Happy Pchum Ben Day Festival

🌿 Kampong Khleang Nature Tourism Community
Location: Kampong Khleang Village, Kampong Khleang Commune, Sout Nikom District, Siem Reap Province, Cambodia about 52 km southeast of Siem Reap city and Sokchea Angkor Hotel.

Established in 2016, the community was formed in collaboration with local authorities and NGOs to support local livelihoods by developing sustainable ecotourism and promoting environmental conservation.

🌟 What You Can Experience
🛶 Canoe & Boat Tours
Ride canoes or wooden boats through floating villages, seasonally flooded forests, and the edge of the Tonlé Sap Lake.
Witness the daily life of fishing communities and their adaptation to water-based living.
🍲 Community Meals & Homestays
Enjoy traditional Khmer meals made from local ingredients (like sticky rice, palm sugar, and grilled fish).
Stay overnight with local families to immerse yourself in rural Cambodian life.
📚 Environmental Education
A portion of the income from tourism supports Bridge of Life School, clean water projects, and environmental education for locals and children.
📅 Seasonal Features
Rainy Season (June–October): The entire village becomes a floating village with houses and boats gliding over the water.
Dry Season (November–May): The water recedes, exposing “wooden skyscrapers” — tall stilt houses that rise dramatically above the dry land.
💲 Tour Options & Pricing
Option Description
Group Tours: Daily departures with guides, canoe trip, and village visit & Price Range 38–45 USD
Private Tours 5.5-hour full experience, including school visit, pagoda, and Tonlé Sap sunset view & Price Range $60 USD
Custom Packages: Add-on services like Khmer cooking class, extended homestays, or community volunteering: & Price Range Varies
✅ Best For
Activity, What You’ll Gain
Canoe/Boat Ride: Explore ecosystems, learn about floodplain living and aquatic biodiversity
Environmental Study: Get insights from community guides about seasonal flooding and sustainable adaptation
Community Support: Help fund local education and clean water through responsible tourism
Local Culture: Participate in Khmer traditions like fishing, cooking, and temple visits
🌍 Community Impact
The project actively improves livelihoods, education, and environment.
It’s known for being a more ethical alternative to over-commercialized floating villages like Chong Khneas.
Revenues are reinvested into the community through infrastructure, schooling, and clean water access.

Sokchea Angkor Hotel – A Blend of French Colonial Elegance and Traditional Khmer Charm

Sokchea Angkor Hotel stands proudly in the heart of Siem Reap as an architectural gem that reflects Cambodia’s unique cultural heritage while embracing timeless colonial influences. The hotel’s design is a harmonious blend of French Colonial architecture and Traditional Khmer artistry, creating a distinctive identity that welcomes both international travelers and local guests seeking comfort with a sense of history.

From the very first glance at the hotel’s façade, one can notice the French Colonial influence. The rectangular structure with its symmetrical layout, evenly spaced windows, and clean lines recalls the architectural style introduced during the French protectorate in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The façade, painted in warm earth tones of orange and brown, is both bold and inviting, while the neatly arranged balconies and shutter-style windows add a classic touch that is reminiscent of colonial buildings found throughout Indochina. This orderly structure conveys a sense of strength and stability, yet the soft curves of the entrance arch and decorative accents make it approachable and welcoming.

Stepping inside, the hotel reveals its deeper connection to Traditional Khmer aesthetics. The lobby and courtyard are designed with cultural symbolism that immediately transports guests into the heart of Cambodian tradition. Decorative wooden features, hand-carved details, and natural elements like lotus-filled ponds and wooden boats showcase Khmer craftsmanship. The central courtyard, with its peaceful water features and lotus sculptures, reflects the importance of water and spirituality in Khmer culture, while the pavilion-style seating areas with draped curtains create an intimate and luxurious atmosphere. These design choices not only highlight Cambodian heritage but also provide a sense of serenity and balance for visitors after a day of exploring the temples of Angkor.

The hotel’s interior design also merges colonial elegance with Khmer touches. High ceilings and wide corridors, characteristic of French Colonial architecture, ensure airflow and natural light, which were practical features adapted to the tropical climate. Meanwhile, the choice of traditional patterns, warm wood tones, and handcrafted décor pieces pay tribute to Khmer artistry. This thoughtful combination creates an environment that is both comfortable and culturally immersive.

The swimming pool area continues this architectural dialogue. The surrounding structure retains the colonial-

style balconies and rectangular layout, yet the pool itself and the landscaping around it carry Khmer influences. Palm trees, bamboo fencing, and lush greenery frame the pool, evoking Cambodia’s natural beauty. Guests relaxing by the pool can enjoy both the modern comforts of a well-designed hotel and the tranquil charm of a Khmer-inspired retreat.

Altogether, Sokchea Angkor Hotel embodies the fusion of two legacies: the elegance and order of French Colonial design and the symbolic richness of Traditional Khmer architecture. This blending of styles not only makes the property visually striking but also creates a cultural narrative that connects Cambodia’s history with its present. Guests who stay here experience more than just accommodation; they are immersed in an architectural journey that reflects the country’s diverse identity and enduring spirit.

The Angkor Equinox is one of the most extraordinary natural and cultural phenomena in Cambodia, a rare celestial alignment that occurs twice a year during the spring and autumn equinoxes when the rising sun aligns perfectly with the central tower of Angkor Wat, the world’s largest religious monument and an architectural masterpiece of the Khmer Empire. This breathtaking event takes place around March 21 and September 22, when day and night are nearly equal in length due to the Earth’s axial tilt of about 23.5 degrees relative to its orbit around the sun, causing the sun’s path, or ecliptic, to intersect with the celestial equator.

During these equinoxes, the sun appears to rise precisely in the east, and at Angkor Wat, the design and orientation of the temple interact with this astronomical event in a remarkable way. The temple itself was carefully constructed in the early 12th century by King Suryavarman II as a symbolic representation of Mount Meru, the sacred mountain of Hindu and Buddhist cosmology, and many scholars believe that its orientation was not accidental but deliberately planned to harmonize earthly structures with celestial movements.

On the mornings of the equinoxes, as the sun rises over the eastern horizon, its first rays pass directly through the gates of Angkor Wat and gradually illuminate the central sanctuary, with the orb of the sun appearing to crown the main tower, an alignment that seems to unite heaven and earth in a dramatic display of cosmic order. This phenomenon is not only a striking visual spectacle but also a profound reflection of the Khmer Empire’s advanced understanding of astronomy, engineering, and sacred geometry, which were combined to create structures that embodied both political power and spiritual meaning.

The occurrence of the equinox was likely linked to agricultural cycles, as the Khmer civilization relied heavily on rice cultivation and water management, and precise knowledge of seasonal changes was essential for successful farming. The equinox may have marked an auspicious time for ceremonies, harvest planning, or royal rituals, further reinforcing the temple’s role as a cosmic and cultural center.

Today, thousands of visitors and pilgrims gather at Angkor Wat before dawn to witness this awe-inspiring alignment, waiting patiently as the sky lightens and the sun slowly emerges to sit perfectly atop the central tower, just as it did centuries ago. For many, the Angkor Equinox is more than just a scientific occurrence; it is a deeply spiritual experience that connects them with the ingenuity of the Khmer ancestors and the eternal rhythms of the universe.

In essence, the Angkor Equinox happens because of the Earth’s tilt and orbit, but its true significance lies in the way the Khmer architects anticipated and immortalized this cosmic event in stone, creating a timeless dialogue between human creation and celestial order that continues to inspire awe and reverence to this day.