Angkor Sunrise & Sunset Spots
Various locations, Angkor Archaeological Park, Siem Reap
The sunrise at Angkor Wat is the single most popular tourist experience in Cambodia — thousands of visitors gather at the reflection pools before dawn to watch the sun rise behind the temple's five towers, silhouetting them against an orange sky and reflecting the scene in the still water below.
Phnom Bakheng Sunset
Phnom Bakheng, Angkor
Phnom Bakheng is a hilltop temple-mountain between Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom that was built in the late 9th century as the state temple of the first city of Angkor (Yasodharapura, founded by King Yasovarman I around 900 AD) — predating Angkor Wat by over 200 years.
Pre Rup
Angkor Archaeological Park
Pre Rup is a 10th-century temple-mountain on the Large Circuit that is one of the best sunset alternatives to Phnom Bakheng — a stepped pyramid of brick, laterite, and sandstone topped by five towers in the quincunx arrangement that became standard in later Khmer architecture.
Srah Srang Sunrise
Srah Srang, Angkor
Srah Srang ('Royal Bath') is a 10th-century reservoir (baray) on the eastern side of the Small Circuit, measuring 700 by 350 metres, and is Siem Reap's finest alternative sunrise spot — the sun rises directly over the water from behind distant palm trees, reflecting in the perfectly still surface, and is accompanied by a bird chorus rather than the shouts of thousands of tourists at Angkor Wat.
Explore viewpoint in Siem Reap
GPS-guided narration at every landmark. Tap a spot on the map, hear the story. Every fact verified.