Waking up at 3:30am is never easy, however, on this one occasion, I’m going to have to say it was worth it.

At 20 years old, I left London to fly alone to South East Asia. After almost a month in Thailand, I took a 27-hour long bus journey (you read that right) from Pai in Northern Thailand through the border and into Cambodia. I finally arrived with a friend at Siem Reap, the second-largest city in the country. We grabbed dinner at a nearby night market before speaking to our hostel about Angkor Wat. Thankfully, they helped us to book a private tuk-tuk to take us to, around, and back from Angkor Wat, the UNESCO site for an ancient temple complex. After that, I got to bed, not knowing just how incredible my time in Siem Reap was going to be.

How I Spent 1 Day ay Angkor Wat

The tuk-tuk picked us up at 4 AM to ensure we would make it to the site by sunrise. After a quick drive through the dark streets, we arrived at the Permit Office. Even at the crack of dawn, there was an excruciating 30-minute line to buy our ticket, but finally, we were on our way!

The day started at the Angkor Wat Temple to watch the sunrise. Watching this iconic spectacle is perhaps the most famous Angkor Wat activity and a must-do in Siem Reap (even if waking up so early means you’re still half-asleep and not 100% convinced what’s happening is real). The sunrise that day was cloudy but that didn’t make it any less beautiful. We wandered through the silent darkness among a few hundred other tourists, watching the ancient temples slowly materialise through the mist. It made the experience feel secret, special, and honestly a little supernatural.

Around 6 AM, we entered the first temple. What is most striking is the unimaginable detail in the stone carvings. I was shocked at the beauty in Chang Mai, but to see this same technique applied to these ruins is something completely special and utterly breathtaking. Plus, of course, the scale of Angkor Wat is astounding in itself. The complex spans around 27 miles and every turn offers a new and incredible site to spend way too long exploring and staring at in awe. Our tuk-tuk driver took us between temples as the site is simply too big to walk, and the stretches we did try to do by foot left me exhausted from the heat. Most visitors who attempt the sunrise then head back to town in order to nap or grab breakfast but we decided to push ourselves to stay and explore first. This turned out to be the best decision we could have made. By 7:30 AM the area was practically empty, creating a haunting and humbling atmosphere emphasised by the slowly rising sun. As the day broke, golden light was cast across the ruins leaving me speechless at every turn.

My favourite temple was Angkor Thom, famous for the Bayon style made up of towers decorated with huge stone faces. These structures cover the temple and the only word to describe it is magical. We also saw our first monkeys here. It was a family of gibbons (that’s a guess, I’m not a monkey expert) climbing around the temple, which paired with the overgrown plants made it feel extra fantastical. We spent around half an hour at each temple, giving us plenty of time to explore and enjoy as our driver waited patiently at the front.

We also made a stop at Ta Prohm, better known in the West as the Tomb Raider temple featured in the 2001 Lara Croft movie. This was one of the more popular spots filled with a lot of tourists and selfie-sticks, we also reached it later in the morning when the site in general was busier. Regardless of the number of people, it is a truly amazing space. A tree grows through the temple, showing the most wonderful example of nature reclaiming man-made structures. You know immediately why this was the spot chosen by the film.

Theboverall experience of Angkor Wat was somewhat overwhelming and required me to take a solid 4-hour nap once we returned to Siem Reap. Having not taken a break after sunrise, we were back to the city by mid-afternoon having already spent a full day at the site. This turned out to be by far one of my favourite days of this trip across Asia, and one I will never forget. If you’re in South East Asia, I promise Angkor Wat is worth the trip.

Angkor Wat Know Before You Go:

• Book a tuk-tuk at least 24 hours in advance to ensure you get a good deal and can arrive early enough for sunset. We paid around $30 USD total for a private tuk-tuk to take us around all day, including hostel pick up and drop off. It is possible to get a better price if you’re willing to haggle and try a few places, but be careful not to go too low. If a driver isn’t happy with the price or gets a better offer, they simply won’t turn up.
• Don’t try to drive or use public transport! Angkor Wat is so large that you’ll need a tuk-tuk to drive you round once you get to the site and the ones waiting at the entrance are much more expensive than those in the city.
• Cover your shoulders and legs. This is an entire site of temples, so please make sure to dress respectfully and act accordingly. Angkor Wat is a sacred place for Cambodia, not just a photo op for tourists!
• Don’t go home for a nap! The best part of our experience was being in Angkor Wat at 5am with almost no other tourists. We could explore, take photos, and enjoy to our hearts’ content without the pressure of crowds or queues. This is my absolute top tip.
• Ask your driver to take you the backward route. If you start at the furthest temples, you’re more likely to have them all to yourselves! And remember, it’s not all about the most famous spots. Trust me, every corner of Angkor Wat will be phenomenal.

To read more about my story and solo female travel, click here.