us coming back for more! Their bowls are packed with nutritious and fresh foods, and I swear they taste like heaven. Their coffee, breakfast sandwiches and pancakes were also excellent. Best of all, they have been committed to sustainability and social responsibility since they opened several years ago. Employees receive fair wages and benefits, including healthcare, and farmers also receive fair payment. Their prices are slightly higher to make this possible, but pricing is still very fair for foreigners. Frankly, it’s what we should be paying to ensure people are able to thrive and support their families.

Not far away you’ll find a cute and quirky cafe called Sister Srey. They use fairy tale books as menus and offer delicious meals including a fun selection of beverages like milkshakes and specialty sodas. They support their staff in pursuing post-secondary education and have many environmental initiatives. In fact, Sister Srey is a social enterprise, meaning they reinvest their profits into the community.

Fill your belly or get your caffeine fix at one of these cafes while supporting the Siem Reap community!

COST: Varies depending on what you order.

LOGISTICS:

• Both cafes are located in central Siem Reap, within walking distance of the river, shops and other sites.

• View the menu for The Little Red Fox here.

• View the menu for Sister Srey here.

Shout out to my friends at Two Can Travel for these great cafe recommendations!

Siem Reap is dotted with small businesses committed to making big changes for their community. Sister Srey Cafe is a great example of a social enterprise restaurant in the city.

Siem Reap is not only a stunning travel destination but also a place where social businesses are making a positive impact on the local community. By supporting these businesses, you can engage with the local culture, learn about Khmer traditions and history, and contribute to sustainable tourism.

Choosing experiences like these helps provide jobs and income for local people, empowering them to build a better future. So, explore Siem Reap with an open mind and heart, and be a part of the positive change that social businesses are bringing to this wonderful city.

Did I miss something? Have questions about visiting Siem Reap? Know of a great socially-minded business or social enterprise that deserves to be featured? Contact me to let me know!

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