In shortFly to Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport (SAI), about 34 km and roughly 50 minutes by road from the city centre, or come from Phnom Penh: 320 km and 6 hours by coach, or 1 hour 5 minutes in the air. From the city, the temple is 6 km north, about 12 minutes by road, and visitors are driven rather than self-driving.
34 kmAirport to city centre
50 minutesAirport transfer by road
6 kmCity centre to the temple
320 kmPhnom Penh by coach
Siem Reap airport to Angkor Wat
Flights for the Angkor region land at Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport, code SAI. It took over from the old Siem Reap International Airport (REP) and opened to commercial traffic on 16 October 2023, works from a single passenger terminal, and is built for up to 7 million passengers a year. The transfer into the city is about 34 km and roughly 50 minutes by road, longer than the run from your hotel out to the temple the next morning.
Work the arrival time backwards from the park's hours rather than from the flight. Entry to the park runs from 5:00 AM until the 6:30 PM closing, with Angkor Wat itself locking up at 5:30 PM, so a flight that puts you in town after mid-afternoon has effectively bought you a hotel evening. Passes bought after 5:00 PM count for the following day, according to the official help centre: sort one out on the way in and you are set for a dawn start.
- Arriving from Phnom Penh: your departure airport is Techo International (KTI), Air Cambodia works the route daily, and Cambodia Airways schedules KR801 at 1 hour 5 minutes, 09:00-10:05
- Cambodia Airways flies two daily Phnom Penh rotations and one daily Sihanoukville rotation from Siem Reap, all on ATR 72 aircraft
- Arriving from Bangkok: PG905 lifts off Suvarnabhumi at 11:20 and is down at Siem Reap 12:40, about 1 hour 20 minutes, and since 15 September 2026 Cambodia Airways has flown the Siem Reap-Suvarnabhumi pairing five times a week on ATR 72 aircraft
- Timetables move, so confirm departure times on the day you travel
Guide and transport for the first day
Eight hours out of Siem Reap with an English tour guide, the 6 km transfer handled for you, and an air-conditioned vehicle carrying cold water and a cold towel. Dawn or late afternoon is your call, and the Angkor pass is paid separately.
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Coming by road from elsewhere in Cambodia
From Phnom Penh the coach covers 320 km in 6 hours. You pick from three daytime slots, 8:45 AM, 9:45 AM and 12:30 PM, or two night runs at 10:30 PM and 11:00 PM, and the schedule allows a single break on the way: a driver change of roughly 15 minutes at Kampong Thom town. Take one of the morning departures if you can: you arrive in daylight, settle in, and keep the next dawn intact.
Night services look efficient and are the option to think hardest about. Cambodia has one of the highest road accident rates in Southeast Asia and official advice is that driving after dark sharply raises the risk, which applies to inter-city runs and to the roads around the outlying temples alike. Between June and October the rains bring storm damage to road surfaces, landslides and flash flooding, so an overland leg in those months needs hours of slack built into it.
If you land or roll in during the evening, treat that day as arrival only. The park gates open at 5:00 AM the next morning, and the first hours there are worth more than a rushed hour before closing.
The Thai land border and what it rules out
Overland arrival from Thailand is off the table at present. Every crossing along the Cambodia-Thailand frontier stays suspended, foreign-office guidance rules out all but essential travel inside a 20 km band along that border, and the frontier temples of Khao Phra Wihan/Preah Vihear, Ta Kwai/Ta Krabey and Ta Muen Thom have been shut. Any itinerary that drives you from Bangkok to the Angkor temples needs rewriting.
The practical replacement is the air route. From Suvarnabhumi the scheduled flight is about 1 hour 20 minutes, and Cambodia Airways has flown the Siem Reap-Suvarnabhumi pairing five times a week since 15 September 2026. Border status can change, so check current travel advice shortly before you book anything that depends on it.
Visas, passports and the paperwork to sort first
Check the expiry date in your passport before you book the flight: it has to carry at least six months of validity on the day you arrive. Visas on arrival are available at Cambodian airports and at land border crossings, and the e-visa should be applied for at least four days ahead, so leave yourself more than a weekend. Entry rules are set by the Cambodian authorities, and the current wording on their pages is what applies on the day you land.
Pack the temple day into your hand luggage, because the first morning usually comes fast. Light clothing that covers shoulders and knees belongs at the top of the bag rather than the bottom: revealing clothes are banned in sacred places under the visitor code of conduct, and admission to religious sites, Angkor Wat among them, can be refused on those grounds. A scarf or sarong in your bag solves it.
Comparing how to get to Angkor Wat
What settles this comparison is how many hours of daylight each approach leaves you inside the park, and how you feel when you get there. The arrival legs are fixed by timetables. The last 6 km is the part you choose, and a guided day settles the timings against each temple's own opening hour.
Compare the tours above and check availability on the page of whichever one matches your arrival date.
| Approach | Travel time | Comfort | Day left for temples |
|---|
| Sunrise or sunset tour with guide from Siem Reap, from $18, 8 hours | 6 km out of the city, about 12 minutes by road | Air-conditioned vehicle, English tour guide, cold water and a cold towel | Most of it: dawn at the one monument open from 5:00 AM, then Angkor Thom once the 7:30 AM gates open |
|---|
| Private day tour from Siem Reap, from $49, 6-7 hours | 6 km, about 12 minutes, with hotel pickup and drop-off | Tuk-tuk for 1-3 passengers, minivan from 4, cold bottled water | A compact day built around the small circuit, about 17 km (10.5 miles) |
|---|
| Sunrise bike, e-bike or tuk tuk, from $60, 9 hours | Circuits covered under your own power, with a support vehicle alongside | Trek mountain bike and helmet, breakfast and lunch, hotel pick-up | Longest day on this page, with more time outdoors between temples |
|---|
| Fly Phnom Penh to Siem Reap | 1 hour 5 minutes in the air on KR801 (09:00-10:05), then 34 km and about 50 minutes | Air-conditioned throughout, shortest door to door | A mid-morning landing leaves the same afternoon usable |
|---|
| Coach from Phnom Penh | 320 km in 6 hours, one driver-change stop of roughly 15 minutes | Seated coach, one 15-minute pause en route | A day gone to travel; morning departures arrive with the evening free |
|---|
| Fly Bangkok to Siem Reap | About 1 hour 20 minutes on PG905, 11:20 to 12:40, then the 50-minute transfer | Air-conditioned, and the only way in from Thailand at present | Afternoon arrival, temples from the following morning |
|---|
| Overland from Thailand | Not usable: crossings suspended | Not applicable | None |
|---|
| Pass obtained through one of the official channels, transport arranged in Siem Reap | Same 6 km, plus a stop at the main counter 4 km from the centre on Apsara Road | Varies with the vehicle you end up in | Shorter: you set the order of temples yourself against five different opening times |
|---|
The last stretch out to the park entrance
The last stretch is short: 6 km north from the town centre to Angkor Wat, around 12 minutes of driving, with the main entrance area where passes are checked sitting about 5 km out. Charles de Gaulle Boulevard is the road everyone takes out of town. Tourists are generally driven rather than self-driving, and the final leg goes faster with someone who knows which gate to use at which hour.
Pass logistics shape the morning more than traffic does. Four kilometres along that same route out of the centre, where Apsara Road meets Road 60, the main Angkor Enterprise counter works 5:00 AM to 5:30 PM, and a second counter named Angkor Pavis stands at the main entrance itself on identical hours. Your tour guide can also obtain the pass for you. Every temple checkpoint scans the pass before letting you through, so it travels with you all day instead of sitting in the hotel safe.
Decide the arrival route first, then the transfer, then book a day that includes both the guide and the vehicle. For the outlying sites keep to main routes and marked paths, since landmines and unexploded ordnance remain a hazard in rural Cambodia, and avoid driving between temple areas after dark.
- City centre to the main temple: about 6 km, roughly 12 minutes by road
- Main ticket counter: Apsara Road at Road 60, about 4 km from the centre, 5:00 AM to 5:30 PM
- Driving distance once inside: about 17 km (10.5 miles) around the small circuit, about 25 km (15.6 miles) around the grand one
- Banteay Srei: about 25 km north-east of the main group, worth its own half-day
Questions people ask
Can I see the temples on the day I arrive?
It depends on when you land. A Phnom Penh flight arriving at 10:05 plus the 50-minute transfer leaves a workable afternoon, since the park stays open until 6:30 PM and the main temple until 5:30 PM. The Bangkok flight landing at 12:40 leaves a shorter window, and an evening arrival leaves none. Buying the pass after 5:00 PM makes it valid for the next day, which is the useful move on an arrival evening.
Do I need cash dollars when I get to Siem Reap?
Carry some. Official ticket counters take US dollars in cash as well as Visa, Mastercard, Discover, UnionPay, JCB and Diners Club, and online purchases are paid by card or KHQR. Count your change carefully: fake US banknotes have been passed in Cambodian shops and bars, which matters in a place where several things run on cash dollars.
Is it worth travelling overnight to save a day?
Not on these roads. Cambodia has one of the highest road accident rates in Southeast Asia and official advice is clear that night driving raises the risk substantially, so daytime departures and daylight transfers are the better call. Between June and October the monsoon adds storm damage, landslides and flash flooding to the same roads, so build in spare time rather than overnight shortcuts.
How do I reach Banteay Srei and the outlying temples?
Banteay Srei sits about 25 km north-east of the main Angkor group, roughly 25 to 30 km from Siem Reap, so it needs a dedicated half-day rather than an add-on to a circuit. It has its own staffed ticket counter, as do Beng Mealea and Koh Ker, which are on separate tickets and open from 6:00 AM. Keep to main routes out there and finish before dark.
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